Oriela has a passion for the performing arts

Oriela van der Walt, from Discovery, fell in love with the performing arts at a very early age.

“My earliest memories involve acting and singing. My parents had a few friends who would visit South Africa from overseas, and I would always rope my sister in to do a show with me, to bid them farewell before they went back to their respective countries,” elaborated Oriela.

“Then a school production of Charlotte’s Web really captured my imagination, I was fairly shy when I was in primary school so I didn’t audition but I did find myself sitting next to Mr Brown – the drama teacher,” explained Oriela.

She went on to say that from time to time she would offer some suggestions, “and he never shot me down, in fact he seemed to encourage me.”
She pondered if maybe he saw the makings of a director in her?

Before her time with Roodepoort Little Theatre (RLT), Oriela was a journalist which led her down a path that satisfied her curiosity around acting. “I never knew them, and I can’t remember who wrote the piece but there was an article about Amateur Theatre in the Fair Lady once and it suggested that if you always wondered about acting but weren’t sure if you’d take to it, that it was a good way to try the ‘art’ on for size,” Oriela elaborated. This drew her to the theatre.

“I didn’t really grow up in a theatre culture per say, it was more of a television diet for me.”

Looking back on the time she’s spent with the RLT, Oriela noted that there are many fond memories she can think of, some of them bittersweet. “One of them was winning at the South African National Community Theatre Association festival,” Oriela explained that the festival was the sweet part, “the more difficult part was that my dad and a fellow RLT member had passed away at the time”.

Her favourite part of the theatre is performing on stage. “I have directed a few productions but my passion is being on stage.”

“I love acting comedic characters, it’s great to make people laugh and help them forget about their cares and worries, by transporting them into a world of the imagination. As an actor I also enjoy playing a character who leaves people thinking after the lights have dimmed, I am thinking of Sr Aloysius in Doubt. I have portrayed her as an extract for a play for a drama exam and it was a demanding role, finding that balance of formidable and vulnerable at the same time,” Oriela elaborated.

She’s been a part of RLT for 24 years now and one of her biggest dreams is to act in a West End Musical especially one like Les Miserables.

“A quote that really resonates with me is ‘In the beginning was the Word’, firstly because it reflects my belief in Christ, the Word incarnate, who as part of the Trinity who spoke the creation into being. Secondly because many good adventures into the imagination begin with words. Words are fascinating to me, because they are a force for good and a force for deep wounding, so it’s important to choose them wisely,” added Oriela.

Her advice to future performers? Carpe Diem! Don’t be afraid! Push yourself out of your comfort zone and a whole new world awaits you. Also if you aren’t sure, start backstage – that’s where she started.