Play for today

Sep 5 2008 by Michael Green, Chester Chronicle

There are times when you wonder whether Daniel Craig even knows where the city of his birth is anymore – which is why it was so refreshing to hear stage and screen star Emma Cunniffe sound so proud of the fact she was born in Chester.

“Yes, it’s true – I was born at the Countess of Chester Hospital and I was brought up in Frodsham where my mum and dad still live,’ declared the actress who is probably still best known for her major role in TV drama series The Lakes.

Cunniffe’s affinity with Cheshire has brought her back to the North West on a number of occasions although it is actually four years since she was last here in a Royal Exchange Theatre production of Major Barbara in Manchester.

And it is the same venue which brings her back home, this time for Chekhov’s masterpiece Three Sisters which has been specially adapted by acclaimed British writer Michael Frayn and can be seen at the Royal Exchange from September 10-October 11.

It marks another milestone in what has been a busy year for Cunniffe who has recently appeared on TV in Midsomer Murders and Casualty and will shortly been seen again on the small screen in Poirot and a three part ITV thriller Place of Execution with Juliet Stevenson and Greg Wise.

As far as theatre is concerned, she is particularly proud of her work at the Old Vic where she starred opposite Robert Lindsay in The Entertainer but is now thrilled at having the chance to tackle one of the great Russian plays of all time near home turf.

“It has been a particularly good year and I was filming in Manchester on Clash of the Santas with Robson Greene when the chance to do Three Sisters came up. I had already met the director Sarah Franckom before and it is one of those plays I have always wanted to do,” said Cunniffe.

The play revolves around the lives and dreams of sisters Irina, Masha and Olga. When their brother falls in love, it is not only the dream of a better life in Moscow that is put at risk, but the very roof above their heads.

Cunniffe plays middle sister Masha who marries a man she initially finds very charming but quickly tires of, embarking on an affair. All three sisters are forced to live in a small provincial town but all dream of returning to Moscow where they were raised.

Although written in 1900, Cunniffe believes there is much in the play that will resonate with 21st century audiences: “It’s a play about humanity and emotion, about family and love, and all those things are pretty much the same now as they were then.”

Cunniffe can now add Chekhov to a list of conquests that already includes Shakespeare, Ibsen, Osborne and Shaw while her successful TV career also takes in the likes of Great Expectations, Flesh and Blood, Cracker and The Whistle Blower.

Not bad for a former St Luke’s Primary School pupil from Frodsham!

Cunniffe admits that the performance bug bit early on, something she believes has a lot to do with her mother’s talents as a jazz singer, working with a number of bands over the years.

She remembers appearing in pantomime at Frodsham Community Centre and taking part in the annual Frodsham Carnival before the chance to go to an arts educational school in Hertfordshire took her away from Frodsham High School at the age of 13.

And she remains full of praise for her parents June and Frank and the part they have played in her success: “They were always keen on the theatre and took me along and when I decided it was what I wanted to do, they were incredibly supportive and encouraging.”

They will, of course, be going along to the Royal Exchange to see their daughter in Three Sisters but at the moment, Cunniffe is unsure where her busy career will take her next.

“I just go from one job to another so I have no idea what’s coming up after this. I feel really lucky to have this great balance between TV and stage work and there are certainly parts I would love to play that I haven’t done yet such as A Doll’s House or Hedda Gabler.”

Emma Cunniffe can be seen in Three Sisters at the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester from September 10-October 11. Ring the box office on 0161 833 9833 or book online at www.royalexchange.co.uk/bookonline.