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iffany spent many years playing legendary murderess Velma Kelly in the musical Chicago in London’s West End. The Salisbury-born actress has also starred in The Producers, Cats, Witches of Eastwick, Sweet Charity and Kiss Me Kate. She is currently performing in Love on the Links at the Salisbury Playhouse, which runs 31 May to 23 June. What are your Salisbury connections? I was born in Odstock hospital, went to primary school in Sixpenny Handley and spent my teenage years in Salisbury. My father still lives in Old Sarum, so it’s such a thrill to be back in my home-town, performing at the Playhouse for the very first time. Tell us a little about Love on the Links… The show we’re doing is going to be so much fun. The Salisbury & South Wiltshire Golf Club kindly treated us to a wonderful day of lessons (none of us had played before) and we learnt so much from our brilliant instructor John. So hopefully any golf-lovers in the audience seeing us swing our clubs around the stage won’t be able to tell that we’re such novices. As well as playing the game, I’ve enjoyed reading up on it too – there are so many wonderful terms like Flub, Foozle, Jigger and Muckle. It’s all quite reminiscent of Harry Potter, isn’t it? Aside from an actor, what other jobs have you had? I was a waitress at Just Brahms restaurant on Castle Street when I was a teenager. I was absolutely hopeless, because I enjoyed chatting to the customers so much whilst taking their orders that by the time I’d return to their tables with the food I’d completely forgotten who ordered what, or even if I was back at the right table. Sadly the restaurant’s no longer there – but I don’t think that was entirely down to my terrible table service! Did you have any other aspirations? I wanted to be a dancer from the age of seven, and my first professional job was in The Nutcracker at the Royal Festival Hall when I was just eleven years old. Sadly I soon grew too tall to be a ballerina, so decided to pursue a career in acting and singing instead.
TIFFANY GRAVES The West End actress and singer returns to her home-town of Salisbury for the PG Wodehouse golfing comedy Love on the Links What was your first paid theatrical job? My first job in musical theatre was playing dancer Judy in A Chorus Line, followed by Bombalurina in Cats, then both Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly in Chicago – all very physical roles with lots of demanding choreography – so those early years of dance training actually paid off. Having thought I’d given up my childhood dream, I found that instead I was getting to live it out on the West End stage. It’s a positive lesson that I’ve tried to carry with me ever since. Do you have a mantra you live by? A useful life motto for handling such a topsyturvy existence is ‘Don’t take it personally’ – especially when you don’t get a part you’d set your sights on. What big star names have you met during your work? Meeting the legendary Mel Brooks whilst doing The Producers was amazing. Singing Bohemian Rhapsody with Queen guitarist Brian May to a packed stadium was pretty special. And I had a wonderful time doing a Help For Heroes concert recently with the Queen’s Colour Squadron and the ridiculously talented Royal Marines Corps of Drums. What is your career highlight to date? That is undoubtedly the National Theatre’s 50th
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birthday show, directed by Nicholas Hytner. Broadcast live on the BBC and in cinemas around the world, I was performing with Judi Dench, Helen Mirren, Ralph Fiennes, Maggie Smith, Benedict Cumberbatch, Adrian Lester, Alan Bennett and Derek Jacobi (to name-drop but a few) – there were more superheroes there that night than in an Avengers’ movie! What are you ambitions? I’d love to perform on Broadway one day. Funnily enough, a huge poster of me in Chicago recently went up in New York’s Times Square, and friends have been sending me photos assuming I’m in the show out there – so that almost counts, right? Your idea of perfect happiness is.. …a picnic in the park surrounded by loved ones and bottomless jugs of Pimm’s. Your secret Salisbury is… …the Cholderton Farm Shop. It is a fabulous family-run delicatessen that sells the most delicious cheeses, chutneys and cakes – their signature Olde English Plum Puddings are a highlight of our family Christmas.
For more: www.tiffanysings.com | www.wiltshirecreative.co.uk