Main cause of stress
Trying to juggle the TV and stage work can be stressful. We were doing this show in Belfast so I was up at 6 a.m., working on Fair City and then heading to Belfast. I was delayed in RTE one day so I didn't arrive in Belfast until 8.05 p.m. for a show that should have started at 8 p.m.
Remembering lines can be stressful. I've had blanks when I wouldn't know my own name, not to mention the next line. There are times in Fair City when you are in a scene and someone says something that sounds vaguely familiar and waits for you to respond. You know the line but you just can't find it. When you see it played back, it's very funny.
I'm in a play at the moment (Loco County Lonesome) where there are two of us playing multiple characters. Some of the lines are repetitive so if you make a slip, you could end up pages ahead of yourself. That's a scary feeling.
Coping with stress
Before a stage show, I like to do a workout for about half-an-hour. TV work is very stodgy, with a lot of sitting around, so a work-out clears your head and gives you great energy. I have two kids so I try to give them my full attention when I have free time. Spending time with them allows you to turn off completely. I like to go to the movies to relax but that's a bit of a busman's holiday.
Actors under pressure
Acting is very stressful. You have a lot of pre-show stress so when you perform it's a great release. That's a productive type of stress. Then when you are not working, there's the stress of wondering where the next job is coming from. Will I work again? Maybe I'm not good enough? I know of casualties in the business, where the stress took its toll on people and they said "this just isn't worth it".
Loco County Lonesome runs in Andrews Lane Theatre, Dublin, until May 19th.
In conversation with Alison Healy