From the Moon to Göteborgs Stadsteater

Alumni portrait of Odin Romanus

Tell us about how your artistic journey began. Who or what inspired you to take up acting?

My mother worked as a project manager for TV so I went along with her to a few different productions such as Skavlan and Parlamentet. I found it so fascinating and got inspired to seek out an audition. I went to theatre school when I was around five years old and started going to different castings and things like that. In secondary school, I studied musical theatre at Kulturama in Stockholm and after that I studied theatre at Södra latin's upper secondary school. A year after graduating, I got accepted to the Academy of Music and Drama in Gothenburg and that’s how it all began.

What have you been doing since you graduated?

I've had a small summer vacation and worked at a camp. In the beginning of August, I started a one-year contract at Göteborgs Stadsteater. I was thrown in and started rehearsing Nattvak quite quickly after graduating. It is a psychological thriller, a newly written play by Alejandro Leiva Wenger that recently premiered.

What are some of the accomplishments you’re most proud of in your career thus far?

My internship at Masthuggsteatern in Gothenburg. I'm proud of that accomplishment because it was a pretty gruelling performance. I was part of an independent theatre group that performed Det blåser på månen (The Wind on the Moon). We had to do so much more than just acting, such as cleaning the toilets after a child had used it or help build the stage. I'm very proud that I managed to get through it all and was able to pull myself together for two exciting performances that resulted in positive reviews. It was nice to see the children's reactions – they often came up to greet me after the performances. I noticed that I was making an impression. Some of them would come up to me on the tram or in second-hand shops. That made me feel very proud and cool.

Others will notice when you give everything!

What are the most challenging aspects of being an actor?

You don't get paid when the camera is rolling or when the audience is cheering. As an actor, you get paid for those 15 minutes right before you go on set, and you sit backstage really nervous and try to relax. That's the hard part of being an actor and I thought about that the other day when we were rehearsing – I get paid for these funny little things that I'm involved in. Like being naked to do a sex scene or standing on stage testing the lights. Being dressed in a strange costume when everyone else is watching you in darkness, taking notes about the way you look. Being the center of the production can be flattering but also feel quite vulnerable, when it's not showtime. People pull and tear at you and you get thrown back and forth between different places and have to tiptoe around other people's artistry. That’s the real challenge.

How has your experience at the Academy of Music and Drama prepared you for what you are doing today?

The Academy of Music and Drama has given me great tools in the art of acting – that is, in my own artistry – to build a scene and find out my desires in each scene. The build up. That's the big thing, I guess. The other big thing is the hours of experience that I have received from training that I don't think you can get anywhere else. You’re really doing things properly. The internship is done over a long period of time at an actual theatre and the big final production is performed for paying audiences. The experience has allowed me to deal with nervousness. I have destigmatized being on stage because I've had to keep repeating the process of doing it over and over again. I've gained a sense of self-confidence.

If you could give one piece of advice to someone studying theatre and pursuing a career in acting, what would it be?

Attending the theatre programme is difficult. You have to study hard, and the days are long. You have to try things that don't suit you – methods that don't suit you. You are bundled together with classmates who are put together for the purpose of being as different from each other as possible. So, it's a hell of a challenge but I think you will benefit from having the attitude of wanting to try everything. Give it your all and take the parts you like with you.

My best advice is that others will notice when you give everything! You might think that it won’t show. You might think – "I got this small role" but if you give everything you have, it will shine through to the audience. I was an intern at Masthuggsteatern and it's a pretty small theatre, so I walked around and complained about it. But later, when I shifted my focus to giving the children this fantastic story, it resulted in more people attending and spreading the word. In the end, I was offered a job at Göteborgs Stadsteater.

Do you have any exciting upcoming jobs or projects that you are looking forward to this autumn?

Yes, except for Nattvak, we are performing Pinocchio in December where I will play the lead role. There will be more scenography, art and shapes, effects, light and movement. A completely different challenge since it will be performed on the main stage. Then, in the spring, we will perform En folkefiende (An Enemy of the People) directed by Viktor Tjerneld, who has made a new interpretation of Ibsen's original text. It's an incredible luxury to be able to throw yourself out like this right after graduation!

Interview by Vendela Holmberg.