Paul Mescal senior to play Donegal publican

THE father of one of Ireland’s hottest actors returns to the stage after many years in a play set in the dance halls of Donegal.

Paul Mescal senior, father of the Oscar nominated son of the same name, takes to the stage in the Civic Theatre in Tallaght playing the role of grumpy bar owner Seamie McDaid in ‘Are Ya Dancing’. It is set in 1960s showband era in Donegal and is described as capturing the magic of the showband era and the social injustices of the time.

Paul senior is a teacher in Scoil na Mainistreach in Celbridge, County Kildare, and he plans to retire next year and hopes to perform more often in the coming years.

He explained that throughout his college years and when he started working as a primary schoolteacher in 1988, he continued acting with various drama groups, trying his hand at directing and even spending a year at the Gaiety School of Acting in the mid-1990s.
“I was considering going pro, but I didn’t,” he said. As the years went by and his family grew older, he pulled back from theatre. His last show was a production of Sweeney Todd in 2013. He has joined Naas-based theatre company, A Likely Story, to perform the original play with music which opens on July 13.

When the production company founders Carol Gleeson and Helen Spring were looking to cast Seamie McDaid, a grumpy bar owner, they recalled seeing Paul snr on stage some years back and invited him to audition.
“It’s a very large presence of a character so we needed somebody who is very commanding on stage,” said Ms Gleeson.
Speaking to the Irish Tines, Paul senior said he was not hoping to emulate his son’s career, though.

“There would be a little bit of a chasm between my experience and all of the professional experience Paul has gleaned over the last 10 years,” he said.
He recalled how his own father was a farmer and actor in a parish drama group in west County Clare.

“When I was 12 or 13 back in the mid-’70s, I asked him to put me into a play that he was directing – I was completely miscast of course – but I’ve been on the stage since then.”

“My father never saw Paul jnr on stage,” he said. “It would have been lovely to see that lineage.”
Paul senior said he won’t be giving any tips to his famous son just yet.

“Paul jnr never did have any sort of bias towards being an actor until he hit his mid-teens. There wouldn’t have been any occasion for me to impart knowledge to him. But yes, if he did see me now, he would be the one imparting knowledge.”

Paul snr’s daughter, Nell, is also a talented singer, performing a warm-up set for Florence and the Machine in Musgrave Park last month.

“We are all extremely proud of her and we’re absolutely delighted that she’s doing these things,” said Paul snr.
“It’s not an easy road for her. She’s persisting and long may she continue and have the strength to do so.”

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