While some British actresses with Eastern European ancestry have ‘transcended’ their roots and are not thought of in terms of nationality, they were brought up in the UK and never had their ‘Britishness’ questioned. For anybody else of the same heritage wanting to make it in the West as a serious actress, they have to put up with many obstacles – the greatest being preconceptions and stereotypes… Written and performed by Anastasiya Ador, Selfies, Visas and How I Pay For My Dinners is a very moving show that stems from personal experience.

Whatever else you may think about Ador, she has led an interesting life to date. Growing up in authoritarian Belarus where civil liberties are oppressed, Ador found solace and escapism in the most unlikely of places – Bollywood musicals. Fast forward to when she is 16-years-old, Ador is given permission by her mother to go travelling by herself and ends up in… India. For the 10+ years, Ador works in many different areas, which because of her unique qualities and her ability to speak both Hindi and English, many doors open to her. But it was the dream of an ex-boyfriend to travel/live in the UK, so when he wasn’t to do so, Ador felt that she ‘should’.

All of this info is disclosed to the audience over the course of the show. As for the nature of the show, that is something else entirely. Under the faux-pretence of “not having a show”, Ador repeatedly ‘breaks the fourth wall’ – interacting not only with the audience, but also the ‘stage manager’ and ‘lighting operator’, as the lack of a high budget is blamed on why graphics/displays aren’t used and so on. Be that as it may, the meta aspects of the narrative are a positive side of the show – the inclusion of the ‘bells and whistles’ would have been at the expense of Ador’s rapport with the audience.

Asides from the more-detailed aspects of Ador’s mother, and the strange and varied things that Ador did to earn a living, she’s also very open about what dating is like in India. Like anywhere else, there was a difference what Ador was asked in private versus marriage proposal sponsored by potential mother-in-laws!

The show is very funny and there’s a ‘knowing wink’ at times at the things we know are true, but society/the media say otherwise. While the show’s denouement focuses on the quest for the ‘Church of the English Accent’ (if I remember correctly), one is reminded of the fact that large swathes of the UK who don’t speak in a RP (Received Pronounciation) accent often bear the brunt of being ridiculed and stereotyped, missing out on opportunities in their chosen careers. At certain echelons of society, being British is ‘not enough’ – the ‘right accent’ matters too.

While Ador admits theatre is her ‘first love’ as the best medium for acting, her acting CV/résumé to date is impressive by anyone’s standards. But just to give you an idea of the uphill struggle facing all Eastern European actors, remember Bulgarian actress Maria Bakalova who won an Oscar? She played… ‘Borat’s daughter’. Once again, stereotypical assumptions still suffuse even the most lauded roles…

© Michael Davis 2024

Selfies, Visas and How I Pay For My Dinners ran at Old Red Lion Theatre on 19th and 20th September.