Counterfeit Skin is a darkly comic thriller which questions our understanding of the meaning of love. It is about the conflict between the desires of flesh and the needs of the heart, and what men risk to get what they want out of love and life.

We caught up with Jeremy Williams, one of the actors on the play, to find out more about nudity, sex, love and monogamy.

Tell us about Counterfeit Skin. What can we expect?
Counterfeit Skin is a very much a play of two halves. After being lulled into a false sense of security in a light hearted opening act, the demise of Jake and Luke’s relationships brings darker and more dramatic moments in the twisting and turning second half.

Jake and Luke have been together for three years but, though a true love remains between the two, the spark has now died between them. Jake feels trapped and Luke feels confused. Jake is using his godfather’s toy boy Mach as a plaything, what will the knock on effects be?

What was it about your character that drew you to the play?
I think Luke is a challenge for any actor to undertake, in many ways he is the most openly complex character in the piece. Whereas Mach and Jake keep their true feelings hidden under their multiple layers, Luke just wants the chance to be open and figure things out. His journey takes a very unusual turn and I thought exploring those thoughts would be an exciting experience. Sorry, it’s hard to answer this question without giving away the pieces ending!

What does the title refer to?
Gosh, now this is a hard question. For me, it is about the layers we all hide underneath. Everyone in the piece is struggling with their own demons, some hide them better than others but, just as in reality, everyone has something underneath their outer layer. A false skin, a counterfeit.

The publicity for Counterfeit Skin warns us that the play “contains nudity and scenes of a sexual nature”. So do you get to take your clothes off?
Luckily for the audience, my clothes stay on! You see no more of my flesh than you do on the poster image. Charlie Hollway who plays Mach is the culprit. The scenes of a sexual nature are also not exactly what people will be expecting - the scenes do have sexual inference but there is a much darker undertone..

As an actor, how do you feel about nudity on stage?
Interesting question. At the photo shoot the photographer, Arno, wanted William Vasey (Jake) and I to do a shot in a fireplace naked. Jason Charles, who wrote the piece vetoed the concept and we can be seen on the flyer in boxers. Personally, I wouldn't have had an issue with removing the boxers as I think the shot would have had artistic merit and there wouldn’t have been gratuitous nudity, all anyone would have seen was my hip.

Within a piece, I think that some pieces call for nudity, at other times it is purely there for voyeurism. If I were to believe that the nudity were required, then I would have no problem shedding my clothes. One of my regrets is that a few years back I got offered the role of Alan Strang in Equus, I did accept the part, but timing clashes meant I couldn’t commit to the project. I would still undertake the role as I believe it to be an intriguing and challenging role for an actor.

A lot of theatre these days relies on sex to get bums on seats. Does this bother you?
I don’t necessarily agree with your statement. I do think sex is used to sell tickets, but at the same time so is celebrity. Theatre for me is about the art, however in today’s society many people are not so concerned with the art of theatre. Though it seems a shame to have to resort to sex, celebrity and controversy to keep the art of theatre alive, I would rather the theatre swam as opposed to sank.

"Personally, I wouldn't have had an issue with removing the boxers as I think the shot would have had artistic merit and there wouldn’t have been gratuitous nudity."

The publicity photos are great and really love the photos! Are gay men just suckers for cute men, or is there a hidden meaning in the pictures?
I also love the photos, but don’t think the piece is being sold on the cuteness of Will or I. Neither of us are stereotypical pin-up types or really eye candy! If you look at the expressions and body language in the pictures you’ll see far more going on than just two topless guys.

The reason for the lack of clothing was the photographer’s interpretation of the piece. The piece is about counterfeit skin, it is about exposure and in many ways having to shed your external layers in order to reveal your true self.

The promise of “scenes of a sexual nature” is certainly tantalising. Will we be disappointed?
I can guarantee you won’t be disappointed - the scenes are not what you will be expecting - but they will not disappoint you.

The play’s been updated since it premiered earlier this year, can you tell us a little about what’s changed?
The script is now shorter due to the removal of unnecessary scenes, those remaining scenes have been extended to allow for further character development. The piece is paced differently as well.

