HomeArts & LifestyleKillian Donnelly interview

Killian Donnelly interview

Irish actor Killian Donnelly is currently wowing London audiences as Deco in The Commitments at Londonā€™s Palace Theatre.

The show is an adaptation of Roddy Doyleā€™s novel of the same name which was turned into a film in 1991. Directed by Jamie Lloyd, the new stage production brings the iconic novel to life on stage packing in all the music you know from the movie.

We caught up with Killian to find out more about the show, talk about his fearless performance and discuss how the role compares to his impressive past West End roles.

What have you been up to other than the show this week?

Yesterday we went to Children in Need at Elstree Studios and we went there on the bus. Iā€™ve never seen The Commitments so excited in all my life than getting a big bus to take us to the BBC Studios. We were all saying ā€˜weā€™re a real band! Weā€™re on a tour bus!ā€™ When we got there we did a soundcheck for about an hour and half and sang Mustang Sally and Try a Little Tenderness about six times. Then we got back on the bus and were brought to the Palace Theatre where we all got burgers into us. We did the show last night and got a standing ovation! After youā€™ve had a day like that youā€™re a bit like ā€˜oh god Iā€™m so tired for the showā€™ and then you get the buzz of the audience and go ā€˜this is going to be a cracking night, I love thisā€™. Today Iā€™ve been back at BBC Radio centre doing interviews again.

Pretty busy then?

Yeah! I love it though. Itā€™s go, go, go! Itā€™s really good.

For those that havenā€™t seen The Commitments yet tell us in a nutshell what itā€™s about.

The show itself is about a group of about 10 unknowns in Dublin in 1986. A young man called Jimmy Rabbitte takes them all and puts them into a soul band to bring soul to the people of Dublin. These kids have never heard soul, donā€™t know who James Brown or Otis Redding is, Marvin Gaye or any of these, and this music just hits and touches them. It takes them away from their humdrum lives in Dublin and they just play to the people of Dublin and become little superstars in their own little town. Before you know it thereā€™s record producers interested and they get contracts being offered. Itā€™s a beautiful little simple comedy story about the clashes that happen when putting a band together, especially the character I play Deco who is the catalyst for all of the fights really because his egoā€™s too big for the stage. Itā€™s just a lovely, lovely little story.

Deco really is the livewire of the band. What attracted you to that role?

Exactly that! (laughs) I guess as an actor itā€™s something Iā€™ve never done before. I was always put in as Enjolras in Les Mis or Raoul in The Phantom, these handsome leading men so Deco was the complete opposite; an arrogant, rude, crude soul singer. I absolutely love the book and I love the movie. Roddy Doyle is a household name in Ireland and this is so iconic that I would literally have done anything to get it. Happy days that it came along.

I remember the final audition singing with different bands because they had three Joey the Lips, three drummers and be alternating all the time. Iā€™d go in and sing Soul Man with the band and Iā€™d leave and another man would come in. Iā€™d come back and sing Soul Man again with another band. Hearing that music played live by actors on stage in the final audition I was like ā€˜I really want this partā€™. Then I thought ā€˜Iā€™d actually really want to see this show as wellā€™. Luckily I got it.

Your performance in the show is completely fearless and energetic. How do you not just collapse by the end of it?

I do! We added two new songs in the last two days in to the encore. As we were choreographing that I just fell on the floor for a laugh and the choreographer loved it. She said ā€˜I love this, keep it inā€™ and I was so happy to be able to sing a song lying on the floor because I was absolutely shattered. You just have to perform and you get a buzz off the audience, which gives it the energy. Yesterday I ran up a wall and it wasnā€™t until the musical director said ā€˜did you run up a wall?ā€™ and I said ā€˜oh yes I did!ā€™ It wasnā€™t like Iā€™d planned to do that. I just ran up the wall for the craic. Itā€™s the buzz and the cheer you get from the audience. The next thing I want to do is stage dive so Iā€™m planning that for some point. Iā€™m hoping I have the right crowd to stage dive on.

The Commitments

You could have done that during the performance last night as the crowd were on their feet for most of the showā€¦

Argh! I know, I know! Iā€™ve got to take my moment and shout ā€˜catch me!ā€™

We were incredibly impressed how you kept up the energy throughout the performance. It must be very vocally demanding too?

It is, it is! Itā€™s like anything. If I was a runner Iā€™d be looking after my feet and with your voice you just have to look after yourself. I donā€™t go out, I donā€™t drink, I donā€™t smoke, Iā€™m eating a lot of healthy food and drinking a lot of water. I do warm-ups just before the show and after the show I do a warm down. I have a lot of honey and hot drinks. When itā€™s your job you have to just look after your instrument.

Thereā€™s a scene in the show where you strip down to your underpants at the front of the stage. Were you nervous about that?

