It takes 45 minutes to attach the eyecatching nose that Damien Ryan wears in the title role of Cyrano de Bergerac. But it would take considerably less time for it to fall off, something of which the lead actor, director and adaptor of Edmond Rostand's play is ever conscious.
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"The first scene is a sword fight," he said - and the concomitant movement and perspiration have made for some close calls as the glue loosens; he has taken the first opportunity he can to race offstage and apply more adhesive. But so far, he said, the worst has never occurred and Sport for Jove's production has been well received both on this tour and in its original outdoor staging a few years ago.
"It's a very joyous play even though there's a deep sadness in much of it," Ryan said. Cyrano, he said, is a brilliant writer, wit, soldier and swordsman but suffers from a deep self-hatred over his looks. He's often tormented by others, too and it affected him deeply.
"Any psychiatrist or schoolteacher will tell you the bully is the most frightened person in the playground."
In Rostand's play - updated from the original 17th-century setting to the early 20th century - Cyrano makes many enemies with his verbal and physical prowess but behind his swagger hides a deeply unhappy man. One of his few friends tells him he fears success and he seems to live in the shadows, Ryan said. Nowhere is this clearer than in the case of the woman he loves, Roxane (played by Lizzie Schebesta). They grew up together and she loves him like a brother but he has never told her of his deeper feelings and she is attracted to the handsome cadet Christian (Scott Sheridan).
Sheridan said, "He's new to Paris, a simple lad, known for his looks, not his brains... He falls in love with Roxane, a perfect vision."
Lacking the confidence, wit and social grace to talk appropriately to a woman, however, he's at a loss, until Cyrano offers to help as a ghostwriter - as Sheridan said, "He is able to everything he would like to say to Roxane vicariously."
The original Sydney production was outdoors with a slightly different cast but most of the actors have returned for this theatrical tour. Ryan said it was "a joy" to perform in "a big beautiful theatre like the Playhouse" especially with a play like Cyrano de Bergerac: "it's rich with physical imagery as well as verbal imagery. It's almost cinematic - each act is very different".
Cyrano de Bergerac is on at the Playhouse, Canberra Theatre Centre until Saturday, July 1. Bookings: canberratheatrecentre.com.au or 62752700.
