“……the really incredible thing about Shakespeare, which is why I think he’s lasted 400+ years, is because what he really touches into the human condition, which actually can be, and is, quite a universal message”. Akiya Henry
Akiya Henry is an English actress and voice actress. Best known for her work on Captain Mack, Bing, Macbeth, Thomas & Friends: Big World! Big Adventures! The Movie, Shaun the Sheep: Adventures from Mossy Bottom, Moominvalley, Hilda, and The Rubbish World of Dave Spud. Her theatre credits are many and other Shakespeare include: Macbeth and A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
ALT:
Tell us a little bit about the character that you play and how it resonates with the now even though it was written in the 16th century?
Akiya:
I play an incredible character called Beatrice. She’s the heroine in Much Ado About Nothing and she’s extremely powerful. She’s just a bundle of joy, energy, fun, but also is a woman that knows who she is and really steps and stands in her power. She’s also navigating her way through a very patriarchal society at the same time. So, to have a woman that is standing that strong in her power and finding the fun and the joy in life is really, really exciting to play.
ALT:
Just to go back a little bit, we’ve just come out of the pandemic. What does it feel like to be back on stage in front of a live audience?
Akiya:
Oh my gosh, great. To be honest, we spent how many months, years really, literally just being isolated from anything like human contact and that energy. So, to be on stage and just be surrounded by that energy alone, I wouldn’t even have to speak, just to be on the stage and to see an audience is actually so lovely and so reinvigorating. At the same time, what’s really lovely, is to just be back in theatre, during the pandemic it was really hard for our industry. It’s just so joyous now to be back on the stage, sharing the stage with the incredible performers, but also as well, sharing the stage with cast, crew, wardrobe, wigs, and seeing everybody bring theatre back to life.
ALT:
Can you tell us a bit about this production in terms of what is different, or how close Roy has kept to the text?
Akiya:
I think the really incredible thing about Shakespeare, which is why I think he’s lasted 400+ years, is because what he really touches into is the human condition, which actually can be, and is, quite a universal message. So, I don’t think we’ve had to necessarily auto-shift the text that much, what we’ve added to it is this whole beautiful afro-futuristic concept which is about exploring the past and present and how that liberates and empowers black people through a black cultural lens. That’s what Roy has added to this. So, it has elevated Shakespeare’s text in a way, because what’s really brilliant is that you’ve got these incredible predominantly black cast, literally on the stage standing very strong and firm in their power. What this does with Shakespeare is it allows us to say, we are no different to you. We experience the same things, love, tragedy, joy, fear, sadness, we experience these things. And we’re going to stand on this stage in our power and tell this story.
ALT:
What’s it like working with Roy?
Akiya:
He’s just a bundle of energy in the rehearsal room. He likes to create a very happy, safe, fun place to work in. He’s very particular as well, he curates a room, and he brings in incredible creatives. I mean, we’ve got DK Fashola, Melissa Simon Hartman is our costume designer. Just these incredible creators. Femi Temowo is our composer. So, Roy brings all of these incredible people together to tell a story and it’s been nothing but joy and fun in the room.
ALT:
Are you a big fan of Shakespeare’s writing? Do you have a favourite?
Akiya:
Oh my gosh. I love Shakespeare. I love Shakespeare. I think my first Shakespeare was A Midsummer Night’s Dream. I was about six and I remember my mum reading a little bit of text from it, which I was like, Ooh, what is this? Who is this? I think it’s hard, because all of his plays are so brilliant, and they are all so different. I personally feel one of my favourites is The Tempest, because it takes us to this incredible island. We meet some really fantastical, beautiful characters. I think it really connects to the question of life, death, feeling isolated xenophobia, what it means to become a woman, love, tragedy. It encompasses all of that and it’s got a real kind of fairy tale element to it for me. So, I feel like the Tempest is one of my favourites.
ALT:
You mentioned costume. What do you like about period dramas? Are there any outfits in this particular production that you like?
Akiya:
One of my favourite costumes is my first costume, in Act One Scene One. What Melissa has done so brilliantly is bring in west African and Caribbean culture, but also keeping it connected to Shakespeare’s period as well, and that era. There’s something about my first costume, where I step into it, and I feel so regal and so powerful and so queen-like. It’s an explosion of colour, which I think is a part of our cultural language and Melissa has not shied away from that.
ALT:
As an actress, you’ve done stage and you’ve done screen, do you have a preference?
Akiya:
I think honestly, my preference, it will always be stage because there’s just something that’s so brilliant about the live element of it. And the fact that every night is different. Every night, you are exploring something new because you are playing with the reactions and the responses of the audience and how they connect to the storytelling. So, in a way it’s a brilliant way for an actor to be able to explore their craft and their power in storytelling. So yes, stage is definitely always number one in my heart.
ALT:
If you could summarise Much Ado About Nothing in a couple of sentences, what would that be?
Akiya:
Much Ado About Nothing is an incredible, powerful story about love and about people navigating what that means for them in a very funny comical way.
ALT:
The show ends on the 12th of March. What next? What are you working on next?
Akiya:
Oh, I’m not allowed to talk about it…but it is going to be good!
