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Over the past few years, Julia Calvert has captured Maltese audiences with her beauty and acting skills. She comes from a family that has made theatre an integral part of their lives and has even taken the plunge and indulged in a little Maltese soap acting.
Julia plays a woman that gets herself into a fix in MADC’s ‘A Perfect Wedding,’ at the Manoel Theatre this coming weekend Saturday and Sunday with more performances the following weekend. What first what inspired you to act, any family inspiration?
Without any doubt whatsoever my father closely followed by my brother. My earliest memory, and I am often reminded of it by family, was seeing my dad shot on stage in Tom Stoppard's ‘The Real Inspector Hound.’ Apparently and to the amusement of the whole theatre, I stood on my seat and screamed “They shot my daddy." I think it must be my father's influence because both my brother and I have an absolute love of language, be it Shakespeare or Stoppard, and we all have wicked senses of humour, but to come back to your question, I do not think it was ‘inspiration’ which led me to the stage. I think it was inevitable. As Tom Stoppard once said ‘We're actors - we're the opposite of people.’
Do you get the chance to see theatre abroad? If so what do you look for?
At the moment I do not get abroad as often as I used to but from being very young my father would take my brother and I to the West End several times a year. I can remember as a 12-year-old seeing Sir Alec Guinness at the age of 81 in a play called ‘A walk in the Woods.’ The play is what we call a two hander, which simply means there are only 2 actors. As it turned out this was Sir Alec Guinness's last stage performance and his presence, his technique, his skill - are things I will never forget. But it was not all serious theatre, I enjoyed watching Michael Crawford in ‘Barnum’ many, many musicals and comedies and even a particularly chilling ghost story, ‘A Woman in Black.’ Something I will always have a particular affection for watching - or participating in if possible! - is the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. There is so much raw and fresh talent spread across mini theatres around the city – it’s literally an overdose of theatrical fun. I guess I’ve never been tied to looking for a particular genre – I’m always tempted to look at new or innovative productions.
Are there actors - Maltese or world-wide - you admire?
I believe there is a wealth of talent in Maltese theatre and television. The only sadness is I suspect, that there are so few opportunities for the younger ones to develop their skills. Internationally, well I wouldn’t know where to begin….
What would you like to see done to achieve a higher quality theatre and attract more people to the shows in Malta?
Your question suggests some doubt about the quality of theatre in Malta. You should have no doubts. As far as I know, most productions do not seem to have a problem in attracting an audience. Whether it’s the pantomime, musicals or Shakespeare in the Gardens, there always seems to be a fight for seats. I sincerely believe that theatre in Malta is alive and well.
Of all the roles you have played so far which is your most memorable and why?
I’m very lucky because every play that I have been in has offered me the chance to dive into different types of roles. From Greek Tragedy to Shakespeare, and comedy at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival to Pirandello it has been a fantastic journey all the way so it is really hard to single out any one in particular. Every time I am in a play I feel that it is my favourite because I approach every role as a new experience and opportunity to learn. Like Oscar Wilde once said: ‘I love acting. It is so much more real than life.’
Your next play is 'Perfect Wedding' can you tell me something about your role?
I wake up in morning at the wrong time in the wrong bed with the wrong man on the wrong day. The rest you’ll have to find out during the performance. It’s a barrel of laughs though – I’ve enjoyed every minute of the rehearsals and I am sure that the audience will enjoy every minute of the show…
Most people would not want to be on a stage in front of an audience because of stage fright, what is acting adding to your life?
Challenge.
Do you see a political role for theatre or should the aim be to entertain? If there is to be a political role what should it be?
Theatre, indeed all art, is communication so I suppose that there has always been a somewhat tenuous link with politics. Personally I think that politics with a big P has more than enough opportunities without involving itself in theatre. My hope is always to entertain and to have an audience leaving the performance feeling better for having been there.
Any future projects following this play?
At the moment I am playing a rather egotistic role as Gwyneth in ‘Dejjem Tieghek Beki’ on local TV which has been a great experience, especially to make a move onto the small screen from the stage.
The hardest part is learning lines in Maltese, but with determination I guess everything is possible. There is something very interesting, stage-wise, that is coming up just after summer which should be brilliant, but I can’t really say more at this stage. You’ll have to watch this space. At the end of the day I’m always open to new ideas and challenges so who knows….
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