ROXY FARIDANY: ACTRESS

This Spring, Roxy Faridany has been on stage in theatres across the UK and Ireland. She plays Afra in the adaptation of the 2019 bestselling novel, The Bee Keeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri. Her portrayal of the protagonist is moving. It recalls her performance in the 2018 short film Taarof, which she co-produced. Both projects - centering Middle Eastern characters - bring underrepresented stories to the fore, prompting audiences to examine pertinent issues such as displacement and identity. Here she talks about her trajectory to becoming an actress, how she prepared for her role as Afra, female creatives who inspire her and raising awareness for the WOMAN. LIFE. FREEDOM. movement in Iran.

Roxy, can you talk about your journey to becoming an actress?

I feel like I was super lucky , in that I have wanted to perform for as long as I can remember. I was an avid partaker in school plays and I joined the National Youth Theatre when I was 16. Upon graduating from University I immediately knew that I wanted to attend acting school, and that journey led me to graduating from the William Esper Studio in NYC in 2014.

Are there any particular moments that you look back on that sparked your desire to be an actor?

Not really, but I knew how excited I would get when I would perform in school plays. I remember being Edmund in the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and getting to eat turkish delight on stage and thinking this is pretty cool.

How has being based in London played a role in your participation in the arts? Were you born and raised in London?

I was born and raised in London and then I studied acting in NYC for two years. It was actually a little hard upon graduating because all my contacts were in NYC, so I would say that transition was quite difficult for a while and then I started to build my contacts slowly but surely here and I attended a great cold reading class at the AMAW Studio weekly which kept me busy when I wasn’t working.

So many auditions are self tapes now so it’s really not a necessity to live in London but I do love it and I think we have an amazing theatre scene so for now it’s definitely home.

Can you talk about your role in the play, The Bee Keeper of Aleppo? How has it been to be on stage telling this story? How did you get involved in this project?

I play Afra Alhammal. She is a syrian artist, who along with her husband (Nuri, played by Alfred Clay) has to flee Syria due to the civil war. I auditioned for the role which I received through my agent and after a few rounds I luckily got the part! This has been the most incredible role to play. I absolutely love playing Afra, she is such a strong and passionate woman and I am honoured to play her in this incredibly moving and important story.

What was your preparation process for this role? Do you get nervous before or onstage?

We watched lots of documentaries to see what a lot of refugees have experienced first-hand. I read the play many times and then we also had a dialect coach to help us with our accents and pronunciation.

I do sometimes get nervous, less so now that we have been doing the show for over four months, but yes I can still sometimes get nervous for sure!

"This has been the most incredible role to play. I absolutely love playing Afra, she is such a strong and passionate woman and I am honoured to play her in this incredibly moving and important story."

Do you get anxious about working on a project? How do you work through it?

I always find the first part of any job nerve wracking. You are meeting new people, hoping that they like you and that you get on. I have been very fortunate in that I really truly love this cast and so I do feel like we all support each other. I think it’s also important to have a good support system in your everyday life to go back to inbetween places to keep you grounded, especially when the going gets tough and you’re super exhausted.

In the short film Taarof(2018), you have a leading role and you’re also credited as a producer, can you talk about that experience and working on this project which was directed by a woman?

Taarof is mine and Alannah’s baby! It was a passion project which is so so close to our hearts. We had the most phenomenal cast of so many middle eastern women which was just so phenomenal and something I had never experienced before infront of and behind the camera. It was a life changing experience and we are all still such good friends. Taarof is our little big film, that keeps on giving. We recently screened it as a part of a ‘Woman. Life. Freedom’ event that we held with Girls in Film at the Rio in Dalston. An amazing young woman wrote part of her thesis on Taarof and included our film which was just so cool to be included in that.

How much of the character resonated with you? Did your personal experience as an Iranian woman inform the way you approached the character?

Taarof is loosely based on my life, there are some similarities to my life but then there are also some major differences. I think it was easy for me to access Nazanin as so much of her was created from me and my experiences. I identified with her a lot, especially at that time in my life. I think a lot of first and second generation immigrants feel as though they don’t know where they belong and they feel ashamed that they can’t speak their mother tongue as well as they would like, or that they don’t know certain cultural traditions.

