I know it’s been over a year since I’ve posted, but what a year it’s been! As some of you know, I’ve been in Life of Pi in the West End, and I thought I’d write something of my experiences in the show.

On October 11th 2021 we started rehearsing. With the world turned upside down, I didn’t know if the show was going to happen again, so we all met excited and apprehensive. For those of us original cast returning, it was a great reunion as I’d not seen many of them since 2019, and there was a warm welcome to the newer members of the West End company.

Rehearsals with various company members. Pic by Nuwan Hugh Perera

We started rehearsals in earnest, as there was so much ground to cover. Enough time had elapsed for those of us who returned to the show to rediscover and recreate, whilst for the newer members, it was a whole new world.

Me having a chat with director Max Webster. Pic by Nuwan Hugh Perera

After so much time away, we had to get in shape. Physical warm up in the morning started, and our bodies got into gear. It took (me) time, although some people were a lot more match fit than me 🥴.

Daisy Franks warming up. Pic by Nuwan Hugh Perera

We continued rehearsing, and the piece came together. There are so many elements to this play that are off the page; puppetry, physical aspects etc, that it takes a leap of faith.

Rehearsal butterflies at the start of the show.

By November 5th 2021, we were ready to move out of the rehearsal room, and into the theatre for the next phase; technical rehearsals.

Final pic in the rehearsal room of cast, crew & creatives. Pic by Nuwan Hugh Perera

On 7th November 2021 we moved into Wyndham’s Theatre.

The exterior of the theatre on 7th November 2021.

The original full company and creative listing outside the theatre.

Technical rehearsals (as the name suggest) are where all the different elements: set, lights, costume, wing space etc come into play. The hours are long, we were in for 12 hours a day, which is typical for production week. You need patience, humour and food to get you through it. You also need good company, which this show has in abundance.

I’m with Habib Nasib Nader & Tom Espiner, (we’re known as the Buoy Band as we lift the lifebuoy in the show).

By the time we started tech, Covid cases were on the rise again, so we were all having to wear masks when not on stage, and test every day. Being in such close proximity with each other, we had to take precautions. This added to my anxiety, but in order to get the show on and comply with the law, that’s what needed to be done.

Mina Anwar helping Payal Mistry with her sari before a tech session.

The tech sessions continued a plenty, and slowly we were getting closer to our first preview. We kept going, and laughed our way through the adversity.

Me getting back into Panditji costume after a meal break in tech. Pic by Nuwan Hugh Perera.

Our first preview was 15th November 2021, and it’s a date I’ll never forget. Dreams came true that night, and the audience was electric! They screamed when our director Max came onto the stage to introduce the show, and were so vocally supportive all the way through. At that point every time we’d run the show, there was a show stop owing to technical difficulty. Max made light of this in his opening speech, and the audience went with us along for the ride. They were so supportive, it’s a night that will stay with me forever.

This sign outside the theatre was there from 15th November onwards.

The first preview felt like a rock concert. The cheering, mid show applause, standing ovation, it was incredible. We were all so relieved at the end!

Our producer Simon Friend organised drinks for us at the end of the show, and we were all elated and exhausted at the same time. Now the show moved into the next phase; previews.

The various dept desks in the auditorium during tech/preview sessions, which then get cleared for preview performances.

Previews are a wonderful thing. You perform the show in the evening, then the following day you re-rehearse in the afternoon what didn’t work from the night before, or are given rewrites, the blocking (staging) changes etc. Then you perform it that night, and repeat.

We had 2 weeks of previews, to get the show ‘right’. In that time there were plenty of technical elements which needed to be corrected. We had show stops a plenty, more than I’d experienced in any show I’d been in. In one preview, we even had to cancel Act 2 which is something I’d never done before. This was owing to the complexity of the technical aspects of the show and needing to be safe. Safety was alway essential, so if it wasn’t safe, it didn’t happen. This took some work, and continual progress was made to improve it.

Nuwan Hugh Perera as Pi on top of the boat, lifted by me and other company members. Pic from Nuwan Hugh Perera.

