Interview with:Natascha Slasten [nslasten]
ACTING
 | How did you begin acting? I always knew as a child that I wanted to pursue an artistic career but only really took this path in my late 20s when I realised I’d be 30 soon and wasn’t leading the life I wanted to lead! Within a month of that great realisation I signed up for dancing, singing & acting classes in London…it was the acting that kind of took off by itself, without me making a conscious choice at that stage. I just went from taking evening classes and Saturday workshops to part-time drama school after work and then decided to audition for a full-time postgraduate acting degree. I only auditioned at three different drama schools and was lucky enough to get accepted at Mountview straight away. |
| At what stage in your career did you realise that acting could be something you do professionally? From the very beginning. I never looked at it as a hobby or something I might do on an amateur basis. |
| Please list an Internet address where one can see something about you. |
| Please list the most important or defining jobs of your career. I think playing Isabella in "Measure for Measure" which is such a wonderful complex Shakespeare character for women! It was the first play I did outside drama school and although the production was challenged in so many different ways it was a great opportunity to play a very central and versatile role. It was also the first time my family saw me act so it's kind of special for that reason too. Being in that play increased my confidence. |
| Please list any famous performances that have helped you in reference to your evolution in acting. Performing at the Soho Theatre earlier this year (in "The Woman Before") which is a great venue for modern plays. I'm also doing lots of voice-overs for big companies such as Heineken, Toyota, Volvo and others. |
| What is the archetypal character in which you tend to be typecast? I tend to be cast as the 'baddie', the spy, the 'other woman', the femme fatale... I think those roles are often more interesting though so I'm not complaining. |
| Do you see yourself working in this field in twenty years? Yes absolutely. |
| Are you continuing to educate yourself through acting classes, seminars, or other courses? Do you combine this with your normal job? Yes, I have an acting coach I train with from time to time and I have attended lots of seminars and workshops, particularly with the TVI Actor's Studio as I am very interested in working in the US. I was also part of a local theatre group for a couple of years. |
| According to your experience, please describe the best and worst of each medium: cinema, theatre, television. I think you get more of a thrill from doing theatre as it is a life performance - there's nothing quite like it. However the exposure is usually so much greater when you do TV or film work. It depends what your priorities are. |
| Is there any scene or role that you would never interpret due to personal morals, principles, or taboos? As long as I agree with the message that the play or film is trying to convey, no there isn't. |
| Have you ever thought of giving up on the profession? If yes, when and why? No. |
| One personal reason why to keep doing this work Self-expression, creativity, freedom. Three in one :) |
| What advice would you give to someone just starting out in acting? I would tell them to get some good training and to be very persistent. Apart from talent and dedication, a lot in this profession depends on luck and being in the right place at the right time, which can be a little soul destroying at times... I also found that while you need to keep your artistic skills up you do need to learn how to market yourself - you essentially become your own business manager. I didn’t quite realise the importance of that when I started out. |
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Natascha Slasten
London - UK
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