Delasi Zikpi

27, West London

Tell us about Bring The Drama and what audiences can expect?

Bring The Drama is a rollercoaster of emotions that demonstrate the power of what people can achieve when pursuing their dreams and passions! 8 actors with varying degrees of experience are given a crash course into the lives of working actors! Audiences can expect to see a journey (for me) from a novice to a much more confident and knowledgeable actor. The show has a very warm feel due to the way we really bonded as a cast. The limitless love and support given to each other was amazing and I'm incredibly grateful to have shared the experience with such a brilliant, talented cast.

Why did you apply for the show?

I applied for the show because I felt it was time to put myself out there and take every opportunity that was presented to me. This seemed like the perfect opportunity to showcase my natural talent whilst gaining more skills and education to make the next steps to become a professional actor!

Tell us about your background in acting and what had led you to this point?

My background in acting started from school, I used to absolutely love doing drama in school and even took it for both GCSE & A Level where my performances were graded really high! I love performing!

What do you feel has held you back from fulfilling your dream?

I feel the reasons for me not being able to fulfill my dream of becoming a high-level actor are multifaceted. The first of which comes from a lack of understanding how exactly I would pursue this dream, I had no idea how to get an agent, and how to get my foot into the professional industry. The second main holdback for me was finances, it's extremely expensive to pay for high-quality showreels, headshots etc.

What was your experience like filming the series?

For me, filming the serious scenes was really enlightening. I feel that I learnt so much about myself as an actor and a person. I definitely don't think I started strong at all! But as the weeks went by, I learnt more about the power of becoming more comfortable within myself and how that manifested itself in my acting. Also gaining the education of being on live sets, doing long days, having to learn scripts so quickly, all gave me a glimpse into just what it takes to be a professional actor....and as gruelling and difficult as it can be......I'D DO IT FOREVER!

I was so blessed to work with such a fantastic cast and crew who supported me throughout and helped me gain more confidence as the show progressed. I found a new family that I'm proud to be a part of!

What was it like working with Bill Bailey?

Working with Bill was amazing! He's so genuinely, effortlessly funny and made the set so lively! What I also loved about Bill was his willingness to get involved and be one of us! I also really appreciated the feedback he'd give to me as it gave me a lot of confidence.

And how was it working with the rest of the team including Kelly, Gemma and the guest mentors?

Working with Kelly was amazing! I really appreciated her honesty. You could tell that whenever she gave feedback it was with the intention to help us improve. She used her experience to teach us so, so much and I think it really helped change my trajectory during the show.

Working with Gemma was so fun and empowering, she taught us so much in the masterclasses, real tangible skills that we were able to take to set. I also feel that Gemma's advice was so vital to my personal progression on the show. She's so knowledgeable and was able to help me break through barriers I'd faced early on. I'm so extremely grateful to her and would love the opportunity to work with her again!

Working with the guest mentors didn't feel real at times. Seeing legends like Natalie Cassidy had me starstruck throughout! They were all so supportive and gave such useful feedback that I was able to incorporate in real time. I particularly loved working with Charles Venn & Ed Speleers who gave me such memorable moments....one in particular when Ed said "you're trying to work me out of a job"! I couldn't believe it! So grateful to them all for taking the time out to join our journey.

What has been your biggest key takeaway from the show?

My biggest take away would be - to be yourself. That's the best way to make acting authentic, finding parts of you that can be related to the story or character and using them to bring your performance to life. Another big takeaway is that despite how gruelling, tiring, scary, the process was at times, I'd do it again and again, I WILL do it forever because I loved every single bit of it!

What would be your dream role?

My dream role is to be cast as Black Panther! I absolutely love Marvel and loved Chadwick's portrayal of T"Challa and hope that I would be able to do the role justice! Now I need to get on the radar of Sarah Finn. Hopefully this is the first step!

Is there anyone in the industry that you admire and look up to?

My favourite actors are Denzel Washington, and Leonardo DiCaprio, I think they're the best to ever do it! I also take great inspiration from people such as Letitia Wright, Daniel Kaluuya, Damson Idris and John Boyega who I believed have all paved a way for the newest crop of young Black British Actors.

Do you have any stand out moments from filming?

I would love to thank everyone involved, from the amazing cast, fantastic crew and the amazing guest directors too!