Colette Forde is a creative genius. Currently based in New York where she is delivering stand out performances of her one women play, “Innit”, Colette is proof that if you believe in yourself and work like all hell, you can make your dreams come true.
We asked her what life as an actress is really like…
Official title:
Actress, playwright, singer/songwriter workshop leader…from September student – YIPPEE
That means I…
Don’t know what I’m doing half the time 🙂 It means I get to write plays to provide work for myself as an actress now about subjects that matter to me. I also get to sing covers and write songs that bring out the best I have and share little life episodes that moved me. I really love writing! Lastly, I lead a workshop ‘Teen Speak’ for teenagers to destigmatise therapy which I think is instrumental to their emotional evolution. I am going to get my Degree in Youth and Community Work from this September to develop this idea more effectively.
The three best things about my job that make me jump out of bed in the morning are …
Every day is different! I get bored quickly so change keeps me on my toes
Hopefully I get to create something valuable that will reach hundreds of people. Right now for example I’m EXTREMELY lucky to be Off Broadway New York performing my very first play about the benefits of therapy ‘innit’!
Lastly, I feel I’m finally in control of my life as my dreams and talents aren’t dissolving into thin air like they were when I was ignoring them. I have full autonomy which is very empowering and necessary to feel full as a person.
The three not-so-great things about my job that make me roll over and bury my head in my pillow are …
As everyone will say, the instability of money, it can get very debilitating and intensely stressful.
I get depressed when I’m not creative. It feeds me, it’s my life supply. I need purpose in my life so when things get stale or bleak it feels like I’m totally stranded
Thirdly, that those first two reasons are big enough to put people off following their creative passions. It is a risk but I was far unhappier leaving the most important parts of me unclaimed because I wasn’t listening to my heart! At least I’m home now.
I bagged this job by …
This current one Off Broadway, because my play was spotted at the Limerick Fringe Festival. The Artistic Director Darren Lee Cole from the SoHo Playhouse Theatre thought my play about a suffering teenager Kelly Roberts needed to reach a bigger audience. So I’m here for the summer. I had ‘innit’ in a few festivals in order to build its reputation and now I have the best credit yet! He also wants to push Teen Speak too!!!
The best advice I could give someone who likes the sound of my job is …
Your heart is always wiser, in any job! That is your soul’s compass! It all starts with you and how much faith you have in yourself. There are always reasons not to do something, this is natural, however the rewards are far greater when you know that you kept that passion alive despite the pain and desperation, and you see the golden threads start to come together. Like a complex tapestry, if you find the right weave using all of this suffering and self-belief, you can create your very own masterpiece xx
You can read the amazing reviews of Colettes play here. We look forward to having her back on Irish soil at the end of the summer.
