cast interviews
lauren daniels (they/them)
performer: andie/izzy
classically trained, lauren has been acting since age nine and could recently be seen playing beatrice in ‘much ado about nothing’ by william shakespeare. they have worked steadily in theatre and musical theatre, entertaining audiences as donkey in ‘shrek’ by david lindsay-abaire, and tzeitel in ‘fiddler on the roof’ by joseph stein. after graduating from frederick irwin anglican school where they completed atar drama, lauren is constantly seeking extra training in acting, writing and music. recently taking to the film scene, lauren sought training from jeremy levi to further their skills in screen acting.lauren has been branching out from theatre, honing their skills on screen through performances in various films with curtin university and notre dame university. after getting a taste for the film industry, lauren is looking forward to travelling for their career, and growing their acting skills both on and off screen.
what has been your favourite part of working on ‘all the stars.’?
i’ve loved having the privilege to bring this story to life. the characters remind me so much of myself and of people i know, and it feels so fulfilling to be able to bring the story of so many queer people to life.
if you were to pick one song to describe ‘all the stars.’, what would it be?
‘ur so pretty’ by the wasia project describes ‘all the stars.’ pretty well. it tells a similar story of someone who is so extremely in love that they’re so afraid to lose their special person. but it feels so inevitable and that is crushing.
how has your experience of queerness shaped who you are?
i think that i, like so many other queer people, am still learning so much about myself that i’ve kept hidden away for so long. but, largely thanks to people i have met and also better representation of queerness in media, i have learned to make peace with not knowing everything at once, and allowing myself to discover myself as i grow. i feel that this has given me newfound confidence in myself, as i don’t need to explain myself to anyone else but me.
which character says your favourite line from ‘all the stars.’?
when andie says “i’m afraid. i think i’m afraid.” it highlights how andie has bottled up their feelings for so long that they don’t even understand themself anymore.
who do you relate most to; andie or tessa?
definitely andie. i see a past version of myself in them who was too afraid to open up and ask for what i needed, choosing instead to push my own feelings down because i thought being vulnerable would be a weakness. i had a tendency to try and avoid conflict, which ultimately made small problems worse. the way that andie has pushed their feelings aside so much that now they can barely recognise what they feel is something i can relate to.
if you could give any advice to your young queer self, what would it be?
i think i would tell myself to not be afraid to have large feelings. feelings and emotions are natural and we shouldn’t be forced to push them aside just because we’re worried it will make someone else uncomfortable or not like us. more open communication would have solved a lot of problems a lot sooner in my life. and also, don’t date your best friend! it’ll take 3 long, hard years to be friends again, and you were always meant to just be best friends.
who is your favourite couple who is doomed by the narrative?
tori and paulie from lost and delirious. they were so in love and paulie couldn’t imagine being with anyone else. but, like ‘all the stars.’, the shame that tori felt about being gay ultimately led to their relationship ending so tragically.