Since the beginning of time people have been obsessed with celebrity. Even the ancient Greeks lauded their Olympic heroes by carving their images on wine flasks and urns that people would purchase in a similar fashion to the way we consume celebrity memorabilia today. In the 16th century, William Shakespeare was feted as a famous playwright and poet. Today, whoever adorns the pages of the gossip mags on any given day is tagged with the auspicious ‘celebrity’ label. It is the realm in which these two worlds collide that provides the backdrop for the musical comedy that is currently selling out the Olympia Theatre like nobodys business. Written by I, Keano veterans, Gary Cooke and Malachy McKenna, MacBecks is described as “a musical comedy about a footballer called MacBecks, with an over-ambitious popstar wife, who forces him to sacrifice his career for celebrity and fame.” No prizes for guessing the celebrity couple providing the inspiration for the show then.
Totally Dublin caught up with actor Paul Reid, who plays the role of MacBecks in the show, to ask him what he thinks it is about the Posh and Becks saga that hold so much fascination for people. “First of all you had the Spice Girls, who were huge at the time,” says Reid, “and then you had David Beckham who was this up and coming footballer who was about to be massive. Beckham was the best football player in the world, an England hero. And when him and a Spice Girl got together, that just sent everyone buzzing and it’s created a new breed of celebrity. The Beckhams have a global effect.” He also praises the writers for being able to spot a good thing when they see it. “Nobody thought of the Beckhams before Gary and Malachy.” he says while pointing out how helpful the team were in helping him to prepare for the role, “Gary and the lads that were in I, Keano were very helpful on how to approach it. But also, I am a Beckham fan and I did a lot of research. To their credit, they left me alone and let me create a character.”
Although he admits that he is a devout Liverpool FC fan, Reid assures Totally Dublin that it was an honour to play a character based on the Manchester United legend regardless of his personal allegiances. “I’m a football fan so I can appreciate why people love United but I’m a big, big Liverpool supporter!” he laughs and continues, “They’re [the Beckhams] so clever and remain underestimated. If they saw the show I think they’d laugh their heads off, I really do. Victoria Beckham has a great sense of humour. They know what to take seriously and what not to take seriously”. Reid acknowledges that his passion for the beautiful game came in handy when preparing for the role. “I would go to rehearsals and David Bolger, who is the director and also the dance choreographer, would be kicking the ball and I’d be like ‘no, thats not really how you’d kick it!’ I think it helps the audience believe that I actually can play football and the parts with the freestyling help the audience believe that MacBecks really is a soccer legend.”
There are a number of mesmerising moments in MacBecks that make you forget about the comedic aspect for a split second. In one particular scene, involving about a dozen actors engaged in a re-enactment of the infamous 2002 World Cup match between England and Argentina, movement is magically slowed down and it seems almost implausible that slow-motion scenes involving so many people could be so successfully played out live on stage without the aid of special effects. Reid agrees – “Even when I’m sitting in an audience and I see something like that in slow motion I’m totally taken in by it. It gets the audience to take in absolutely everything that’s going on and really engage in it” he says, enthusiastically noting that the results can be equally rewarding for the cast, “I love doing the slow motion stuff because you can really feel the audience enjoying it.”
After the success of I, Keano and now MacBecks, it seems that a winning formula has been discovered; one that uses a blend of compelling characters and imaginative stage performance, adds a dash of slapstick and a pinch of parody. So what’s next for the express gravy train that is MacBecks? It appears that the show is building momentum and support with each passing day. Reid informs us that the cast will find out soon if the show is to get another run in spring. If the popularity of the current showing is anything to go by, chances are it’s a shoe-in. MacBecks is running at the Olympia Theatre, Dublin until the 31st of January before moving to Cork for a two week stint at the Cork Opera House.
Words by Sheena Madden
