Despite a hectic rehearsal schedule both Lizzie Stanton and Rob Ostlere took fifteen minutes out of their busy day to talk to me. They gave me a quick fire interview with them both and I also managed to sneak my usual favourite three questions in. Here’s what they had to say:

Lizzie Stanton

Tell me about your Confessional journey?

I pretty much bullied my way in. I was an unpaid extra for a promo shoot for a film with Jack Silver (Director) and was impressed at how quickly he had brought together a great team, with a central London location and thought to myself he is going places. So whilst that project didn’t actually get produced, when he said does anyone want to go to the fringe, I sent him a really long email and we met for coffee. Once I’d read the first few pages of the script I knew I had to play this powerhouse of a role and so yeah pretty much bullied my way in. It’s been a whirlwind since then, we took it to Edinburgh, got a sponsor and now we are about to open in London.

This was a slightly different process but how do you normally prepare for an audition?

It’s not something that I find easy to do, sometimes I rock them but more often than not it takes time to be prepared. So usually I read the text at least ten times before even starting to learn and then I think about what they are trying to say, and feel the character. This helps me to be better prepared for when I audition. 

What is THE role you would love to play?

Three spring to mind: Ophelia in Hamlet, Martha in Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolf, Blanche in Streetcar Named Desire – I think I’m drawn to broken people, interesting roles.

What has your career been until now and how old when you knew you wanted to act?

I completed a Master of Arts course in Acting for Screen at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London. I’m probably best known for a music video and I’ve done a lot of fringe roles such as Dolls House and more. I really knew about four years ago while training so not that long relatively speaking. I’ve been professionally in the industry having graduated about eighteen months.

My usual three Questions:

If you could have a super power or be a Super Hero what would you have/be and why?

To be able to fly and hear people I love talk, so that if  I heard they had a problem I could fly to them and help.

What era would you return to and why?

I’m a Shakespeare nut so probably then, to see some of his plays as they are happening. Shakespeare is the greatest teaching an actor could have and we are all still learning. 

Who would you say is the most influential person in the world today and why?

That’s really hard to answer but I’d probably say author Eckhart Tolle. I’ve read all his books and they’ve really affected people in a big way. So for me I’d say him. 

Rob Ostlere

What do prefer theatre or TV?

They are both so different which is what I like, I did Holby City for so long that its nice to return to theatre. I like meeting the people involved and really enjoy the rehearsal process. They are both tiring for different reasons – TV you know the process and what you’ll be doing and it’s long days of filming but when you are rehearsing for a play it’s shorter but more intense. I met some great people in Holby who became friends and this already feels like it’s such a great team of people, I’m really enjoying this as well.

What’s next?

I haven’t really planned anything, I’m so enjoying doing this I’d like to see if we can do more of it. Jack is really different how he works it’s more like what we did at drama school which is really great. As much as I enjoyed Holby I enjoy the process for theatre, so I hope more of this or we’ll see or maybe just a break a holiday after this run has finished.

Do you have any superstitions before going on stage?

I try to treat it as a normal job, so I do something else during the day otherwise you can get very wrapped up in one thing and life is going on all around you. You have to look after yourself and providing you do the work and the rehearsal it should go well. In Holby we worked to a single take camera and so they might take your shot and then who you were acting with may be from a day later. We were lucky we had time and there were medical things going on which slowed things up but with live theatre you have an audience and so trust and reacting to each other is important, stamina and energy levels. A lot of rehearsal we’ve been working on how we react with one another it’s especially important with this play as it is about regulars in a pub, so it’s got to be natural.

My usual three Questions:

When you would go back to in history and why?

I was quite geeky, I collected fossils as a child, my collection is still at my parents house. So I’d have to say I’d go back to the Jurassic period – actually no the Cretaceous period but I’d have to do it safely of course.

What super power would you have and why?

Ah now I’ve thought about this for probably ten years – wouldn’t it be great if you could make someone’s mind think in a different language that they don’t understand? So for instance they’d think in Flemish but wouldn’t understand what they were thinking? Just think what a pickle they’d be in?

Who do you think is the most influential person in the world and why?

That really is a hard one to answer, I can probably think who but for the wrong reasons – in my world right now I’d say Jack Silver my director – Which is very fair comment

It really was a great fun interview so thanks guys for your time and see you both for press night on the 7th!

You too can see both Lizzie and Rob at Southwark Playhouse in Confessional by Tennessee Williams check out my previous post here