Susan Lynch

Hometown: Newry, a town in Northern Ireland's County Down.

Currently: Making her Broadway debut as lovestuck Irish lass Maire in Manhattan Theatre Club's acclaimed Broadway revival of Brian Friel's Translations.

Native Tongue: Growing up in Northern Ireland, Lynch performed plays in both English and Gaelic the language at risk of being lost in Translations from an early age. "A lot of people from the north of Ireland never had the opportunity to be connected to Gaelic," she explains. "I lucked out in going to two schools where our headmasters thought it very important we learn Gaelic in some way, in my case through drama." At 17, Lynch moved to Belfast, where she studied Shakespeare Romeo and Juliet and The Tempest were favorites before relocating to London to pursue her dream of an acting career.

Around the World: Lynch experienced a magical fusion of setting and material when she toured Europe with Theatre de Complicite in Simon McBurney's acclaimed performance piece Mnemonic. "[The play] is about how in life, everyone asks you where you're from, and in some way, you have to connect your past and future in order to move forward," she says. "To do that somewhere like Sarajevo was extraordinary. People were very expressive about how moved they were." Reflecting on the power of theater, Lynch adds, "We can get so into our jobs, it's like the rest of the world isn't really existing, but when you travel to places like that, it's impossible not to be aware. Apart from remembering the night that you did the play, you remember where you were and the community you were doing it for. It was an incredible experience."

Lost in Translations: Friel's play—and Lynch's heartbreaking performance—explores the fragile nature of translating words, a theme that resonates deeply with the actress. "Growing up, I lived deep in the country in a town just outside Newry," she recalls, "and my father always used to say to me, 'Now, this place we live in is called Corrinshego, but do you know what that means?' and I'd say, 'Ehm…no, Daddy,' and he'd go, 'Well, Corrinshego doesn't mean anything! Because it's the English! They translated that! But our Irish is 'Cor Fhuinseoige' and that means 'the land of the beech trees.' Do you understand that if you translate things from another language, somewhere along the line, they lose their meaning?'" Her father also taught her a traditional Irish quote she keeps close to her heart when performing the play: "A land without a language is a land without a name."

Broadway Baby: Having never seen a play on Broadway before arriving in town to star in Translations, Lynch is still taking in the exciting experience of starring on the Great White Way. "As an actor, there are certain things you think, 'Well, that'll never happen, but Jesus, wouldn't it be amazing?' This is just one of those things. Sometimes I'm literally walking past 49th Street and I go, 'Oh my god, I'm here!'" In the face of an increasingly busy career including playing Miriam in last year's Ten Commandments miniseries, Lynch remains grounded. "When I was doing theater in London and had a bad tech or something, I'd ring my Dad, and he'd go, 'Well, it beats working in a petrol station,'" she remembers with a laugh. "And it's so true! If I hadn't been an actress, I'd be working in a shop. Yes, after eight shows, we're knackered, but I never take it for granted."

I <3 New York: Never mind the frigid weather: Lynch has fallen in love with the city, eagerly exploring downtown Manhattan by foot. "There's an amazing restaurant on Cornelia Street called Home that we love to go to," she says. "It's really comforting, and they do a nice salami sandwich." Lynch is also on the hunt for the perfect resale store. "I'm a vintage shop freak," she explains. "I've dabbled in a few, but I haven't found one that I'm crazy about." After Translations ends its limited run, Lynch seems bound for London, though nothing would please her more than a return to New York. "We would love to just stay here," she says, "but obviously we're jobbing actors, and we'll go where the work is. I don't know what's around the corner, but hopefully I'll be back soon."