Towards the end of previews, the show was ‘locked’. That meant it wouldn’t change, and the final few performances would be the same. This gave us the scope to feel comfortable and settle into what we were doing. The word of mouth about the show was wonderful, standing ovations every night and The Theatre Cafe even sent some Life of Pi cupcakes to the theatre for us!

Custom Life of Pi cupcakes from The Theatre Cafe

As the show is so physical, we have two Pi’s. Hiran Abeysekra plays Pi Thursday -Sunday, and our alternate Nuwan Hugh Perera does Monday & Wednesday. Owing to the demands on Hiran’s body, Nuwan went on in the previews to play Pi. This was earlier than expected, and he was fantastic. The entire company rallied round to support and provide whatever he needed. It wasn’t always easy, in rehearsals there were accidents, but to Nuwan’s credit, he got up and carried on. So, on 27th November 2021 Nuwan made his West End debut as Pi, and he blew the roof off the theatre!

Before Nuwan’s West End debut on 27th November 2021 with the Boys of Dressing Room 4; Tom Espiner, Habib Nasib Nader & me. Pic by Nuwan Hugh Perera.

On 2nd December 2021 we had our Press Night. This was another dream come true for me, (to be in an original play in the West End), so the expectations and pressure were building. This was also around the time of Omicron starting to surface, so it was quite a tense time. We weren’t sure if a press night party would happen, or if the show would go on. We’d heard several other shows had to cancel performances, and delay schedules, so it was tense.

But the show went ahead, and Simon Friend Entertainment threw a press night party for the show. It was a wonderful night, we all got dressed up, and I was lucky enough to be dressed by Kaushik Velendra He’s a South Asian designer I’ve had my eye on for some time, and so I was thrilled to be dressed by him.

Wearing Kaushik Velendra at the Press Night Party

With Hiran Abeysekra at the Press Night Party

The reviews came in, and we’re a hit! It was such a relief that all our hard work had paid off. The word of mouth was great, the box office was good, what could possibly go wrong? Omicron.

Despite opening on 2nd December to rave reviews and standing ovations, by 6th December we had to cancel performances owing to people testing positive in the building. It was a horrible situation, none of us had been here before, and the situation was changing on a daily basis. It was everyone’s worst nightmare. To top it all, I started to film Series 5 of Ackley Bridge at the same time. (I’ll post about that another time). But we had to push on.

While the show was dark (off) new emergency puppeteers and acting covers were hired to get the show back on as soon as possible. This took a few days, as the show is very complicated, and it takes time to learn different tracks. This was coupled with more people testing positive on an ad hoc basis, so it just kept changing. Everyone’s stress levels were through the roof, and just as we thought we might open, we had to cancel another show.

Backstage selfie whilst re-rehearsing the show.

The show reopened, and we performed. Owing to public demand, the booking period was extended to April, and more tickets were released. Audiences had to wear masks to attend, and prove either they’d been jabbed and/or a negative test result. The understudies and puppeteers were doing split tracks, with some of us helping out too. It was precarious, nervous and hard. Everyone's stress levels were through the roof, and I was yoyo-ing between Wyndhams Theatre, and Halifax where they shoot Ackley Bridge. I was being tested multiple times for Ackley, as well as testing for Pi, so I miraculously avoided Omicron. I don’t know how or why, but luckily I was able to stay on.

Around this time I also resumed my voice over work, so was in and out of studios. In order to do this, as well as providing my negative status, I was also needing to show studio Covid protocols to SFE to make sure it was safe for me to work there. New times called for new measures, and every time I went to a different studio, I had to provide the protocols. It was totally understandable, and made sense given the circumstances we all found ourselves in.

On the run up to Christmas, everything felt like it was accelerating. I was still filming Ackley on my day off from the theatre, as well as voice overs, and we were bracing ourselves for the Christmas schedule. Traditionally there are a lot of performances, that’s nothing new, but between Boxing Day and New Year’s Day I think we had something like ELEVEN performances. We were all exhausted, but loving being in the show. This show in particular is one we’re all proud to be a part of, and want to be in. If you’re in, you’re on!

The Company Christmas photo on 24th Dec 2021.

