YOUNG Jake Savage seems to be following in his mum, actress, Philippa Savage’s footsteps, as he takes to the stage in his first theatre production this week.
Jake, a Berea resident and pupil at DPHS, has been cast as one of the actors to play Christopher Robin in KickstArt’s Winnie the Pooh, which plays at Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre from 1 to 17 July.
Philippa said Jake seems to have caught the acting bug, and can’t wait to get to rehearsals every day.
“He’s like a Duracell bunny! He will deny it as he is so shy, but I can see it in him. I was also shy as a child, but put me on stage and I was a different person!” she said.
“I’m super proud! He didn’t expect to get the part, and kept saying ‘If I get in, I’m not doing it!’ after each call back, but in the end when he was cast, he said he was okay with it, and that he would do it! He has just blossomed, and I’m told he’s doing well,” she said.
“I’m a little bit excited, but also nervous! I’m enjoying rehearsals, but I really didn’t think I’d be doing this! I’m looking forward to starting the show. I might do it again in future, depending what show it is,” said Jake.
Jake is not a stranger to the stage, as he is a modern, contemporary, hip hop and acro dancer, and has performed with his dance company, Dance Direction.
“This will be the first time that I have had to speak on stage though!” he said.
“Jake wants to be a computer engineer, but I told him to just do this for fun, as he can’t just sit behind a computer all the time, it’s boring! He is lucky to have both brains and creative talent. I’m so proud of him that he has stepped up to the commitment of rehearsing every day after school,” said Philippa.
Philippa is also involved in an exciting venture, following a break from acting over the past eight years.
“I’ve always done radio drama and am playing Amelia in a modernised version of Othello which will be broadcast on Lotus FM. It still has the rhythm and flow of the original Shakespeare, but we speak so the matrics can understand, without losing the authenticity and essence of Shakespeare. It’s such fun and is very exciting. I love radio work,” she said.
Philippa, Peter Court and Greg King used to run a company together called Creative Madness, and from there Greg went on to form KickstArt, and Philippa went into formal employment.
“We did amazing work together involving a lot of puppetry and live acting, which Greg still uses. I also did a lot of work with KickstArt. I love the stage, you can be whoever you want to be, no matter how reserved you are. I have been a professional actress for many years and have performed at the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre, the Playhouse and in film, which was the last big thing I did about eight years ago. My passion is children’s theatre, and I might go back to perform again now that I am self-employed. It’s really come full circle now with Jake performing as well,” she said.
Philippa started dancing when she was very young, and when she was nine years old she went back to ballet. She started shining there and was encouraged to take drama lessons.
“My first show was Jungle Book when I was 12 years old. My mom used to take me to the theatre from the age of four or five and I fell in love with it then. I was 13 when the Sneddon opened and I went to see Anne of Green Gables on stage. I remember sitting there in the audience and thinking my biggest dream would be to get on the stage at that theatre. It finally happened when I was 18! I’m so proud of Jake, as he doesn’t realise how lucky he is to be doing that same thing at the age of 10!” she said.
Matric pupils can follow Philippa in Othello on Lotus FM from Monday 4 July, weekdays only at 9.45am, with the same episode repeated at 9.30pm.
