Nadia Parkes

Currently performing The House Party on stage at the Chichester Festival Theatre, actress Nadia Parkes tells us about how the classic play Miss Julie has been adapted for a new generation, transitioning to screen as a stage-trained actor and shooting her upcoming BBC series Kidnapped in Italy.

When did you begin acting? Was it something you always wanted to pursue?

I’ve always wanted to be an actor. I don’t remember ever questioning what I would do with my life - it felt set out from a really young age. I acted a bit at school in plays, and drama clubs and things, but after sixth form I auditioned for LAMDA and that’s where it properly began. 

What was your first professional job?

My first professional job was a show called The Spanish Princess. I left my final year at LAMDA a few months early to start on it and it was such a wonderful time. I learnt so much from the people I worked with and made some amazing memories.

The House Party is an adaptation of August Strindberg's Miss Julie - how has the story been transposed to a modern setting?

Laura Lomas, the writer, has taken Miss Julie and set it on the night of Julie’s 18th birthday, which she’s throwing a massive party because her dad has cancelled on her last minute and she was dumped that morning - that really is only the very beginning of a wild ride where the night goes horribly wrong. Setting it in the world of 18 year olds allows for really heightened emotions, very poor decision making and fundamentally so much care and empathy for all the characters as we all remember being that age and acting in ways we maybe aren’t proud of now. I’m so in awe of Laura’s writing, how deeply detailed her writing is, and how she has taken it so far, into a much more dangerous exciting world but yet kept it also close to the original. 

You're currently midway through the run - how has it been so far?

It has been one of the best experiences of my life. We’ve all got along so so well, acting opposite Rachelle Diedricks and Josh Finan is a total treat each day, and the director Holly Race Roughan has been totally wonderful and all the creatives! I am feeling so lucky that I get to do this as my job and go out there each day and discover something new. I love this show and I love Julie and all the challenges and joys that have come with this run!

The Chichester Festival Theatre offers tickets from £10 - much lower than many other places. What do you think the industry at large could do to help make theatregoing more accessible? 

I think theatre is extremely special and storytelling in its purest form, it’s such an amazing part of our culture and it is such a shame if it becomes something that only a select amount of people can access because we can learn so much about ourselves and life from plays.

As Julie in The House Party

You trained in theatre at LAMDA, but have worked regularly in TV - how did you find the transition to screen acting?

I think the process was the most challenging thing to get used to, less rehearsal time and things like that take some getting used to, but I found it quite freeing and liberating as you have to kind of give up control on your performance, you hand it over to the director and the editor. I also think the camera picks up so much, that the smallest movement can tell such an interesting story, so nothing is missed and that’s nice knowing. I love both mediums so much, for very different reasons.

Next up for you is Kidnapped, a BBC series based on the true story of a model who was kidnapped in Italy in 2017. How have you prepared for this heavy role?

It was a very intense but amazing process. I watched every piece of footage out there of her and read her book and did so much research into the topic. The scripts were so good - they also helped do a lot of the work.

The show was filmed on location in Italy - what was the experience of shooting there like?

I’ve actually shot in Italy for a couple of jobs. It’s one of my favourite places and shooting in Italy for the show added so much authenticity to it. It has some of my best memories from what was such a special time.

Words: Scott Bates

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The House Party runs at the Chichester Festival Theatre until June 1st - more details and tickets here