Rebecca Wallis, 24, is a first year Journalism student at University of St Mark and St John, however she has actually been on the journalism scene for a little over three years now. Becky started her blog, “Musical Theatre Lives In Me” in June 2016 and her platform has blossomed from there. I sat down with her to find out a little more about her blogging experience and where her love of all things theatre blossomed from.
As many people may or may know, you consider yourself a bit of a “theatre nerd”. At what age would you say your interest in theatre began?
“I always liked it, watching Disney films and musicals at home, but watching live theatre probably began when I was 12/13”
Do you remember what the first show you saw and fell in love with was?
“When I was a lot younger I saw a lot of plays with my mum, such as “George’s Marvellous Medicine” and “The Jungle Book”, but the first proper big musical I saw and fell in love with was “The Sound of Music””
Have you ever performed any theatre and, is so, at what age did you start doing so?
“I did a little bit of AmDram (that’s amateur dramatics for those not in on theatre lingo) from about the age of 15/16”
On average, how many shows do you see a year?
“Probably around 35”
As an audience member, what is your pet peeve?
“You have the obvious ones of using their phones and I hate people chatting through things but one off my biggest peeves is when people call the interval “half-time” because half time is something to do with sport. The interval is the interval”
Do you prefer plays or musicals?
“I’ve seen some very good plays but my heart belongs to musicals”
What show has been on Broadway that you would like to see make its way to the West End?
“I would love to see Anastasia and I am very excited about Moulin Rouge coming to the West End in a few years”
A few slightly more negative questions now, firstly, what show do you regret seeing?
“Most of the shows I’ve seen have been really good, but the least favourite show I’ve seen, if I had to name two, would be “Motown” and “The Bodyguard”, not so much for the show but for the audience singing along and or being very drunk at the time…”
For you blog you see a lot of shows and interact with many actors, what is the worst experience you have had with a performer or member of the theatre community?
“Most of the performers I’ve met have been lovely. There was a few, a few years back now, that were in “Mamma Mia” that weren’t particularly pleasant and a gentleman in “Ghost” who wasn’t particularly pleasant to a few people at stage door but the majority of people have been really nice”
On the topic of your blog, what is your favourite piece you’ve ever written for your blog?
“I did an interview with an actor called Alan Magor, who was in “The Mousetrap” at the time and it was just the most in depth interview I’ve ever done”
And finally, if you could interview any performer from Broadway or the West End for your blog, who would it be and why?
“My dream interview would be Charlie Stemp because I love all of the shows he has been in, he has performed on Broadway and the West End and his career has just sky-rocketed”
