Aiming for the stars
> Theatre actress Stephanie Van Driesen is taking the unusual step of crowdfunding her way to a Masters of Fine Arts in Acting in the UK
interested individuals who want to contribute to her study fund.
The thespian recalled the first time she wanted to be an actress. She was eight years old, and was watching a young Christina Ricci in the film Mermaid.
“I believe Christina was eight years old in the film, too,” she says. “I just love her character. She was naughty and feisty. I wanted to be like her.”
Stephanie started by taking part in talent competitions in and outside her school.
“I was very shy then,” she remembers, but the talent competitions indirectly helped her to be more confident.
“Once I’m on stage, I have a totally different personality,” she says. “I feel confident and I feel special.”
At the same time, her father exposed her to music and musical theatre. Slowly, she fell in love with the idea of performing on stage.
She went on to get a degree in musical theatre and soon landed roles in musical theatre productions such as Cabaret, The Wizard of Oz and Marilyn & Me.
Stephanie shot to stardom when she won the best supporting sctress award for her role as Betty in Nora the Musical at The BOH Cameronian Arts Awards in 2012.
She received critical acclaim recently for playing an adulterous
in Harold Pinto’s famous play Betrayal. Her versatility as an actress shines in roles where she does not just sing. “I wanted to be an all-rounded actress,” she says, having also appeared in the tele-film Project Merdeka where she plays the girlfriend of a Chinese man whom his family disapproved of. Stephanie will also be releasing her first album soon. Entitled Melbourne, the album will feature five songs that tell the story of how two strangers meet and fall in love with each other. Referring to the title of the album, she says: “I have visited Australia a few times and I love the city of Melbourne. It is an art hub city.” Her future plans include trying her luck abroad, most probably on the stage of Broadway and West End, and maybe even Hollywood. “I am itching for more challenges and I want to see how far I can go,” she says. With her talents, success might just fall onto her lap.
Those who would like to support Stephanie‘s studies can email her at stephie@sfastage.com.