Toward the end of last year, you co-curated a screening to raise awareness for the WOMAN. LIFE. FREEDOM. movement in Iran. Can you talk about the event?

I am so proud we were able to create this event with the kindness of so many people who were involved. The night screened 6 shorts from female, non-binary and trans Iranian and Kurdish film makers in order to raise awareness for the movement that has been sweeping the nation of Iran recently. The brave women and men of Iran have been standing up against injustice and for their freedom and we wanted to showcase some incredible filmmakers and raise money for the Abdorrahman Boroumand Centre, an organisation dedicated to promoting human rights and democracy in Iran.

The six shorts that were screened were:

Taarof - Alanna Olivia

Bahar - Maryam Hamidi

Standard of beauty, The Iranian Nose - Sahar Ghorishi

Yasamin - Julia Elihu

Cave me in - Sahar Ghorishi

My name is Akin - Bircan Birol

Your picks of your favourite stories(movies, TV and books)? Stories that have delighted, inspired and resonated with you?

That’s a tough question! I’m very excited by seeing more Middle Eastern people on our screens and in mainstream roles. Seeing Arain Moayed in Succession was a personal highlight! I have such an eclectic mix of tastes but some of my favourite films include : Some like it hot, Moulin Rouge, Paris Texas, and Good Will Hunting. In terms of TV I recently watched and loved ‘Mo’ on Netflix, I also love Succession, and on the other end of the spectrum Selling Sunset! Haha. I love Meg Wolitzer as a writer and I tend to prefer female protagonists in stories. I also love real life women’s stories who inspire me. Conchita Cintron is a big hero of mine. She was probably the most famous female bullfighter to have ever lived and a complete pioneer. I get really excited by stories about women who were the first to achieve something, whatever that thing is. I feel these are the stories we need to see more of.

"The brave women and men of Iran have been standing up againt injustice and for their freedom and we wanted to showcase some incredible filmmakers and raise money for...an organisation dedicated to promoting human rights and democracy in Iran."

What stories(Movies/TV/theatre) are you looking forward to being told this year?

I’m currently on tour and was so so sad to miss ‘For Black Boys Who Have Considered Suicide When the Hue Gets Too Heavy’ which I have only heard good things about. I want to see ‘Standing at the sky’s edge’ because I also missed that but it’s coming to the West End. I’m looking forward to seeing the film ‘Polite Society.’ I recently saw ‘The Little Mermaid’ live action and was so blown away by it, so I highly recommend that! Brian Cox is coming to the west end to do ‘Long Day’s Journey into Night’ and I’ve already booked tickets for that because I feel that’s going to be one not to miss!

What advice would you give regarding pursuing one’s passion?

You know deep in your bones if it’s something you can’t live without and if it gives you that soul fulfilment then you must do it. You may need to do other jobs on the side, but that feeling you get from knowing that you are living your truth is like no other, just know that it’s full of ups and downs but if you work hard and make sure to take care of yourself then you are on the right path. Try your hardest to only be in competition with yourself.

What would you like to be defined by?

How I made other people feel.

A Participante(female creative) whom you find inspiring? 

Alannah Olivia, Simone Ashley, Conchita Cintron, Lucy Rie, my mama! 

Eimear Ryan, I love her work and Solange Knowles as a Participante Muse - obsessed with her music.

Something you would change about the realm you participate in?

That the industry was a bit more sensitive. Sometimes I feel the wage isn’t great for actors in theatre or on tour and then sometimes you can have a bad experience with a casting director or in an audition. It’s hard because we have no one guiding us per se so you have to learn as you go along, and for the most part it’s fantastic but there are times when you feel like you’re being a little taken for a ride and that actors could be treated with a bit more understanding for what the job entails.

The Bee Keeper of Aleppo is at the Leeds Playhouse on Wed, 31st May. See more dates here.

For updates, follow @ParticipanteJournal on Instagram