BWW Interviews: Owen Young, British Actor Off-Broadway!

Hi Owen, thanks for talking to us. First of all - how come you're in the US doing Off-Broadway work rather than on the London fringe?!

This is just a great opportunity to play all these different cities and spaces. The tour has been an amazing experience for me. I think all actors want to continue to improve and test themselves in new spaces; experiencing new cultures and audience reactions. Whether that opportunity arises in off-Broadway, fringe or film and television, it's the work that excites me. It is a wonderful feeling to be able to do something you feel passionately about every day anyway, let alone when that passion enables you to go to places like LA and New York as we do with this production. We will also be bringing A Midsummer Night's Dream to the deep south, the mid west and many other fascinating parts of the country, playing spaces ranging from 3000-seat auditoriums to studios for 200. We really are experiencing America.

I like a challenge as well. Our production has been adapted for a company of seven actors and therefore I get the chance to play 3 wide ranging parts; from a passionate and impulsive lover - at one point, in love with two women! - a man who reluctantly is forced to play a lady; and I'm even lucky enough to play a fairy! It's great fun and when the opportunity arises, you have to take it.

You've done a lot of great classical plays - Shakespeare, Lorca and so on - is this where your ambitions lie?

I love the breadth of character that you find in classical theatre, and that is where I have done the most work so far; but as an actor that is not where my ambition ends. I feel Shakespeare is still as relevant today as it was 500 years ago, and because of the depth of the language, it allows an actor to really test their emotional range, as well, as speak some wonderful verse. There is often the impression that classical theatre is somehow difficult or irrelevant but when acted well, each play deals with questions that we are still asking today; emotions that every one of us have experienced. I would love to continue to explore the works of Shakespeare and other classical writers but I also have a great love for film and television. I am a keen filmgoer and am especially excited about being in the US during the Oscar season, as I get to see all the films that are nominated, which is not always the case in the UK. There is a subtlety in film that intrigues me and the possibility of being part of that is exciting.

I notice you did the Threepenny Opera while training - do you fancy a go at musicals any time soon?

I love doing musicals and the Threepenny Opera was a lot of fun. They have an energy in performance that is quite extraordinary. I have huge admiration for the discipline required for song and dance and have myself, enjoyed performing in other musicals such as Cabaret and Oliver!. I also really enjoy musicals from an audience perspective. The works of people like Sondheim and Fosse are a pleasure to both participate in and hear. It's the combination of song, story and dance that I think is so exhilarating. First and foremost is always story and character and as an actor, it is that which enables me to explore the possibilities of performance, whatever the genre. Musicals were never something that I saw as my forte, and I have been delighted each and every time I have been involved in one. I was fortunate that in training we were opened up to so many different skills and genres from stage combat and tap dancing to Shakespeare, singing and film and to be part of a process that explores any of these attributes is always a huge luxury. So if the right musical came along I would love to do it.

I hear you're about to meet with some film hotshots soon - can you tell us about that or is it secret?

My manager has arranged various meetings with some amazing LA casting directors when I finish the run in April 2011 for which I am really excited about and there has also been interest from casting directors that want to see me when I perform in Pasadena LA, again in April. I am truly so privileged and lucky that these people are giving me their time and really cannot wait for the opportunity to chat with them. I am definitely hugely excited about the future.

Can we expect to see you back in the UK any time soon?

I certainly hope so. I want to be where the best work, the best scripts and best directors are, wherever that work may be. I have the opportunity to spend an extended period of time in the US and I want to use that time as best I can. But, I also love working in the UK. The UK theatre scene made me want to be an actor in the first place, watching companies like the Royal Shakespeare Company perform from when I was ten. I have the luxury right now of being flexible. I will certainly be at home for Christmas with my family which I'm really looking forward to. I love my mum's cooking and that will not be missed!

Owen Young is currently touring the US with the NY's Aquila Theatre in A Midsummer Night's Dream.

 

 

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