Marie Sophie Ferdane

Born: 1977 / Living: Paris, France

Interview by Speciwomen — January 2016

Speciwomen: Tell us about yourself. 

Marie Sophie Ferdane: I am an actress. I have been a theater actress for fifteen years now. For a while, I played in classical repertory pieces, Berenice by Racine, Macbeth by Shakespeare, Feydeau, Horvath. That obviously emphasized when I entered the Comédie Française, whose mission is to present pieces from the repertory: Molière mostly, because it is his house, but also Marivaux, Pagnol, Duras, Gontcharov, Brecht and other great playwrights. 

S: Have you always known what you wanted to pursue?

MSF: I discovered theatre quite late, when I passed my Aggregation in Literature at the Ecole Normale Supérieure. I have always wanted to stay in the world of literature. In high school, when people asked me what I wanted to do, I answered: Read. Thus, I chose studies which would allow me to stay in touch with books. Theatre arrived all of a sudden in my life during a workshop I was participating in at the ENS. We were playing The Maids by Jean Genet, we rehearsed when academics slowed, on weekends, late evenings, in the school gym. This first experience was like love at first sight. I was lucky to find a very good course, the conservatory of the 5th arrondissement in Paris, which was directed by Bruno Wacrenier, who was a great pedagogue. 

S: How has art shaped your life?

MSF: When I am arriving in an unknown country, city or town, the first thing I go see is the theater. It is a landmark, an indicator, we understand a lot of things by seeing their programs, like what interests their people. What authors they like. What touches them. I always start at the theater, in Berlin, New York, Chicago, in London, Barcelona, Madrid, in Montreal, Athens or Brussels, in Venice, Lisbon or Milan. This is how art embraces my life: it serves as a compass, or an anchor to help me understand life and the people in it. Have you ever noticed how less alone you feel when entering a theater? Without knowing anyone, and being away from everything, suddenly the light, a mark, things are instantly clear again, you are in a theater!

S: How do you reconcile art as a purely creative outlet with the need to make a living?

MSF: I have been lucky enough to make my living working in theatre. It is an incredibly difficult business to become a part of. In France, our artists receive support from the government. For example if you are going through a period of time where there’s no work you still get paid. It is called “Temporary Worker Status” and it is very specific to France. This support allows us to further our artistic development rather than search for other jobs to pay the bills.

S: What brings you inspiration?

MSF: What inspires me is other people’s work. If I see an audacious show, a striking actress, hear a text that makes me emotional, I figure out all the things that make me think about what I do, what I would like to do and with whom I would like to do it. A book can hold a similar virtue: a painter’s memories, or the story of a life on stage, the difficulties they met, their doubts, their progress, can help lighten difficult moments. It is a chain of experiences that connect us to people who in other countries, different times, and different artistic occupations tried to reach the same kind of goal.

S: What's the best advice you've ever received, and what advice do you wish someone gave you when you were starting out?

MSF: The best advice was given to me by my theatre teacher Nada Strancar. She said: be obsessive! It is impossible to live half of this profession, from underneath, being an amateur. It is necessary to read, see and absorb everything. Thanks to her, at the beginning of my acting career, I was going to the theater all the time, I was reading everything that concerned the author I was working on, I was asking to attend shows and rehearsals, I was allowing people to recite their lines to me, I was going to the specialized libraries to see old recordings of plays, I was an intern, an assistant, a volunteer… I was doing everything! I wanted to discover everything, technique, lights, costumes, diction, everything. Maybe because I started a little late, I felt as if I had a whole world to discover, and that this world was unlimited.

The advice I was not given and which I now give to young actors is to never be scared to ask for help or advice. You can save a lot of time. Even if the person you’re asking cannot help you, learning to express your desires helps you see clearer and define more precisely what you want to do.