The press info says that Counterfeit Skin is about the “conflict between the desires of flesh and the needs of the heart”. Why do men let their dicks rule, rather than their heart?
I think it’s easy to generalise that men let their dicks rule as opposed to their hearts, I think it’s fully dependent upon the individual. For men it is easy to get sexual gratification and lots of men purely follow their desire, but many others (myself included) would rather meet someone and fall in love. Though falling for someone is a longer and harder process, in my eyes it has more worth in the long term and hurts less than acting upon impulse attractions.

It also looks at temptation and deception. Are they mutually exclusive?
Temptation and deception can be mutually exclusive but are not necessarily so. Temptation can often lead to deception, it depends upon the situation.

The play explores what men are prepared to risk to get what they want out of love. So, how far have you gone for love?
How far have I gone for love? Not very far! Feeble answer I know, but I am hopeless at love. I am very much a romantic at heart, but I tend to find it hard to fall - it’s the fear of being hurt - but that isn’t to say that I haven’t spent time writing poems, putting together romantic meals and the like but I’ve found that those relationships that really mean something come naturally and are effortless. Which is how I think it should be! If you’re asking if I have ever been in love, the answer is yes.

"The breakdown of a three year long relationship and the battle between love and lust is not exclusively a gay theme, it is applicable to everyone regardless of race, culture or sexual orientation."

After three years in a relationship, one of the characters Counterfeit Skin wants his freedom back. Can men be happy in long term monogamous relationships?
I believe they can be. Though I’m currently not in a relationship, I have been in two relationships that I thought would have stayed monogamous had it worked out correctly. It was more timing and situation as opposed to feelings that got in the way.

The play has a great cast. Do you think there’s ever any problem with getting straight actors to take part in drama with strong gay themes?
Not in the slightest, acting is about undertaking a role and changing who you are as a person. Sartre said about Genet’s views on his piece The Maids (in which I played Claire last year), that Genet wanted the roles to be undertaken by men as opposed to women as acting is about convincingly becoming someone you are not. If actors only played roles that were carbon copies of themselves, the trade would be worthless and without artistic merit or talent.

What would you want audiences to take with them after having seeing Counterfeit Skin?
I suppose I would hope that audience members - be it straight or gay, male or female - had identified with the issues raised by the piece and the characters represented. The breakdown of a three year relationship and the battle between love and lust is not exclusively a gay theme, it is applicable to everyone regardless of race, culture or sexual orientation.

I would also hope that people would take from Luke and Jake’s relationship and its ups and downs the significant difference between love and sex. Can love still exist without sex? Or is that a different type of love? It isn’t for the piece or characters to decide, it is for the audience to formulate their own opinion.

Finally, love transcends boundaries, it is universal. It should not make a difference be it between man and woman, man and man or woman and woman. I hope the piece attracts the gay audience but also similarly a straight audience, as the themes in the piece relate to everyone.

And finally, what's next for Jeremy Williams?
I’m actually having a pretty decent run at the moment, so I very much hope it continues! I can be heard in five radio dramas over the forthcoming weeks and I present a weekly radio show called J.Arts.

I’m also writing my second full length play in association with Rikki Beadle Blair. I’ve completed my first draft and have three weeks left till I need to submit my second draft. Hopefully the piece will be staged early 2009, so keep your eyes open.

On the writing front again, I am working on a novel, though nobody has seen it to date as it is a work in progress! Let’s just hope that some more exciting acting projects land in my lap - any offers contact my agent! Haha.

Find out more at www.myspace.com/counterfeitskin and www.thecourtyard.org.uk.

Read our interview with the author of Counterfeit Skin Jason Charles and also our review of the original January 2008 production.

Counterfeit Skin, by Jason Charles
The Courtyard Theatre Studio
Pitfield Street
Hoxton
London, N1 6EU
08701 630 717 / www.seetickets.com

22 July-10 August 2008
 
Interested in queer drama? Then get Out on the Stage: Lesbian and Gay Theatre in the Twentieth Century online and save some money to out towards Something for the Boys: Musical Theatre and Gay Culture, Forbidden Acts: Pioneering Gay & Lesbian Plays of the 20th Century and The Queer Encyclopedia of Music, Dance & Musical Theatre.