Actress Tia’s loving panto magic – and looking forward to the best Christmas dinner in the universe!

In traditional panto the Fairy Godmother makes Cinderella’s wishes all come true – but it’s the real life heroine of Shakespeare North Playhouse’s clever interpretation of the classic who feels a magic wand has been waved for her.

Tia Larsen, who plays Cinders in the Shakespeare North Playhouse production, beams:

“This is the best way to spend Christmas.

“It feels like a big break and that someone has waved a magic wand for me.

“Even having my face on the poster, that has been crazy to see, and so special.”

She adds:

“I am so lucky to be a young person and in the position I’m in, and I feel so grateful to everyone for giving me the space and the opportunity to do this.

“It’s genuinely a dream come true and I’m so happy to be where I am right now.”

The 24-year-old from Prescot is swapping her front-of-house day job at the theatre to take the starring role in the fairytale, after being chosen as understudy in last year’s Alice in Wonderland when, due to cast illness, she ended up stepping into various roles for 40% of the run … to huge acclaim.

Just one week into Cinderella, Tia has been getting incredible reviews, not least being declared ‘the best thing about Cinderella, full of charm and vitality but also spark’.

While she hails from a non-theatrical background, Tia has wanted an acting career since high school.

“I don’t remember the exact moment but it’s from around year 10, and I remember school productions – like Alice in Wonderland ironically – where I thought this is the only thing I can imagine doing for the rest of my life.

“I took a mix of GCSEs like triple science and dance, subjects I loved and was good at, and while my mum always said I had to have a back up plan, in my head I just thought I don’t need one because acting is the only thing I want to do and I’m determined to do it.

“Now my family are my number one supporters.”

Tia, who trained at The Rose Bruford College in Wigan, goes on:

“I like to play other people and not be myself, and be able to have all these experiences, or play all these experiences, that I’ve not lived.

“It’s a really special thing to be able to do.”

Shakespeare North Playhouse’s Cinderella is set in the Kingdom of Prescotisia where Cinders’ life is turned upside down when her beloved adventurer mum disappears, and her father remarries. Worse still, it turns out her new stepmother, Filania, is awful, as are her two dreadful daughters.

When Prince Flarf of Crosbinia decides to throw a huge party, they are determined to be celebrated as the belles of the ball while Cinderella is left home alone. But all’s not lost because help is at hand in the form of Fairy 23780 – aka Mandy – who’s fresh from Fairy Godmother school and excited to help Cinders find her missing mum and win the heart of the handsome prince (or at least get to his map collection so she can try and find her mum).

It’s a five-handed production with cast members cleverly playing multiple parts and Tia credits them with helping her to learn so much.

She says she is beginning to relax after the first one or two performances and ‘putting so much pressure on myself’ to get as good feedback as last year:

“Now I can start to enjoy it,” she smiles.

While she’ll be back at the theatre’s front desk in the New Year, Tia is looking forward to spreading her acting wings.

“I would love to do some Shakespeare and that’s next on my list to do here; and this role has really given me confidence in singing and dancing and I would really like to appear in a musical so that’s what I want to work towards next. Get some singing lessons, and dance lessons and try to enter that world.

“The West End would be incredible. I would really like to play Veronica in Heathers – a wickedly funny show in which Veronica Sawyer joins a school clique of Heathers before things take a blood-soaked twist – I think because I love the musical and I like the American high school theme and the powerful songs.

“I didn’t think I could sing those songs but working on Cinderella, and with Rob Green the musical director and composer, has shown me what I feel I can do.”

Before all those goals get ticked off the list, Tia wants to enjoy every day as it comes – and that includes Christmas Day which she’ll spend with her family.

“I’ll get up and stay in my pyjamas because there’s no getting dressed in my house and, after a lovely Christmas breakfast and Christmas dinner – my mum makes the best Christmas dinner in the universe – we’ll all play some games, watch some movies, and just chill.”

Book your tickets for Cinderella at Shakespeare North Playhouse here.

Find more theatre shows across Liverpool here.

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