Do you know how that happened? It was always in the script and the line says ā€˜Deco changes into his suitā€™ and that was it. I was thinking ā€˜oh Iā€™ll just go somewhere or go off stage and changeā€™. When we were rehearsing Jamie Lloyd, the director, would go ā€˜ok Killian youā€™ll just change into your suit at thisĀ  pointā€™ and Iā€™d go ā€˜yeah, yeahā€™ and everyone would do their own thing and change. I said ā€˜where am I changing?ā€™ and he said ā€˜right here, front and centreā€™. I said ā€˜right here?ā€™ and he repliedā€™ yesā€™. I was like ā€˜Iā€™m going to be down to my underwear right here?ā€™ and he goes ā€˜yesā€™. I remember he had these smiling eyes looking at me as if to say ā€˜go on, do itā€™. I said ā€˜Iā€™ll get one up on you. Can I get Superman underwear?ā€™ and he went ā€˜yes you canā€™. That was amazing and thatā€™s how we have Superman underwear at that point. I was thinking itā€™s 1986 so he will have Superman underwear so I love that they got that in. That gives me the confidence to do it I think.

In the show The Commitments bicker and fight a lot but itā€™s clear that thereā€™s a love and a fondness for each other. Is that how it is with the cast as well?

Yeah absolutely. Weā€™re all friends and weā€™re all getting on a bus and doing these promo gigs. Weā€™re all doing it together whereas with other shows like The Phantom of the Opera, the Phantom would be doing the promo. With us itā€™s the 10 members of the band so we are being kept together and hanging out a lot. A lot of these people are making their West End debuts so itā€™s lovely to see how excited and how happy they are just going on this journey. If there were ever bickering backstage the gorgeous thing about this show is that we get to vent onstage. If you donā€™t like anybody then you can just save it for the stage. We just shout anything at each other and thatā€™s how we get it all out (laughs).

We loved the bickering scenes on stage where it all descended into a loud, raucous messā€¦

Thatā€™s the thing that people are absolutely loving. Thatā€™s all improvised. In the script it just says ā€˜they argueā€™ and at that point the whole band just tear into each other and start shouting things like ā€˜donā€™t point your finger at me, I swear to God Iā€™ll put your head through a wallā€™. We say anything to each other. Myself and Joe Woolmer ā€“ people say he headbutts me at one point and itā€™s so real ā€“ but every time we get that reaction from the audience we give each other a high five and say ā€˜that was an amazing headbuttā€™ whilst Iā€™ve got fake blood all over my face.

The Commitments

You mentioned earlier that youā€™re a fan of the book and the film. How much did you refer back to those when you were preparing to play Deco?

I read the book two weeks before I started the workshop which was two years ago. Iā€™ve seen the film before but when I got the role for the show I read the book again. I was pretty familiar with it and I remember that I always had the book in my pocket during rehearsals. Iā€™d highlight pages when I saw something. There are a lot of things they couldnā€™t do in the movie that we could do in the play. For example in the book when Deco is getting so comfortable with singing heā€™d wear his favourite tracksuit trousers. Heā€™d walk around with a hot towel and eat honey from the jar. These were tiny little details that we were able to put into the play. Itā€™s lovely when a fan of the book stands at the stage door and says ā€˜I saw the tracksuit trousersā€™ or ā€˜I saw the honeyā€™. It just makes you give yourself a little backstory.

You even managed to sing at points with a mouth full of foodā€¦

Thatā€™s something I absolutely love doing ā€“ singing with a bag of chips. Thatā€™s one of the best notes I ever heard from the award-winning director Jamie Lloyd. ā€˜Killian sing through the chips!ā€™ Amazing! Iā€™m going to take that to my grave. Thatā€™s the best note a director has ever given me ever.

It sounds like some kind of life philosophy that doesnā€™t it? ā€˜Sing through the chips!ā€™

Yeah! The stage manager was actually calculating what I eat and drink in one show. I eat a plate of spaghetti, a full Ć©clair, a bag of chips, I drink two full pints of non-alcoholic beerā€¦itā€™s a bit mental. Then I have to strip off into my underwear and Iā€™m like ā€˜come on!ā€™ (laughs)

You donā€™t get much time for toilet breaks either do you?

No! I started to sort of set them into my routine of the show. I think after this scene I can get a 2 minute pee break so Iā€™m working those in now.

The Commitments is booking until the end of January. Are you going to fit anything else in before the show finishes or are you solely concentrating on the show?

No. Itā€™s The Commitments completely now and weā€™re still trying to find out feet with it. As you get new audiences youā€™re trying to work out how to adjust so how is a Tuesday night audience different from a Saturday night audience? My full focus is on The Commitments.

Youā€™ve played a lot of great stage roles in your career to date. How does playing Deco compare to those?

Deco is arrogant and crude whereas as Iā€™ve played Enjolras in Les Mis who is a heroic revolutionary leader and Iā€™ve played Raoul in The Phantom of the Opera who is an aristocrat so well to do characters from well brought up backgrounds. I played Tony in Billy Elliot who was more along the acting side of things as opposed to musical theatre. He was very hot-headed and strong and knew what he wanted. He was always supporting the family. Deco is more along those lines but on the comedy end of things. Itā€™s just completely different to anything Iā€™ve done before. As an actor itā€™s the best compliment I can get if people say ā€˜you were Raoulā€™ after seeing me playing Deco. Thatā€™s what you want.

The Commitments is playing now at the Palace Theatre and is booking until 26th January 2014. For more information and tickets go to http://www.thecommitmentslondon.com/

Pip Ellwood-Hughes
Pip Ellwood-Hughes
Pip is the owner and Editor of Entertainment Focus, and the Managing Director of PiƱata Media. With over 19 years of journalism experience, Pip has interviewed some of the biggest stars in the entertainment world. He is also a qualified digital marketing expert with over 20 years of experience.

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