Ruairi Conaghan, the award-winning Broadway, West End, and Downton Abbey actor, brings his acclaimed hit Lies Where It Falls to the Edinburgh Fringe.
This compelling and surprisingly funny solo play tells the courageous, joyous, and uplifting tale of Conaghan’s recovery from the trauma of his uncle’s murder by the IRA when he was a child.Through a unique blend of song, poetry, humor, and Shakespeare, Conaghan explores the lasting and unpredictable effects of violence, leaving audiences with a sense of hope and empathy even in the darkest of times.
The raw, truthful, and soul-bearing honesty of his performance has garnered widespread acclaim.Lies Where It Falls will be performed at C alto Studio from July 31st to August 25th, excluding August 14th. Tickets are available now.
You are bringing Lies Where It Falls to C alto studio at the Edinburgh Fringe. What can you tell us about the show.
Lies where it Falls is a challenging, uplifting and surprisingly funny piece of theatre that deals with my delayed trauma from an act of violence upon my family during the early years of the Northern Irish conflict and then my eventual recovery. It is also a story of Theatre. How does an actor play the part of a man who represents the group that was responsible for shattering his family? How do I give truth to that character and what will be the impact upon myself?
How did you approach this deeply personal subject matter in a theatrical setting?
I knew I had a story to tell. I knew that it had to be about Truth and because of that I had no trouble opening myself to the authenticity and personal nature of the story. At first I thought it might be a book or a novella but I really had no experience of writing in that form but what I did understand was theatre and how a play can be created. So that’s what I did.
I wrote a play and it came to me easily but it was too long. Having worked in Theatres like The Royal Court, The National and The Lyric Theatre Belfast I understood that First drafts are the beginning of a journey so with my director Patrick O Kane we worked and worked, draft after draft to get to the version we wanted.
Tell us more about meeting Patrick Magee?
There was a kind of absurdity in meeting Patrick Magee. This man has killed 5 human beings that we know of. He may know who the man was who killed my uncle and yet I was there exchanging polite conversation with him, drinking tea and eating chocolate biscuits and eventually having a curry with him. Much of it was comedic. What I was thinking. My jump from anger to curiosity. To wanting to scream at him but at the same time trying to mimic his physicality the sound of his voice. When I reflected on it after my recovery I just thought it was really interesting.
What was going on in my head. This would make a really interesting story. The striking thing was I remember every word we said to each other, every thought I had, to this day. I doubt he might even struggle to remember that we even met.
The play incorporates elements of song poetry humour and Shakespeare. What inspired this unique blend of storytelling techniques?
Having been an actor now for over 30 years I have worked in just about every branch of Theatre and Storytelling. From Brechtian to absurdism. From Musicals to edgy Royal Court political plays. You name it, I’ve done it. I have seen the benefit of how all these forms aid and abet good storytelling. So I thought why Don’t I just incorporate many of these forms into my play. To be daring, to keep you listening. To keep you entertained. All of those forms are characters in the play and all aid me to bring my authenticity to that audience.
How challenging was it to achieve this authenticity on stage?
The only part of it’s authenticity that I find challenging to perform is the description of my Uncle’s murder by the IRA. The actual events of that morning in 1974. The kind of bland domesticity of how that morning started and the cataclysmic end to it. But that is only a small part of this story. The rest of the play is what happened to me . I am now well. It took time but I am well again. So relating the story of my delayed trauma and my recovery is a good thing. So it’s good for me to do it and in terms of the “ Soul Bearing Honesty “. I ‘ve already seen how that authenticity has really helped other people. That they feel emboldened to tell their own stories of trauma.
What would you say to anyone thinking of booking to see the show?.
You will see an accomplished brave and hopeful piece of Theatre performed by an experienced storyteller that will inform, thrill and entertain. If we can all just find empathy with each other then everything will be better.
