Culture That Made Me: Catherine Mahon-Buckley, Cork pantomime director
Catherine Mahon-Buckley is from Turners Cross in Cork.
Catherine Mahon-Buckley grew up in Turner’s Cross, Cork. She is the artistic director of the stage school, Cork Academy of Dramatic Arts, which she founded in 1988. As an actor, she has performed numerous leading roles, including Maggie in John B. Keane’s Big Maggie, and she has directed productions from Les Misérables to the national premiere of Fame. Beauty and the Beast, her 29th consecutive year directing and producing a Christmas pantomime, opens Saturday, The Everyman, Cork. See www.everymancork.com.
One of my first theatre memories is seeing Cinderella, possibly in the Cork Opera House, or in a local production, which were thriving in those days. I had very specific ideas, particularly with Cinderella – if it didn't meet my criteria, then I was bored. I remember being enthralled with this production. The ugly sisters were horrible. Cinderella was exactly what I wanted. The scenery and costumes were fantastic. The fairy godmother had the white dress. She had to be in that glitter. I still love glitter. As I say: “Glitter, fur, diamonds, and I'm anyone’s.”
In my teens, I loved Jane Austen’s books: the storylines, romance, scenery, language and the sayings. I loved the pace of life they had – the way they had time to read, to listen to music, to do the arts like crochet, and yet had set rules of behaviour. They had set ideas, not all correct but maybe for human beings were good guidelines. The only thing I didn't like about them – I was a bit of a rebel and into justice, which I got from my mom, who was into women's rights – was the idea that parents had to be asked for a woman's hand in marriage. I thought that was outrageous.
I gravitated towards John B. Keane because I loved the way he addressed women's issues within his plays. I loved the power of John B. Keane’s women, from Sive to Big Maggie – how they were forced down. Men didn't recognise them. Like Sive – the way people could decide what way she was going to live her life. How these women were very strong. He addressed the menopause in one of his plays. His writing was phenomenal.
Les Misérables is a stand-out musical, based on the novel by Victor Hugo. I like the social issues it explores and the music. Music can stir the inner soul of us. A piece of music can bring up so many emotions in you. Les Misérables does that.
I love Shakespeare. Why is he so brilliant today as he was in the sixteenth century? It’s because he touched on human beings and social issues, and they have not changed. We can identify with his plays. A favourite is Macbeth. I was fascinated by his whole relationship with Lady Macbeth and how the woman could have the force to get a man, who was so strong in the outside world, to do her bidding. She could manipulate him. Why could she manipulate him? Because she was brilliant in bed.
Hamlet is an extraordinary play. When his father died, Hamlet put him on a pedestal. Maybe he wasn't the person Hamlet thought he was. Hamlet thought everybody was against him. He was astute. He knew his players, and he maneuvered them. I loved all the strategies he used. It was interesting to see whom he could trust. In our lives today, if we were to use those strategies we wouldn’t have friends. If you want unconditional love, which Hamlet was looking for, you won’t get it in a human being. Maybe in animals. When that search failed him, and people failed him, he felt worthless and it destroyed him.
Judi Dench is tops. What makes a great actor or performer is that they are humble. They're always trying to perfect what they're doing. They will always work harder. They use the “what if?” What if this could happen and what if that could happen. There's too many actors out there who keep telling us how wonderful they are. It’s harder to find ones that are humble, and she's one of them.
Gary Zukav’s The Seat of the Soul: An Inspiring Vision of Humanity's Spiritual Destiny explores our five senses and their connection back into our soul. It's a book about understanding ourselves at a profound level. I'm a great believer that I as a person am made-up of emotions, spiritual, mental and physical. How do they work in those little boxes? How are they connected to each other? I'm always saying if one of them isn't connected, I am unable to perform to the best of my ability.
I always loved Richard Dreyfuss. I love his black humour. He’s very real, even playing comedy. He played his fair share of irritating pests, which I love. He would drive people crazy. He was brash. In his films, he’s a straight-talker. He would shock you. I love people who are straight out. They have an agenda; they say it, and you can actually work with that.
I love Maggie Smith’s diversity. She’s into theatre, films, television. She's lasted over seven decades as an actress. She’s very versatile – she’s played from pantomime to classics. Each time you'd see her, she brings a different persona to her character. She wouldn't be what you'd call a stunning-looking woman. She wouldn't have been noted as being a beauty, but goodness internally she's beautiful, and classic.
My great love growing up were the plays of Seán O’Casey. I go back into my own history. My mom was from Dublin. My granny and granddad came from “Upstairs, Downstairs” – my granny was a scullery maid and my grandfather was an officer in the army. He came from wealth, and she came from the working class. My granny was steeped in that era of O’Casey, Moore Street and their lingo. You could put his plays on in other countries at the moment. It's almost like his characters lived what people in Israel-Palestine are living now at the moment. Things don't change.
Any of the Disney musicals – Aladdin, Cinderella, Little Mermaid – and I’m away on a hack. They bring me back to my childhood. As a child, they brought magic, spirit and life to me. It's that fantasy world, and yet within those storylines, there are messages for us, and particularly for our young people. It’s good versus evil and how can you deal with it and does evil always survive? As human beings, we always want to know that it doesn’t. The songs as well in them are powerful.
