Aisling Loftus on Bringing a Notts Feel to One-Woman Play Girls & Boys
"I've had loads of people that I haven't seen for ten, fifteen years coming in to see the play, it's just incredible."
‘Girls & Boys’ is a play that debuted in London’s West End, ran off-Broadway in New York and has travelled as far as Singapore and Australia. But right now, at our own Nottingham Playhouse, Dennis Kelly’s fascinating story is getting a distinctly Notts makeover, thanks to local star Aisling Loftus and director Anna Ledwich.
A one-woman play that explores “a disturbing undercurrent” in a relationship that threatens to develop into something more, the lead (only) role has been played by the likes of Londoner Carey Mulligan and prolific French performer Constance Dollé. Yet, in keeping with making this a distinctly East Midlands affair, Loftus had no interest in studying the past - with the Television Workshopper wanting to bring a properly fresh feel to her performance.
“That wouldn't be very helpful, really,” Loftus reveals when asked if she studied any other stars before taking on this role. “The play is what myself and Anna have made together, and obviously the design team and everyone, which happens in the rehearsal room. And that's weeks and weeks and weeks of conversations and trying things out to see what works.
“I was thinking at some point, maybe I would… I think Carey did an audio version of it. And I was thinking, maybe I'll listen to that, just because I’d be interested to see how she did it. Of course, she's such an incredible actress. But it would be a bit crass, and because I'm trying to make my version of this woman from Nottingham, that brings its own thing to it, you know, its own tunes and contexts and stuff.”
“The other night we had my drama group stop by. A load of young Workshoppers came to see the play, and at the time I wasn't thinking too much about it, but afterwards I felt quite emotional”
So far, it’s safe to say whatever Loftus is doing is working out well. There have been very few plays in recent memory that have made quite as big an impression in Notts, with the Playhouse’s social media pages flooded with positive messages from those who have turned up to check out what the former Television Workshopper has in store.
Has Loftus felt this buzz around the city? “It's been really incredible,” she smiles. “I’ve had loads of people that I haven't seen for, like, ten, fifteen years coming in to see the play, it's just incredible.
“The other night we had my drama group stop by. A load of young Workshoppers came to see the play, and at the time I wasn't thinking too much about it, but afterwards I felt quite emotional.
“It’s special to be home, and especially with something like that - it’s almost like performing for these people that are effectively like my younger self. I mean, I would have loved to have seen something like this when I was coming up through the Workshop, and it’s really special to be here. I really hope that one day I'll get to come back and do something again, because it's just a massive privilege, really. And it's been lovely.”
As we’re talking - powering through some dodgy broadband to chat through Zoom - Loftus is a few days into the run, and just over an hour away from heading back out onto the stage once more. For most people (ie this guy), pouring your heart out across two intense hours over and over again might prove exhausting after a while. But the star has a couple of people who have been helping her to train for that.
“I mean, I've got two kids, so I feel like I've got more used to those demands. When I think about my twenties, when I was performing, I really needed to rest, but if you've got kids, you just can't do that. So I feel like I’m very much ready for this.
“It's difficult, obviously, but it's not in its own way. It's such a cracking play, so I’m just feeling lucky, to be honest.”
Seeing one of our own take on a properly meaty role, inspire the next generation of performers and bring a global production to Wellington Circus - Nottingham as a city is feeling pretty lucky, too.
‘Girls & Boys’ is showing at Nottingham Playhouse until Saturday 1st March.
(Picture credit: Johan Persson)