Sophie Okonedo, 54, is one of our most extraordinary actors, now starring as Medea at @sohoplace theatre in London and giving a heart-flaying tour de force of a performance as Euripides’s tragic child-slayer. Her career on stage, screen and television reached new levels of conspicuous achievement in 2014 after winning a Tony for her performance in A Raisin in the Sun and she has been much feted ever since. She has played Cleopatra at the National, Winnie Mandela on television and will star in the third season of Apple TV+’s critically acclaimed Slow Horses later this year.
How much do you see Medea as a mythical figure – or do you feel she possesses a modern psyche?
I try to place myself right in the centre – I don’t know any other way to act. Unless I’m connected to the person I’m playing, I just wouldn’t know how to do it. I don’t think from the outside. I feel that myths are always current.
To what extent is the process of learning lines your way into knowing how you will say them?
That’s a good question, one people don’t really ask. For me, the thorough investigation of lines is how to access what I’m doing. I find it quite troublesome with television work because screenwriters sometimes rewrite the night before, which can make me feel I’m losing my agency as an actor.
That’s “before” – and what about “after”? Performing Medea must be so draining?
When I’m doing a show, I find it hard to do anything else. People might come to say hello after the show but I don’t want to go out for dinner. Meeting people takes my energy so I avoid that. With my husband and children it’s different, but I tend to keep quiet most of the day. And yet with this show, I’m not tired afterwards. I’ve been in shows with smaller parts and been more exhausted. It’s because Dominic Cooke directed it so well. He’d say: “I want to hear your argument.” I’m not relying on emotions in Medea, I’m relying on language.
Have you seen Alice Diop’s Oscar-nominated film Saint Omer, which explores the Medea story?
My agent in America said: “You must watch this film” and I loved it – it was brilliant. Those performances were incredible.
What do you make of the new @sohoplace theatre?
I’m absolutely loving this theatre. I went to look at it when it was being built. I said: “I really want to work here” – and they’ve held me to that. What stands out is its intimacy. The audience is right in with the actors and you can be very subtle with your voice and expressions. There are no bad seats!
You are the daughter of a Jewish mother and a father of Nigerian heritage – how do you think of yourself and which background is more pertinent?
I think about myself as a mixture and it’s all pertinent. I was brought up by my mother, so know more about her family. My mother worked as a pilates teacher – she’s just retired, actually.
Bringing up your own daughter, is there anything you resolved to do differently from the way your mother raised you?
I have a daughter and two stepchildren. Bringing her up feels so long ago now – my daughter is 26. I’m always feeling I should do everything differently. Being a parent is one of those things constantly filled with that feeling – which makes it hard to make a sentence out of it.
What do you like to do most that has nothing to do with acting?
Cycling. I live in Sussex and cycle with my husband [she is married to Jamie Chalmers, a builder]. He is much fitter than I am but the great thing about cycling is that you can go slowly. Last year, we followed a bit of the Tour de France and that was brilliant. Straight after this show, we’re going to Italy to watch the Giro d’Italia.
What makes you angriest in life?
The usual things – injustice – but I’m a really emotional person. I’m slightly driven by my emotions [laughs], which is really good for acting but may not be so brilliant for real life. I sometimes feel like all my skin is off. I find being on stage very holding. It’s what I’m meant to do. Everyone has their thing they’re good at – I’m not good at lots of things but this is the one thing I can do.
What originally made you want to become an actor?
I felt most comfortable when acting. I didn’t act at school but joined the Royal Court’s youth theatre when I was a teenager and had a tiny role in Caryl Churchill’s Serious Money.
What makes you laugh?
Ben Daniels [who stars alongside her in Medea]. He makes me laugh so much. Ben and Dominic [Cooke] are my best friends. Dominic, I’ve known since I was 15. He’s godfather of my oldest daughter and gave me away at my wedding. We first met in Swiss Cottage library.
Do you prefer working in theatre to filming?
By the end of this, I’ll be thinking: “It’ll be nice to do a film” – but I cannot imagine being an actor who didn’t do theatre. Theatre is such a challenge – there’s nowhere to hide. And I love that connection with an audience, especially with this play. This type of storytelling has been going on for thousands of years and I find that incredibly moving every night. When I come on, my heart swells.
You are in Slow Horses with Gary Oldman and Kristen Scott Thomas, which has had a lot of critical acclaim.
I’ve only done one scene in that so far! I have just filmed for the third series, though. I had wanted a more substantial part in the series, which is why I agreed to do that scene for the first season. I always knew I was going to have a big part eventually.
What are you doing once Medea is done – something lightly consoling, I hope? And who would your dream collaborator be?
I’d like to do something funny and was talking to Dominic about it the other day. I had a great time with Annie Baker [the American playwright] last year. I did a film with her – her first – which she wrote and directed, and she’s absolutely amazing. I really connected with her. The film is called Janet Planet. It is not out yet – there’ll be much more about it when the time comes.
Medea is at @sohoplace theatre, London, until 22 April
