Photo Courtesy Of Buhle NgabaWHAT ARE YOU UP TO IN THE UK, DO TELL?
I got the Brett Goldin Bursary to attend the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford after an intense audition process. While I have been at the company I have done several things including voice and text classes, workshops with Cicely Berry (voice director at the RSC, 1969-2014) which was a dream come true because we study her methods at drama school and she has worked with the likes of Judi Dench, Clare Danes and Ian Mckellen etc etc. I was also doing text analysis classes, singing technique with the music director at the RSC as well as stage combat, and I got the opportunity to sit in on the “King Lear” rehearsals under the direction of Gregory Doran (artistic director) with Sir Anthony Sher in the title role. I was given the opportunity to perform on the Swan theatre stage as well.
The thing I gained while I was there was an understanding of how important it is that we as Africans begin to write and perform and embrace our own narratives so that they, too, may become “classics”. I have truly become a more potent actress as a result of my time at the RSC.
WHERE WERE YOU BORN AND RAISED AND WHERE DO YOU PRESENTLY LIVE?
I was born in Kwazulu-Natal, raised in the North West. I live between Cape Town and Johannesburg and everywhere else in the world depending on where I am working.
WHAT WERE YOUR ASPIRATIONS AS A CHILD?
To be an actress. It is all I ever wanted to be and I consider myself so so fortunate.
HOW DID YOU HAPPEN UPON YOUR PROFESSIONS (OR IT ONTO YOU)?
I started performing as a very little girl and I was always sure that I loved telling stories. I solidified my commitment to it by the time I was eight years old and attending all the performance classes I could at school. I've always been fascinated by the intimacy and discipline required in acting, and how if you commit yourself to that, to telling the story onstage and leaving ego behind, you access people in ways that a mundane exchange or academic conversation can't.
WHAT IS “THE GIRL WITHOUT A SOUND” ABOUT AND WHAT IS THE LARGER STORY YOU WANT TO TELL?
“The Girl without a Sound” is about a little girl who is born with a cocoon in her throat so she can’t speak. It speaks to those of us who can identify with being silenced. Ultimately, “the ones with moonlight in their skins”, women of colour.
WHO DO YOU RANK AMONG YOUR FAVOURITE AUTHORS?
Toni Morrison, Zadie Smith, Bessie Head, Tsitsi Dangarembga and Arundhati Roy.
WHAT IS YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS AND WHAT INSPIRES YOU ON A DAY-TO-DAY?
It changes depending on what I am working on at the specific time. That said, I always insist on working in a very quiet environment whether that be an empty floor in a room with a lot of light or a silent theatre stage. I’m inspired by various things. Landscapes, dreams I carry with me, random lyrics, pieces of music, people, watching theatre/films and books.
WHAT HOBBIES DO YOU HAVE?
I love to read. I find dancing to be a necessity in my life! Nothing better than going out with my friends to a really great club with a great DJ. Painting, doodling, taking long walks, listening to music for hours and meditating.
HOW ARE YOU GETTING LIT IN LONDON?
I am spending a lot of time in Shoreditch, hunting for good clothing deals, hours in art galleries because they are free and incredible!, digging in book shops and I am at the National Theatre looking through their plays on most days.
WHAT’S YOUR SPIRIT ANIMAL?
Unicorn. Definitely.
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