In the New Year, it felt like things started to settle a bit. I was still filming Ackley, still voice overing and we’d resumed our normal schedule. Some people were occasionally testing positive, but by now, we knew what would happen in that instance. Then in February, we hit a milestone .

This felt like such an achievement given what we’d all been through. SFE provided a cake to mark the 100th show, which was devoured in no time at all. Here we are doing what (unfortunately) has become a bit of a thing, the tiger face.

100th performance 22nd February 2022 with the company pulling the ‘tiger face’.

Then awards season came round, and we found out the show had been nominated for a whopping NINE Olivier nominations! We were all so proud of everyone’s achievements, including the show making history for having the seven puppeteers who play Richard Parker to be nominated for Best Supporting Role.

From the show’s nine nominations, the show won FIVE Oliviers which is incredible! Best New Play, Best Actor, Best Supporting Role, Best Design and Best Lighting. There was an after party where all the statuettes were placed together, and it was a BEAUTIFUL sight!

Producer Simon Friend with the Olivier haul.

In May 2022, the show participated in the second West End Flea Market, where all the proceeds go to Acting For Others It’s a charity close to my heart as I’m an ambassador for them, and they help out the theatre community, and all who work in it. This was only the second time it happened, and the total raised was a whopping £46 THOUSAND pounds in just under three hours. Thank you to all who came, and those who took part.

The Life of Pi West End Flea Market team.

In June I finally took a week off the show. I had pharyngitis on my final few days, which meant I was performing whilst taking steroids to stay on the stage. There were some more Covid cases in the building around this time too, so stress levels were up again. But I made it through, and got on that plane!

Once I was back, I got straight into the swing of things resuming my voice over work through the daytimes, whilst doing the show in the evenings. Once it got to Pride, the stage was lit up and we all marked it with a photo. It’s a very inclusive building, something I’m proud to be a part of.

And so now here I am writing this with only seven performances left. On Sunday 28th August 2022 we said goodbye to Kirsten Foster who was our Lulu Chen in town. Whenever anyone leaves the show, it’s always an emotional thing, and this was no exception. She’s a beautiful company member, and I can’t wait to see her in her next show.

At Kirsten’s final warm up on Sunday 28th August.

The following day, Monday 29th August 2022, was Nuwan Hugh Perera’s final show as Pi alternate with the original West End Company. He’s such a beautiful soul and actor, it was very emotional to say goodbye. He’s taking over as Pi once we leave, so there’s still time to see him if you haven’t done that yet. There were tears on stage at his curtain call, and I wish him well for the future.

On Monday 29th August 2022 at Nuwan’s final Pi alternate performance. Recreating the photo from back in November.

And so, here we are at the end. It’s been such a journey. By starting doing workshops for the show, then performing in Sheffield in 2019, and then not knowing if it would ever happen again. Resuming in 2021, triumphing at the Oliviers, performing through till September 4th 2022. It hasn’t always been easy, there have been many challenges, upsets, and disagreements, but ultimately the passion for this piece shone through. I’ve loved being a part of this production. I’ve loved what it stands for and represents. I love looking out into the audience and seeing our people watching our stories on a West End stage. This job has made so many dreams come true, I’m honestly very grateful. It’s been wonderful taking it from the beginning, to the end. I’m handing over the role to a very talented actor, who I know will be great at playing his own version of Mamaji and Panditji. This show is magical, this show has magic, and to have been a part of it has been a career highlight.

Thank you to Max Webster for directing us, Finn Caldwell for your patience while I was learning the language of puppetry (both times), Andrew T McKay for your haunting score, Simon Friend for making my dreams come true, and finally to Lolita Chakrabarti for a beautiful script and your love and support along the way

I still have seven performances left, and I intend to enjoy every single moment of them. If you came to see the show, thank you for being a great audience. If you couldn’t make it, sorry I missed you. To all my family, friends and team who helped me get here, thank you for your love, support and patience.

It’s time for a new adventure and new beginnings ….

Durga Durga! Mamaji out! 🙏🏽

A Blog About My Life of Pi at Wyndham's Theatre, West End @LifeOfPiWestEnd