Aussie star Emily Williams leads The Bodyguard cast
Multi-platinum Australian recording artist Emily Williams will be Rachel Marron as the award-winning hit musical The Bodyguard tours the UK– a hugely important role for Emily.
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00:00 Good morning, my name is Phil here at Group Arts, editor for Sussex Newspapers, now the
00:05 Bodyguard. What a fantastic show. It's on the road, coming to a number of venues with
00:09 us and playing Rachel for us in the UK is going to be Emily Williams. What a fantastic
00:16 role and this is such an important one to you. It was your theatrical debut, wasn't
00:21 it?
00:22 Yes, it was. And I'm so happy that it was or else I wouldn't be here today. I'm glad
00:27 that I did it. Yes.
00:28 And you're saying that the songs of Whitney Houston kind of sit okay for you, but they
00:33 are still pretty demanding, aren't they?
00:36 Absolutely. I think it would be demanding for any vocalist to be doing it six nights
00:41 a week, singing Whitney tunes. It does get to a point where it can be very, very straining
00:47 if you haven't warmed up the right way. But yes, for me, I'm a soprano singer, I have
00:52 been for literally majority of my life. So I seem to have fun in that pocket of hers.
00:58 So it's a good time.
00:59 Absolutely. And obviously it's not just the singing, it's the acting too. And Rachel is
01:03 such an interesting character, isn't she? What do you make of her? What do you have
01:07 to really put across to be Rachel?
01:11 Rachel is very protective. She's a mother first, she's a performer second. And she really,
01:22 really thinks she knows what's going on in and around her circle. Because obviously she
01:28 pays everybody, she loves everyone, but not realising, I think, just in a certain part
01:35 of her life, she doesn't have power over, and she doesn't have a clue about what is
01:39 actually going on. Because a lot of the people who she found and thought was close, were
01:44 hiding things from her.
01:45 Yeah. Well, she's funny like Max, isn't she? Because she's pretty tough, pretty spirited,
01:50 but she's also very vulnerable, isn't she?
01:53 Oh, yes. Oh, definitely. You have to be able to really hone into her vulnerability, because
02:00 if you don't, people will not understand why she is the way she is. So in doing that, I
02:07 find it to be very rewarding on my part, because I guess, being brought up in a certain way,
02:16 identity wasn't a very open thing for my culture. So to be able to share that side of myself
02:24 through a character, it's so rewarding. And it's helped, I guess, me pull down a lot of
02:32 walls, and I'm very grateful for that.
02:34 Oh, fantastic. Now, you clearly had a great time doing it back home in Australia. Now
02:38 you're doing it in the UK. That's a great prospect, isn't it?
02:42 Oh, it is. Absolutely. I feel so honoured that they would want to bring me and fly me
02:46 all the way here to play this iconic role. I'm just surprised that they didn't find anyone
02:51 here to play because I know a lot of amazing singers here.
02:55 Well, it's clearly something about your performance back in Australia, wasn't it?
02:59 Oh, it must have been, babe. I wake up every morning. I'm like, Oh my God, am I really
03:05 here? I'm here. I am here. I'm here.
03:07 Fantastic. And you're going to be going to some great places and doing a bit of running.
03:12 You're a runner too.
03:13 Yes, I love to run. It's probably where I find my most peace. It helps with my mental
03:20 health. It also helps with my stamina of singing the show. It helps with my dancing so I'm
03:24 not puffed out or I'm not sweating. Any of that. Just running is just number one. And
03:30 I'm so grateful for it. If I couldn't run, I'd be... no, no, no.
03:37 I agree with all those sentiments. Brilliant.
03:41 I can't even answer that.
03:44 You have done. Brilliant. Well, really lovely to speak to you. Have a fabulous tour. Thanks
03:49 for your time. Look forward to seeing the show. Thank you.
03:53 Yes. Can't wait to see you.