The Tudors
Flawless
Royal Flush - A conversation with The Tudors' Natalie Dormer
Natalie Dormer, a classically trained actor and self-proclaimed tomboy, does a great job hiding her boyish side in her current role as Henry VIII’s second wife, Anne Boleyn, in SHOWTIME’s The Tudors. While she graced the big screen in the 2005 romance, Casanova, she’s still barely scratched the surface of her range and talent in her blossoming career.
As Ms. Dormer sipped a cup of tea, she took the time to speak with Time Warner Cable’s Marnee Horesh from her flat in England. They discussed her knack for experiments in the kitchen, the upcoming season of The Tudors, and how she secured the nickname “The Queen” among her poker buddies.
It sounds like a party back there. Bad time?
Not at all. I was kind of experimenting [in the kitchen], but it actually turned out okay!
Ah – so your talents go beyond acting, I take it.
Yes.
You played Victoria in the film Casanova. I understand the role grew after you were cast. Was that your first big job?
Yeah, in Casanova I was very lucky. I had Casanova a few months after I came out of Drama College.
Have you been working steadily since then?
The longest I’ve been unemployed is nine months. It was one particular project that I was attached to and it fell through.
That stinks
It’s that old proverb - what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. But at the time it’s so hard.
True. But if it’s what you’re meant to be doing, that’s a good thing.
What it does is that when you’re given an opportunity such as Anne Boleyn in The Tudors, you grab onto it with both hands. Yes, the hours are long; I mean they are ridiculously long. But I know what it’s worth.
What are the hours like?
I have to be in the makeup chair at 5:30 in the morning and sometimes we don’t wrap until 8:00 pm.
What’s the most challenging part of acting?
Keeping the faith when you’ve fallen in love with a project and it doesn’t quite work out because you lose the role to someone else or the project loses its money or for whatever reason, things just don’t happen the way you want them to. Keeping the faith when the tide seems to be against you is the most challenging.
What can you tell me about The Tudors?
Our costume designer, Joan Bergin, and I use the word “deconstruct” with regards to the costumes. I think it’s actually quite a useful word to describe the series, from the script to the cinematography to the acting style. It takes the blueprint of British costume dramas and twists it slightly to grab the attention of the audience.
Would you ever consider a comedy role?
It’s funny you should say that! When I did Casanova, Lasse Hallström [Director, Casanova, 2005] and I discovered that I had a bit of a talent for burlesque. I always thought I was sort of the straight girl, but I really enjoy the comedy genre. Hopefully that’s just opened up my work opportunities.
What were you like as a kid?
I’ve always been a tomboy. I’m at my happiest when I’m physical, and that’s why I’d kind of like to do an action movie. I did a lot of stage combat at drama school, and I was always happiest climbing trees as a kid. I wasn’t a girlie-girl.
It seems like The Tudors’ set would be a serious one. Is it?
Not at all! Not when Jonathan Rhys Meyers is around. It’s quite the opposite. I would say probably one of the most mischievous sets you could hope to be on. Jonathan Rhys Meyers is a great morale booster and he’s always keeping the energy up. And James Frain and Jeremy Northam and Padraic Delaney…you put a lot of boys together and it’s like a playground. Poor Maria Doyle Kennedy and I are trying to influence some sisterhood and decorum into the situation. Plus, Nick Dunning, the man who plays my father, I have to say is the wickedest thing for telling jokes. He has me in hysterics.
How do you explain The Tudors’ success?
I think part of it may be the power of [Michael] Hirst’s scripts. There are basic human qualities that are timeless; you can see it in Paul Thomas Anderson or in Shakespeare. Regardless of what they’re wearing, who’s in power, whether the motorcar was invented or not, you know sex and violence and friendship, etcetera are your stock human conditions that translate across the ages. Those qualities are all picked up on.
You look like you really enjoy yourself when you dance.
Yeah, absolutely. I was a dancer for many years before I really got into acting. I was in dance class at the age of three and I danced all the way up until I was about 17.
What was your favorite type of dance?
Modern was my favorite, the kind of thing I suppose you’d see on MTV today. But I did everything all the way down to ballet because it’s the discipline of the art form. I really love dancing; I find it incredibly cathartic.
How is it to wear those costumes?
Of course it can get very uncomfortable, and yes the crowns are spiky and they do hurt as much as they look like they hurt. And motherhood was a wonderful exploration in this season, but when you’re wearing those bumps and you spend the day with your body in a different position, [it’s not easy]. I’d have backaches at the end of the day and I’d be complaining about my feet. My poor body! I’d look at myself in the mirror in these big, tent-like maternity dresses, and I’d say to Joan Bergin, “Oh God, I feel so un-sexy!” And she’d laugh and smile at me and say, “Yeah, welcome to the pregnant woman’s world.”
And what about playing Anne Boleyn?
I am so lucky to be given this job, and I am so privileged to be playing this courageous, fiery, vibrant woman, this authentic historical figure that really lived. I’m not going to make some sweeping statements about early feminism, but there’s a lot to be respectful of what Anne achieved.
What do you think of this show as a history tool for teachers?
Anything that intrigues a person to take a little bit more interest cannot be a bad thing.
What else can fans look forward to in Season 2?
There’s a very, very demanding scene between [Jonathan Rhys Meyers] and myself. We do this one very demanding sex scene - I’m sorry, Freudian slip! It turns into a sex scene. Actually, they did it beautifully. They sort of inter-cut the two because it was like the dance that led to that stimulated the thereafter - say no more.
I read that you enjoy playing poker.
Yes!
What’s your favorite game?
Texas Hold’em.
How did I know you would say that?
The only game, [expletive]! Actually, you’ll laugh at this...I’m part of a poker circle and we’re all meeting in Vegas soon.
That’s a great idea! Sounds like fun.
We all have nicknames for each other, and in the last year, for obvious reasons, I’ve assumed the name “The Queen” at the poker table. But, I was saved after this suicidal hand with a royal flush and the river card was a queen. She completely saved me! The boys just looked at me and said, “Well if you weren’t The Queen before, you’re blatantly The Queen now!” It was just one of those beautiful moments that if you wrote it in a movie, people would be incredulous, and say – that wouldn’t really happen! But it really did.
