An Interview with Singer, Musician, Actress and Writer Mandy Williams
We recently caught up with singer, actress, musician and all-round talented performer Mandy Williams to find out about her latest endeavors. She recently wrapped up her play “The Funny Thing About Men” at the Hollywood Fringe Festival to rave reviews and plans to take it Edmonton Film Festival this coming August. Here is what she had to share with us:
Please introduce yourself to the readers and how you first got into acting and music:
Hello! I am Mandy Williams and I grew up in Essex, England where I started dance classes at the age of 3. Our mum exposed us to all the musicals and my sister, and I would be constantly singing, dancing and making up plays.
Who were some of your influences growing up?
I loved the British comedians growing up. Victoria Wood, (my ultimate role model). Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders. Pam Ayres (comedic poet). Also Bea Arthur….to name a few.
What kind of training have you had, if any?
I trained in ballet, tap, modern and jazz until the age of 16. Then I took that training to an advanced level when I attended the Italia Conti Academy of Performing Arts in London where I also studied all aspects of drama and singing.
Tell us about your stint at the Hollywood Fringe Festival just recently, for your new play “The Funny Thing About Men”. That must have been amazing!
This, for me has been an absolute dream come true! I have been working on this show for 2 years and to see it come to fruition and get great reviews feels like such an accomplishment. I am taking it to the Edmonton Fringe Festival in August and who knows after that. I plan on developing it and taking it to New York ultimately.
You are also in a band and regularly play live gigs. Tell us about that:
I am so lucky that my day job is a singer in a band with my best friends! We play about 5 nights a week around LA. We also get to travel and perform at bigger theatres for tribute type shows.
What has been one of the biggest highlights/achievements of your career?
My one-woman show, for sure. I also narrate audiobooks and was awarded winner of a SOVAS (Society of Voice Arts and Sciences) award for best audiobook narration for “How to Catch a Bogle”. I was in the same category as Kate Winslett of Titanic fame so that felt like a pretty big achievement : )
If you had a chance to work alongside anybody who would that be?
Ricky Gervais, Eddie Izzard, Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders and Christopher Guest.
What other projects do you have coming up?
I’m looking forward to taking my show to the Edmonton Fringe Festival in August which will be at bigger theatres and seeing what the audience's reaction is.
I also feel the need to write the last children’s book in my “Oh Charlie” series to make it into a 3-book series.
What is your best piece of advice for aspiring artists?
Be yourself! It took me a long time to finally decide what I like and who I am. I’d been told I needed to cut my hair short, dye it brown, that I wasn’t pretty enough, I was too theatrical, just plain “I don’t know what to do with you” and I got very disenchanted with the industry. I decided to carve out my own path.
I think a lot of people in LA get to that point and that’s where they find their success. They write their own script or show or create their own gigs. They get to showcase who they are and highlight their talents. Basically, if you know that this is the industry for you, you WILL find a way. Never stop believing in yourself and get out there and show them who you are!
For all the latest updates on Mandy including upcoming performances visit:
