Originally from Hartlepool, and having just graduated from a three-year acting course at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, Lewis Cope has landed himself the role of the accused, Leonard Vole, in Agatha Christie’s Witness for the Prosecution
“It’s a dream come true,” says Lewis with a massive smile, “as an actor you’re always waiting for your next job, and you celebrate it when it comes, but I was over the moon when I got this part. When I read the script for the first time I was literally buzzing, it’s like a rollercoaster with so many flips and turns, it’s just so exciting.”
This isn’t Lewis’s first time centre stage, for a year he played Michael in the West End production of Billy Elliott. “It did change my life, it absolutely did, before Billy Elliot I wasn’t doing anything in the industry. It was tiring because you train for a year first and still might not get the part, but they looked after us amazingly well, and it made me realise I wanted to be a performer.”
When his time as Michael was over, he returned to Hartlepool, joining a hip-hop dance group called Rough Diamond, managed by Kimberly Wyatt, which went on to be runner up of Got to Dance. “I think I just kind of fell in to dancing, but I realised being in Billy Elliot and working with scripts that it was acting I wanted to do.”
As the central character in Witness for the Prosecution, Lewis is now indeed getting to work with a script, “there’s a lot of lines” laughs Lewis, “it’s just hard work you need to get on with, if you’re worrying about lines it becomes a problem, for me the important part is working with and responding to your fellow cast mates. I also have to hide my accent, for this I need a London accent, and of course it’s 1952, so different to London today.”
Lewis has done some TV work, recently appearing in Hetty Feather, but nothing could prepare him for his first time in Witness for the Prosecution’s home, County Hall, “when you go in there you are automatically transported in to that time. The audience feel they are really there and involved, there’s no separation like there is with a stage because we are moving through and around the audience, I think it’s quite filmic.”
Lewis joins Witness for the Prosecution with a whole new third year cast, “it’s been such an amazing opportunity to experience this with different actors, you are always learning from other people.” With a whole new cast it means they have the opportunity to create a new version of the show, “of course the skeleton is there, but we’ve been really encouraged to make the show our own, and to follow our own instincts, which is such an amazing thing to be able to do.”
With the end of rehearsals in sight, Lewis can’t wait for his opening night, “I’m bursting to get on with it and do it” says Lewis visibly excited, “that feeling with a live audience is completely different to doing it on screen, it’s live and in the moment, and in the surroundings of County Hall, it’s even more powerful.”
Witness for the Prosecution is currently booking until 29th March 2020. The third year cast, including Lewis Cope, will be performing from 28th May 2019.
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