Actor Conor Delaney, who has appeared in hit TV show Game of Thrones, discusses reprising the role of Jake in the popular play Stones In His Pockets with Amie Mulderrig

Tell me about Stones in His Pockets.

It’s written by Marie Jones and it’s been a very successful play for a number of years now. It stars two actors and they play at least 15 characters each. The story itself deals with the Hollywood film making process. A film is being shot in rural Ireland in county Kerry and it’s the clash between the Hollywood machine and the locals who are involved in the film as extras, and the havoc it brings to the small, local town.

As an actor what have your dealings been with the Hollywood machine?

I’ve had a few experiences. Certainly ones for American television, it becomes a bigger set up and machine. There’s a lot of waiting around. Of course there will always be cultural clashes, people have their way of doing things and they expect it to translate elsewhere.

Is it difficult playing 15 characters?

No. All the hard work is in the rehearsal. You just have to go out and do it every night. You’re literally changing from a female character to an old man to a ten-year-old kid, so there’s a huge jump in accents. It gets to the stage where it’s a little slick of the hair or gesture and the audience knows who it is before the character has spoken. I think also people enjoy seeing two actors work their ass off.

So you’ve never inadvertently performed as the wrong character?

The first time I did I had a nanosecond where I went through five characters in my head, but thankfully I got back on track straight away!

There are also tragic elements, say the disintegration of a rural community. Do you believe this play is a tragedy as well as a comedy?

There’s a lot of comedy in it, but there is a tragic story to it that runs alongside it. I’d say it’s a tragic-comedy. A lot of the time it’s dependent on the director. But I think there is a joy in this show though. This show makes you laugh, it makes you smile, we’re smiling on stage, it’s a joy for everyone.