Rachel Graham
Rachel Graham (Sandra)
The One-Act Play That Goes Wrong
APRIL 15 — MAY 20
What excites you about The One-Act Play That Goes Wrong and the role you are playing?
I absolutely love comedy and physical theatre. You will usually find me playing roles like dragons, dogs or little boys in theatre for young audiences. Being able to bring the humor and physicality I bring to these roles into a show for adults absolutely makes me vibrate with excitement. Being able to integrate combat, stunts, and physical character into a role like Sandra is really the best of all worlds to me!
What’s your process like in preparing for a show like this, and how does that process change (if at all) from other shows?
This show is a bit different than other shows because of the nature of the comedic timing and combat. Usually, I tackle the script to learn lines and then mentally add in the blocking. However, with this piece I have been working to be sure the physical bits are just as mature in my mind as the character choices. For example, making sure my weight is on the right leg or my hand is in the correct position to get every ounce of humor we can. Once you see the show, I am sure you will understand why this sort of specificity is so important.
What’s your biggest challenge about taking on this role?
Playing a human female is not something I get to do very often. So, playing an ingénue character is outside of the norm, and has required some extra work and finesse to get the character just where she needs to be.
How did you get started performing?
In the first grade, my best friend was in the all-school musical. It was neat to see the show, however I was sad at how little time we got to spend together while she was rehearsing. I decided to audition for the next year’s musical and landed a large part. I kept auditioning, growing my skills and love of the craft. My friend moved on to lacrosse, but after a quick assessment I decided to stay involved in theatre instead of sports. The rest is history.
Why do you still perform?
In the past few years my life has turned more towards photographing live theatre than performing in it. I absolutely love capturing performances around the state with my professional company RDGPhotography, including the performances at Vintage Theatre. I have miss performing and have kept an eye out for awesome scripts and directors, and come out of the woodwork to audition when something special catches my eye.
What’s your dream role, and what do you feel you would bring to it?
I would love to eventually play Vivian in Wit by Margaret Edson. It is such a wonderful piece with a great message for audiences, no matter where they are in their life story. I would be able to bring a lifetime of passion, knowledge, pain, hope, and personal experience to the story that would hopefully make the piece shine.
What’s a fun fact people may not know about you?
I foster kittens! I have been fostering since 2011 and have fostered well over 350 kitties, and I have a passion for high risk and special needs cats and kittens. There is a lot of heartbreak, hard work, and stress, because I take so many hard cases. However, it is always worth it when they go to their forever home to spread the love I have given them to their new families. You can see my foster kittens, I currently have eight, on my instagram: Weeble_and_Friends.
