ACTOR Michael Patrick is having a moment. Alone on stage in his wheelchair, he struggles to contain his emotions as his villainous – if “more rounded” - Richard III, contemplates life, death and “the hazard of the die”.
It was a raw, unscripted moment in a new, reimagined version of Shakespeare’s ‘The Tragedy of Richard III’ (currently running at the Lyric Theatre, Belfast); a slightly teary moment that forced the lead actor to face his own fate and mortality as a recently diagnosed MND (Motor Neurone Disease) patient at the age of 34.
“I thought it was all going to be fine, but I wasn’t really emotionally detached from the role at that point,” admits the Belfast performer and writer who adapted Shakespeare’s masterpiece with long-time collaborator, Oisin Kearney (who directs). “Emotionally, it does take its toll,” he says.
“It is never mentioned on stage by name, but Richard’s terminal illness is MND - so I think... especially in that final speech, it is more myself speaking than him. His fear of death is my own fear of death and I think I exorcise some of my own demons through him on stage. It is completely authentic.”
As smiling assassins go, he makes a more likeable, darkly humorous one than the stereotypical limping hunchbacked ‘Richards’ we may be used to. There is a softness around the eyes and an almost playful, conversational tone in verse speaking that connects with the audience and seems to appeal for, if not our sympathy, then at least our understanding as to why Richard, Yorkist Duke of Gloucester, killed to be king.
Whatever the protagonist’s reasoning - the illegitimacy of his nephews is in the mix - by the end of the play, the head count is high and dead bodies (children represented by headless, wooden mannequins) are casually tossed into a rubbish skip wheeled on stage by henchman, Tyrrell (superbly played with expert comic timing by deaf actress Paula Clarke, using sign language).
“I think you are meant to pity Richard up to a point, even if you think he goes too far,” argues the co-writer of My Left Nut, who is relishing his first time on stage at the Lyric (although, The Border Game, written by himself and Kearney, premiered there) – and being the first actor in a wheelchair on the main stage. “It’s a last throw of the dice, kind of thing.
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“Richard could choose to end his days by having a good time and having people remember him as a happy man, but he doesn’t. He chooses to try and take what he feels he’s owed. He makes his choices.
“He says he can’t do anything now but strive for the crown and I can’t do anything but strive to play Richard III. That’s the way I’ve been thinking about it, but at the end of the day, it’s just a good Shakespeare play and I love Shakespeare - my speech and drama teacher, Gwyneth Murdock, who sadly has just recently passed away, had us reciting Shakespeare at four or five years old. I wouldn’t be acting without her.”
I hope it raises the profile of all types of disabled actors and people go away thinking we were integral to the piece, rather than being seen as a type of token gesture and that more theatre and television companies will consider putting disabled actors front and centre
— Michael Patrick
In most productions, Shakespeare’s bloodthirsty anti-hero is disabled from birth, but in the Patrick/Kearney adaptation, Richard has been given a recent diagnosis “and it turns him into a murderer”.
“Now, I’m not turning into a murderer because I’ve got a terminal illness,” Michael quips, “but you can understand why people might want to put their mark on the world. And, in Richard’s world, the way to put your mark on things was by murdering… but the real tragedy, or course, is that he just can’t change.”
Instilling some dark humour came second nature to the Cambridge-educated writer and actor (he studied physics and materials science before taking a master’s in acting at Mountview drama school in London).
“Humour, I think, is how we all deal with stuff,” he muses, “and even a Shakespearean tragedy has to have humour. There always needs to be entertainment value - people are spending time and money to come and see a show, so if they’re not laughing, I don’t think there’s any point.”
It is clear that the award-winning writer-actor, who only married last year, is also using humour to deal with his MND – it was a timely joke about his diagnosis posted on social media that caught the attention of Lyric producer Jimmy Fay and led to the show coming to life in the first place.
Read more: Laughing in the face of suffering with a Shakespearean tragedy - Radio review
“I was diagnosed on February 1 2023 after experiencing some symptoms, including a foot drop,” Michael recalls. “Funnily enough, I turned to Shakespeare to read what he had written about death.
“Soon after, I seemed to keep bumping into people who kept asking why I was using a stick. I thought it would just be better to put it out on social media, telling everyone.”
At the end of his post, he added “a wee joke”, saying if anyone wanted to cast him as Richard III, his limp was very authentic…
“Jimmy Fay saw it, asked if I was serious and it all went from there,” he says. “The minute I was diagnosed, I started to make dark jokes about everything; that’s just how I cope with life, I guess.
“Humour keeps me buoyant – Oisin and I are now working with [television production company] Two Cities on a series dealing with Motor Neurone Disease and it’s definitely a comedy – entitled: ‘So , you’re Going to Die’. I think I’m very lucky that I’m just a glass half-full kind of guy.”
Currently, he maintains that positive attitude thanks to a new trial in Dublin that he is part of - along with his sister, Kate O’Kane, who in January this year was also diagnosed with the same type of genetic MND.
“My father died from MND when I was eight,” Michael explains. “Apparently, our family has the rarest form – there are only a few hundred people in the world with this gene called the FUS gene, but it means we’re on this drug trial which may reverse symptoms and that gives me hope. I have been on the trial, involving a brand new drug, for 14 months now.”
Meanwhile, he copes with day-to-day symptoms “still mostly” in his legs, with the support of his “amazing” wife, Naomi Campbell (who is, he stresses, “short and white”, lest we think he is married to the black supermodel of the same name).
“Without her help to get showered and dressed every morning, I wouldn’t be able to do the show at all,” he adds sincerely. “I am so lucky, really - while my Shakespeare character ends up alone in dealing with all this, I have an amazing wife and family and friends.
“I want to thank the Lyric and the entire cast and crew who have worked so hard to make sure this show is what it is. I hope it raises the profile of all types of disabled actors and people go away thinking we were integral to the piece, rather than being seen as a type of token gesture and that more theatre and television companies will consider putting disabled actors front and centre.”
Michael Patrick shares the role of Richard III with actor Zak Ford-Williams who has cerebral palsy. Other cast members include Tyrrell (Paula Clarke), Ghaliah Conroy (Lady Anne), Michael Curran-Dorsano (Hastings), Allison Harding (Duchess of York), Patrick McBrearty (Buckingham), Charlotte McCurry (Queen Elizabeth), Chris McCurry (Stanley) and Ciaran O’Brien (Clarence).
The Tragedy of Richard III, part of this year’s Belfast International Arts Festival, continues at the Lyric Theatre, Belfast, until November 10 www.lyrictheatre.co.uk
