The Greatest Show Woman

I chatted with Director of Shrek the Musical (2024) Juliet Gough about her beginnings as a dancer and actor. What kind of discipline does it take to commit to your artform and what she was like as a kid? Her 20+ years in the entertainment industry lends itself to many insightful stories and reflections.

Elisabeth gives insight into life as a high end escort in London. What do male clients ask for? Do they like going down on a woman? What are the weirdest requests she's received and how did she find herself working in the sex industry? In 2024 she released her debut novel based on her real life: Unashamed - why do people pay for sex. Unashamed is a no-holds-barred, taboo-busting account of the life of a sex worker, and what it's like to build a highly successful career in a multimillion-pound industry that exists largely in the shadows.

Olivia is probably most known for her role as Milla Jovovich's stunt double in the final instalment of the Resident Evil films due to sustaining a horrific motorcycle accident that resulted in the amputation of her left arm. Begging her career as an international model in South Africa ten migrating to Thailand to be a professional Muay Thai boxer, she is an undeniable force and an inpiration to hear her speak with honesty and openness about the drastic turn her life took after the accident. She discusses the perpetual pain she is in, the lack of compensation she has received and how she embraces meditation to maintain some sort of equilibrium and make it through each day.

How do you become a prima ballerina? What sort of dedication and training does one have to commit to? Charlotte Broom has enjoyed a 25-year career as a ballet and contemporary dancer. She was principal artist at Northern Ballet Theatre and Cullberg Ballet, Sweden, and also performed in numerous productions at the Royal Opera House, Sadlers Wells and in the West End. Charlotte is co-founder and artistic director of HeadSpaceDance (Critic’s Circle National Dance Award for Best Independent Company 2017), rehearsal director for Ballet Black and movement director for the upcoming theatre production of The Hunger Games (2025). In this conversation she discusses what it takes to become a professional ballerina, juggling motherhood and her love of dance.

What's it like wearing the wonder woman costume or dancing in one of Paris's most renowned theatre shows?Whilst casually mentioning a childhood swimming in rivers infested with tiger sharks, one wonders if Aussie stunt women are even afraid of anything? Endearingly self-deprecating, suggesting she was a terrible dancer at a young age, Christiaan landed a job in Paris at the Moulin Rouge before embarking on a journey into stunt performing where she became Gal Gadot’s lead double in a series of films with Wonder Woman. This conversation reflects on the balance of motherhood and being a physical performer and the demands of travelling constantly for film work.

@stannibombani