Actor and theatre maker Astrid Pill opens up about life, her inner child, and an incredible act of kindness she received in a moment of need. She returns to the stage in her Helpmann award-winning work, Me & My Shadow, at Space Theatre in August.
Tell us a bit about yourself in a nutshell.
I make multidisciplinary work with collaborators across music, movement and physical performance. The bulk of my working career has been spent making original work that is subversive and feminist in nature, but I have also made a lot of work for children, including Mr McGee and the Biting Flea, Emily Loves to Bounce and Me & My Shadow for Patch Theatre. I have always had a strong inner child who isn’t going anywhere soon!
What are you currently working on?
I have been in rehearsals with Patch Theatre for Me & My Shadow, a work I helped create a long time ago with great friends and collaborators, including Nathan O’Keefe. I performed the work during its premiere season, as well as the Opera House and Arts Centre Melbourne seasons, before stepping away because of mothering duties. Other actors have stepped into the role and the work has been going ever since, across the country and the world. I am stupidly proud of it. Now Nathan O’Keefe and I are back doing it together for the first time since the premiere season in 2011. We are a lot older and our knees might need some ice packs, but our minds are still as young as they were back then.
What does your idea of the perfect day look like?
A decent cup of tea and a good book, a mooch around in an art gallery, sun on my back while chatting with old and easy friends, swimming in a cool ocean with large but predictable waves, a hike with my family, a great sandwich, cake for afternoon tea, choir rehearsal, roast chicken for dinner and an early night in a cold room but in a warm bed.
What is a wonderful moment of kindness you have experienced?
I was struggling financially at one point, a single mum at uni kind of scenario and I found myself at the checkout with my little boys and a whole load of groceries at the front of a massive weekend queue when my card didn’t work. I was very stressed. The man behind me paid for my groceries and gave me his bank details so I could pay him back. He didn’t ask for my name or anything, he just trusted that I would. Which of course, I did. It was incredibly kind and I will never forget it.
What is your favourite photograph?
This is one of my favourite photos of me with my dad taken in about 1996. He was a ridiculously influential parent, especially when it came to art, music and environment. We are at Cradle Mountain National Park here and this was one of his all-time favourite places. I am originally Tasmanian so am really into those landscapes. He died of early on-set Alzheimer’s way, way, way too early, and I think of him just before I go into any performance. It helps to calm my nerves.
If you could own any piece of art, what would it be?
I love art. It was very important to my Dad, and he used to take us to galleries when we were very little. There are a lot of paintings and ceramics I covet, but I think going to galleries and seeing works in a collection or works that are unattainable is really important for my well-being. I recently saw Archie Moore’s Kith and Kin at QAGOMA, and I now carry that experience in my mind and heart. And I know my teenagers saw it and that they were moved. Art is powerful.
Here’s $500. You must spend it in the next hour – what are you buying?
I would buy tickets to Me & My Shadow and give them away on my local suburban giveaway group! Or, I would put it toward buying another dog!
A café or restaurant in SA you’d recommend?
I love Mister Sunshine’s in Thebarton and Lucia’s (Adelaide Central Market) of course. We recently went to Si Sea at the Central Market, and the anchovy fillets were delicious. I am really getting into fresh anchovy and sardine fillets. One of my best friends works in ocean resources and security and she is at the forefront of trying to get Australian sardines onto plates instead of being used for tuna feed. So, everywhere we go I ask if the sardines are Australian and if they are, I order them. It’s driving my kids nuts.
What was the last film or TV show you watched?
We watched Dean Spanley a few weeks ago, not long after Sam Neill died, because none of us had seen it. In it, he plays a priest who is a reincarnated dog. It was really understated, which I appreciated. Such a funny concept.
Subscribe for updates
Favourite way to unwind?
It’s a very boring response, but the only thing that really helps me to reconfigure and slow my busy brain is to exercise. I also recently went to a bathhouse for the first time – hot and cold plunges and saunas, which was super effective. I suppose anything that takes me out of my head and into my body.
Last book you read?
The Performance by Australian author Claire Thomas. It follows three separate women at the theatre watching Happy Days by Samuel Beckett while a bushfire rages not far away. It was such an excellent book, and I will definitely read more of her work.
Last song you listened to?
Lemons, Limes and Orchids by Joan As Police Woman. I was on a plane and had a limited choice from what I had downloaded. But I love this whole album and this particular song is sensational. I also listened to John Grant’s Queen of Denmark (also downloaded!). The way the title song unfolds is very satisfying and I love his lyrics.
Me & My Shadow plays the Space Theatre from August 15-29. Visit patchtheatre.org.au for more details.
Want to see more stories from InDaily SA in your Google search results?
- Click here to set InDaily SA as a preferred source.
- Tick the box next to "InDaily SA". That's it.
