THE ACTOR Ronnie Masterson says she was recently cast as an "ancient peasant" in the television series The Tudors.
She said the increasing costs of theatrical productions meant casts are smaller and opportunities for women, particularly older women, are more and more limited. “They don’t want old fogeys like us.”
Ms Masterson trained at the Abbey Theatre and became a member of the company. With her husband, the late Ray McAnally, she formed Old Quay Productions. She starred as Grandma Sheehan in the 1999 film version of Angela's Ashes.
She attended the launch of the International Federation of Actors report Age, Gender and Performer Employment in Europe,in Liberty Hall, Dublin, yesterday.
"I love performing," she said. "I've played an ancient peasant in The Tudorsand the grandmother in Angela's Ashes. Give me another couple of months and I'll play a great-grandmother!"
She said there was an element of “confining ladies to the kitchen once the looks start to disappear”. There should be more work for female actors “when they get past the glamour stage”.
However, directors who came to Ireland from outside were less likely to select younger people for every role, she said.
“They are looking much more for character than they are for the glamour.”
