SHE was working as a waitress in a cocktail bar, when she got spotted for her first professional stage role.
Well not quite: House on Bold Street has more to do with skinny lattes than gin slings. But the rest of it is true.
Drama student Nadia Bakir was manning the frother the day auditions for a brand new comedy, No Second Bite, were being held there. Unable to control herself, she gegged in right at the end - and got the gig.
Billed as a “Liverbirds on acid”, if that floats your boat, the play, by Belvedere Pashun, stars veteran Liverpool actress Lynne Fitzgerald and opens at the Lantern later this month.
And it was a case of life imitating art as far as the coffee goes: Fitzgerald plays Bella, a bored, single, fortysomething entrepreneur, who has a life-changing encounter when she buys an apologetic cup for a complete stranger called Chris, played by Jaiden Micheal who is apparently something to do with Desperate Scousewives. She gets him back to her flat, her flatmate turns up and hilarious consequences are naturally a given.
Nadia, who studies at Liverpool John Moores University, says: Talk about being at the right place at the right time, it was the end of my shift and I had watched actresses come and go all day, I plucked up the courage to ask the producers if I could read for the role. I was still in my work clothes. I was the last person to audition, I couldn’t believe it when I was offered the role.”
Reality TV star Micheal not only makes his theatre debut in No Second Bite but is co-producing. His colleague, Karen Struel-White, says they considered several theatres before deciding on The Lantern.
“I just loved the vibe the theatre had that cutting edge fringe style we were looking for, after being recommended by Jaiden, I instantly saw the perfect setting for “No Second Bite”. We auditioned over 300 actors in all and we are blown away with the talent that Liverpool has to offer, the show will tour later in the year”.
*No Second Bite, April 21-26, Lantern Theatre, Blundell Street. Liverpool. Tickets here
