I am an actor, a singer, a dancer of sorts, host, model and cheeky baby. I have been very fortunate to study at both the Victorian College of the Arts and the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts for Music Theatre. I am thrilled to be coming back to Cyrano to play 1 at Melbourne Theatre Company for what would’ve been my mainstage debut. I like to advocate for Black Lives Matter and try to be a voice for people within the Black, fat and queer communities, in the modelling and performing arts world, and I’m happy to be able to represent at MTC!
Tell us about your character.
1 is nurturing character in Cyrano, caring so dearly and deeply for Cyrano and Roxanne in the journey the play takes, and using food and music as a tool in doing this, things that are both very close to community and building community. 1 looks out for the characters feelings quite closely, often catering exclusively to seeing the narrative goes in a way that causes the named characters the least pain. Throughout the action, 1 becomes pretty exhausted by the hurt Cyrano inflicts on herself, acting as a friend trying to talk her out of the dark place. 1 is an affectionate friend who gives to those around her, serving their best interest in the story throughout. She can, however, be pretty stern and tough in her caring nature, which can be quite entertaining to look onto.
How do you embody your character?
In a lot of my embodiment of character I am taking up space with my body and voice, and taking on physical stances and positions of certainty and knowledge, often trying to win battles about the direction of the narrative, and what is required of the other characters to make this a story worth telling. In terms of status with the other chorus members, 1 and 2 are often fighting for the top spot and trying to maintain it! Costume certainly helps, specifically shoes for finding character and how they take up space on the stage, and how they do this alongside the other characters. Getting to wear my show shoes in rehearsals (some low-top librarian Doc Martens), and feeling my inner school teacher trying to passively and directly influence the narrative to go in a less tragic way: it helped me find out a lot about how I inhabit 1. Speaking with conviction and certainty has been my friend in finding 1, as has speaking to the other chorus members, who are working to steer the narrative in the way they think serves the story the best.
What creative challenges does the role present you as an actor?
Whether it be a year on Zoom, or being in a room with such incredible actors and people, taking on a role with a lot of authority and self-assured knowledge has been a bit challenging throughout the rehearsal process. Working with [director] Sarah Goodes and developing language around the character that makes sense to me, and learning from watching and asking the others in the rehearsal room, has been helpful with overcoming this. Big shout-out to the cast; you da best! Taking up space in the room vocally and physically, in a post Zoom world, has also been more challenging than I initially thought, as we are used to making ourselves smaller for the Zoom box. However, a year's break from this material, and having had the opportunity to get more pro and my final uni shows under my belt meant this rehearsal process, I was able to step up to the plate in a way I never would have been able to in 2021.
‘I really love to laugh, and making other people laugh has always been something that has brought me joy.’
What made you want to be an actor?
It’s all a bit blurred now but I knew I was gonna perform from a pretty young age. I loved being on stage and the gratification of seeing if telling a joke or doing a dance move would elicit a response from people. I think the connection of theatre, and all forms of performing arts create a connection, with people you know or strangers that you cant get anywhere else. My mum also passed on a love of stories and storytelling, our night-time ritual was reading big books over a few weeks when I was little, and we watched a lot of film and TV together. I really love to laugh, and making other people laugh has always been something that has brought me joy. In what other career do you get to do that, and truly get to make people relate and feel represented? I hope that through performance I can continue to make people feel represented on screens and stages, being a plus size, queer, mixed-race Black actor.
Cyrano is on stage from 24 September at Southbank Theatre.
This article was originally published on 27 July 2021.
Published on 5 October 2022
