Sister Act the Musical has less than a week left of its Adelaide run before it comes to Perth for four weeks only. It will mark the last leg of a national tour that has been running since mid last year. The Scoop had the pleasure of chatting to Raphael Wong, playing police officer Eddie Souther. Raphael discusses returning to his musical theatre roots, working with nuns and approaching the final leg of the tour.
You are a classically trained singer but have since crossed over into musical theatre. What has it been like making that transition?
I studied classical music in my late teens and at university. But I did musical theatre when I was at school, so I knew I would love to get my foot in the door in the musical theatre world. A show like Sister Act is so different to what I’ve done in the past, but it feels like a bit of a homecoming because it’s what I grew up with.
You made your musical theatre debut a few years ago. Do you approach a role like Eddie differently from other roles?
I think when it comes to the absolute foundations, I treat it exactly the same as any other role. I go through the same routine physically and mentally to prepare. It’s obviously a very different style of music, but I think performance is all the same when you think about it. I love that the dancing is something completely different to what I have done professionally. But I grew up around a lot of Motown and soul music working with various choirs so I’m really relishing the opportunity to flex those muscles. And this cast is wonderful.
How are you feeling about the final leg of the upcoming Sister Act tour?
I’ve loved this show and really had a great time. As any actor and performer will, we’re thinking gosh, what’s next? There’s a little bit of nerves about the unknown. But we’re always excited to jump over to another city and bring the show to a new audience.
I have a beautiful four-year-old son at home. My family is in Sydney and so being on the road is always challenging but my wife is very understanding and we’ve got a good routine now. They are coming up for a couple weeks for the Perth season so they’ll get to enjoy a bit of time there. But I am looking forward to getting back home at the end of Perth.
I think sometimes a limited run can feel short-lived. But it also means that we get a lot of people in a very small amount of time. The audiences are always really great, Brisbane and Adelaide were proof of that. We’ve had some really great and very vocal audiences. It’s an uplifting and feel-good show. So if we can get people up and out of their seats by the end, then we know that the audience have had fun.
Which character, other than Eddie Souther, would you like to play in Sister Act?
Ooh, that is such a good question. Gosh, I’d love to play any one of the nuns, to be honest. Every single one of them is so individual. Every night I watch the show from side of stage and I can watch a different nun every night and see a completely different show. Each nun is such a wonderful actor and performer.
The nuns have the iconic habit to wear. Do you have a dazzling costume of your own?
Morgan Large, who is the UK designer on Sister Act, has created a world that is just so incredibly bright. I get to wear a dazzling costume in the finale number. The sets and the costuming in this show are fairly simple compared to other shows but everything just pops and packs a punch on stage.
What advice would you give to anyone wanting to get into this industry?
The advice that sticks out for me is to be very open-minded about the opportunities that come your way. Always say yes, to an extent. I think it’s important to know your own value, but say yes to the opportunities early on. You don’t know what doors are opening to you in that moment and the people you will get to work with.
A lot of people who I worked with when I was young and still learning the craft I still work with today. Or, I have reconnected with in other ways now that we’re all a little bit older and a little bit wiser. And we’re all still creating art. I really relished all those opportunities by saying yes. So don’t stay closed off to the opportunity to create.
Sister Act The Musical opens in Perth on 26 April and runs for four weeks only at Crown Theatre, Great Eastern Hwy, Burswood WA 6100.
Tickets: https://sisteractthemusical.com.au/tickets/perth/
Website: https://sisteractthemusical.com.au/
Socials: https://www.instagram.com/sisteractmusicalau/
Photo credits: Daniel Boud
