The Olivier-nominated actress and theatre maker on school days in Birmingham, a cast of life-changing teachers and her realisation she could be an artist
Where did you go to school and when?
I was born and raised in Birmingham and went to secondary school and sixth form at Camp Hill School for Girls.
What was your school like?
I feel so lucky to have had the education that I had and teachers who were really passionate and changed my life. Camp Hill has a reputation for churning out doctors and academic overachievers – both a brilliant thing and a trap. But my school also had a thriving arts culture and invested in extracurricular activities and, perhaps I didn’t appreciate it fully at the time, but I had some empowering female role models.
In a country where arts funding in schools is critically at risk, I am so grateful Camp Hill introduced me to things that otherwise would have been completely out of my reach as a kid from a lower-income, working-class, immigrant household. I thought I would become a doctor too. It was ‘expected’ of me. Thank god Camp Hill had a Drama department because Jane Parker-Hall, the head of Drama, changed my life and I literally would not be here without her. She, amongst others, shaped my life in ways I will be eternally grateful for.
Did you love school, or hate it?
I mean, growing up and trying to work out who the hell you are in amongst teenage hormonal angst is hard. I think the experience of school is pretty similar for most kids who find themselves somewhat eccentric or outcasts. Generally, I loved school, but mostly because I had so many drama clubs and bands and choirs and sports teams in which to let my freak flag fly. Besides, you learn that the eccentricity that makes you a target as a teenager will be the very thing that makes you fabulous as an adult.
What were your favourite subjects at school?
Drama, Music and Biology
Who were your most memorable teachers?
Jane Parker-Hall. How do I even begin to pay tribute to you?! Jane’s passion changed the course of my life. I am genuinely only here because of her. I told myself drama classes, drama clubs and school plays were an asset to my medicine applications, when in reality, Jane had shown me my calling. It was so important that I had the opportunity to do GCSE and A-level Drama. I loved the history of theatre, the way she taught me about its impact and the power it has in shaping society, the practice of empathy, the craft, the freedom, the form, the play, the anthropology of it all. She lit the spark in me that rages on now.
Prue Hawthorne, the head of Music at Camp Hill, is another reason I’m here. I got to participate in endless choirs, performances and her famous ‘Songs from the Shows’ productions. She encouraged my love of music, even though I failed spectacularly at composition. I absolutely loved Biology, had a real thirst for learning, and Kate Rollason was a teacher who saw that and went far and beyond to support me. She spent time with me after school in the library, teaching me how to translate knowledge into marks. Another favourite biology teacher, Alistair Dawson, turned lessons into an immersive and interactive show. I learnt the most from his lessons. Jayne Neal, my English teacher who is now deputy head at Camp Hill – I have her to thank/ blame for introducing me to Romeo and Juliet with such passion and starting my lifelong love affair with Shakespeare. Another memorable teacher is Mike Southworth from the boys’ school next door, staging epic joint school productions – and remembered by many.
Where was your favourite place at school and what did you do there?
The music block, where my pals and I would play and belt songs from Wicked; the grounds where we played endless rounders games; the beloved drama studio (despite its terrible smell) and the park next to the school where students from the girls’ and boys’ schools could fraternise (*ShockHorror*).
What beliefs did your time at school give you?
The belief that I could do so much more than my station would socially predict – and the value of education. My school gave me a chance at some kind of social mobility, to be surrounded by ambition and see parents of friends in jobs I wouldn’t have imagined for myself, but suddenly felt very possible.
What was your proudest school moment?
The theatre maker/producer in me awoke when I didn’t get a part in our school production of Twelfth Night. I was gutted but then took action. I was so hungry to make something that I self-produced and ticketed an ensemble production of Kafka’s The Trial and put myself in it. Bold.
What was the most trouble you ever got into at school?
I don’t remember getting into that much trouble. Although when we stood down as A-level students, my friend and I plastered Mr Dawson’s car with pink heart Post-it notes. Probs a tad inappropriate really…
Were you ever ‘too cool for school’?
Ha! No. I was a theatre freak, and proud of it at that.
What is your most vivid memory, looking back?
Ooft. Too many to name. Post-show parties are a definite highlight.
When and how did your interest in acting begin?
If Jane Parker-Hall lit the spark, Kumiko Mendl, Artistic Director of New Earth Theatre (formally Yellow Earth Theatre) poured fuel onto the fire. ‘You cannot be what you cannot see’, and I had no role models of ESEA (East and South East Asian) heritage to follow. I didn’t even know if it was possible for someone who looked like me to become an artist in Britain – let alone a working-class kid. Kumiko brought a roadshow to my Saturday Chinese School in Birmingham advertising a free introduction to acting summer school and I met real jobbing actors of ESEA heritage. That showed me it was all possible and introduced me to the vibrant community of ESEA artists to whom I owe everything and do everything for.
What other key influences/passions shaped you growing up?
My mother instilled the value of education in me. Though it wasn’t something I fully appreciated as a child, I certainly do now. My dear friends from Camp Hill who are still my dear friends now. Those close female friendships that last a lifetime – yeah, they’re pretty special.
What projects and challenges have you embarked on recently?
I recently embarked on a two-show schedule, leading UNTITLED F*CK M*SS S**GON PLAY in the evenings and rehearsing another play in the day. A pretty intense run of twelve-hour days but both plays mean so much to me, I’ve been honoured to do them both.
How would you sum up your school days in three words?
Formative. Enriching. Freaky.
Photos: Ian Lim; makeup: Reve Ryu; hair: Jason Goh; styling: Harriet Nicholson
Mei Mac instagram.com/meimeimac
Further reading: Ben Garrod on inspiring school days in Norfolk
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