Cork West End Actor: 'I left for London at 16, I was just a baby'

A 25-year-old actor from Cork has become a shining star in the West End in London.

Cliona Flynn is about to perform in her 150th show of the hit musical Mean Girls, a production that marked her debut following college.

Flynn, from White’s Cross, started dancing as a young child and never looked back.

“My mom put me in ballet when I was three, so I was always on stage, and I loved it,” she said.

“I would always try and go back on the stage.

“Around the age of nine, I started taking acting and singing classes, which led me to discover musical theatre.

“From then on, every day after school, I was either attending a dance class, singing class, acting class, or taking music theory. It was nonstop.”

Flynn attended the Cork School of Dance in Firkin Crane, The Cork School of Music, and the Cork Arts Theatre, and says her family has supported her love of the stage since day one.

“I went to primary school in Whites Cross, so I was collected from school, mostly by my grandad, and brought into all my various activities.

“It was brilliant to have so much support from a young age.”

Acting does not run in Flynn’s family, but she says that music has always been a big part of family gatherings.

“We have quite a musical family, especially my mom’s side. I grew up with everyone singing at family gatherings, which is very Irish of us, but I am the first to pursue it as a career.”

At just 16, she decided to move to London to make her acting dreams a reality.

“I thought I was really old at the time and that I had it all figured out by going to London, but looking back, I was just a baby,” Flynn recalls.

“But I wanted to be an actor. I knew that there was no other option for me.

“I begged my parents to let me go, and thankfully, they agreed.

“They never said acting was an unstable career or tried to hold me back.

“They visited me a lot and found me a lovely family to live with, so I wasn’t on my own as a teenager in London.”

Flynn earned a theatre degree at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, but first, she had to do her A-Levels in London.

“I didn’t do the Leaving Cert. Instead, I took A Levels in musical theatre, film studies, and drama so I could apply for the degree.

“I was in my first year of drama school, doing my degree, when the pandemic hit. I remember we had to do a full Shakespeare play over Zoom. It was hard at times, but it helped us to think outside the box.”

When Flynn left college, she had planned to pursue a career in straight acting. However, when an opportunity to audition for a musical theatre show arose, she seized it.

“I was auditioning for acting forward roles. I wasn’t planning on musical theatre.

“When Mean Girls came up, I wasn’t too familiar with it, but once I read the script and listened to the songs, I knew it was something I wanted to do.”

Flynn is the standby for the musical’s lead characters, Katie and Regina, which means she takes to the stage to cover holidays and sick days, but also needs to be on hand should something happen to one of the actors during the show.

“I have to be there at the theatre every day in case something happens. I’ve had to go on mid-show before, where I had to quickly get my wig on and hop on stage.

“I am about to do my 150th show in the run. I can’t believe how lucky I have been to have landed this job straight after college.”

While she waits for the potential call, Flynn likes to be creative.

“Sometimes, I write, I would like to [write] my show in the future, so it’s a good time to create.

“If the call comes, I quickly get myself into the zone and do a quick warm-up. I do a warm-up with the whole company anyway every day, so I am physically and vocally warm, but I do an extra warm-up before going on.”

There is a strong Irish acting contingent based in London, and a large number of young Cork actors are among them. Flynn says it is great to have a community with the same mindset.

“Before I started Mean Girls, I went to see Hadestown, which starred Donal Finn. We knew each other from Cork Arts. I met him outside the stage door, and I thought, ‘How are we both here?’

“Claire O’Leary, another great Cork actor, came to see Mean Girls the other night.

“It is brilliant to have Irish people doing well, but it is even more special to be surrounded by all these talented Cork people.”

Flynn says that seeing Cork actors such as Alison Oliver gaining international recognition has inspired her.

“When I was younger, I was afraid that if I wasn’t from London, or if I wasn’t English, that I would find it really hard.

“I’ve just been more than inspired by everyone who has come out of Cork before me. It’s made me feel like I can do this; I can follow them.”

As Flynn’s time with Mean Girls nears an end, she is looking forward to what comes next.