This transcript was automatically generated and might contain errors.

[0:00] Josh Mitchell: And tonight we are hey queens, how's it going?

[0:12] Josh Mitchell: Welcome back to the Queendom Podcast.

[0:14] Josh Mitchell: My name is Josh Mitchell. If you haven't been here before, welcome.

[0:17] Josh Mitchell: I'm really excited to have you here. If you have been, thanks for coming back.

[0:21] Josh Mitchell: I really appreciate you guys that have come back week after week to hear my conversations with the Queens because the fact that you're doing it is incredible, and I am really excited to continue doing this for you guys.

[0:34] Josh Mitchell: And this week is no different because we have another breakaway queen.

[0:38] Josh Mitchell: We're staying on the same ship. We are coming at you with Miss Amelia Walker who was Parr on the Breakaway.

[0:45] Josh Mitchell: This is real good fun this episode, and I cannot wait to get stuck in.

[0:49] Josh Mitchell: Make sure you guys are getting your submissions in for Project Herstory.

[0:52] Josh Mitchell: Remember submissions closed September 15th.

[0:55] Josh Mitchell: But that's enough of that. Let's get down, Queens.

[0:58] Josh Mitchell: It is time to get started.

[1:06] Josh Mitchell: Hey Queens, and welcome back to the Queendom Podcast.

[1:09] Josh Mitchell: I am joined here by our first Parr, Miss Amelia Walker from the Breakaway cruise. How are you going, Amelia?

[1:16] Amelia Walker: I'm good. This is so exciting. It's my first podcast. I've never done one before, so.

[1:20] Josh Mitchell: Well, what a place to do your right?

[1:23] Amelia Walker: Yes, of course.

[1:24] Josh Mitchell: Um so what do you prefer? Pineapple or watermelon?

[1:27] Amelia Walker: Pineapple, 100%. Pineapple is my favorite thing on this earth.

[1:34] Josh Mitchell: Have you had Dole Whip?

[1:37] Amelia Walker: No.

[1:38] Josh Mitchell: Oh it like have you been to Disneyland?

[1:42] Amelia Walker: No, how's it?

[1:43] Josh Mitchell: Oh, you've got to get to Disney.

[1:44] Amelia Walker: I went to Disney when I was like six, so I have, but it's not, it doesn't count.

[1:48] Amelia Walker: I really don't remember it.

[1:49] Josh Mitchell: So Dole Whip is like pineapple ice cream.

[1:52] Amelia Walker: Like I am gonna make some tomorrow.

[1:55] Amelia Walker: And oh, it is I wish you could send it through the post.

[2:00] Josh Mitchell: Do we have it over here?

[2:01] Amelia Walker: You don't, but I'll send you the recipe. That way you can make it easy.

[2:05] Josh Mitchell: Um, what is your favorite musical?

[2:08] Amelia Walker: This is such a hard question.

[2:11] Amelia Walker: And I what is my favorite musical?

[2:14] Josh Mitchell: Are you old school or new school?

[2:16] Amelia Walker: Like, because I'm I I don't know anything pre- I'd say I'm definitely more new school, but I do love Mack and Mabel.

[2:25] Amelia Walker: Um which is kind of old school.

[2:29] Amelia Walker: Hamilton, I love.

[2:31] Josh Mitchell: Oh.

[2:31] Amelia Walker: It's definitely up there.

[2:33] Josh Mitchell: Have you seen it?

[2:34] Amelia Walker: Yeah.

[2:35] Josh Mitchell: How let's just go into Hamilton for a second because I'm surprised it's taken us this long to talk about it on this podcast.

[2:42] Amelia Walker: Um it's just like I remember when I first heard it, so it like it had come up on my iTunes and it was like new musical Hamilton, and I was like, Oh, what's this about?

[2:54] Amelia Walker: And then clicked onto it and I was like, Oh yeah.

[2:58] Amelia Walker: Wow, this is this is new.

[3:00] Josh Mitchell: Yeah.

[3:02] Amelia Walker: Um I was just stoked that it was like because I bought the soundtrack and it was like $23 for 60 songs, and I was like, this is a bargain, like it's less than like 10 cents a song.

[3:12] Josh Mitchell: We good.

[3:14] Amelia Walker: And I I really, really like love something so much that I'd be like, oh, I really need to buy that musical album.

[3:21] Amelia Walker: Um, but it was just amazing, and I like hadn't like not the best seats, I was sat right at the top, literally the back, back, back row of you couldn't get any further back than me.

[3:31] Josh Mitchell: That was the first time I saw it too.

[3:33] Amelia Walker: Yes, the tickets were so cheap, they were like £35 pounds, and um it was incredible.

[3:39] Josh Mitchell: I can't imagine what it would be like from the front.

[3:41] Amelia Walker: Oh, so I the first time I saw it was in Chicago.

[3:44] Amelia Walker: Got the last ticket to the show in the very back row, back corner.

[3:48] Amelia Walker: Loved it, got to Broadway, did cancellation, $200 fifth row dead center stalls, and I was like, oh my god, this is so cool.

[3:56] Amelia Walker: So I can tick that shelf my list.

[3:58] Josh Mitchell: It was fantastic.

[3:59] Amelia Walker: Yeah, I'd yeah, definitely say that's Hamilton is probably one of my favourites, I think.

[4:05] Josh Mitchell: Perfect.

[4:06] Amelia Walker: Yeah.

[4:06] Josh Mitchell: Favorite holiday destination.

[4:12] Amelia Walker: It can be one you've been to or one you're planning to go to.

[4:16] Amelia Walker: I would say Australia, but I've not done much of Australia.

[4:21] Josh Mitchell: You've been that's that's a tick though.

[4:24] Amelia Walker: I have family in Melbourne, so I only went to Melbourne and we stopped in Sydney Airport, like on the way back, so it kind of say that.

[4:32] Amelia Walker: But um I just love Australia.

[4:35] Amelia Walker: Like I need I need to go and do it all.

[4:38] Josh Mitchell: I'll be a tour guide, just let me know when you know for sure.

[4:42] Amelia Walker: I'll do it.

[4:43] Josh Mitchell: I would love that.

[4:44] Amelia Walker: There we go.

[4:45] Josh Mitchell: So we've spoken a little bit about theatre already.

[4:48] Josh Mitchell: And if you're just joining us, um, if you've just joined us at this point of the conversation, I don't know how you got here, but welcome.

[4:55] Josh Mitchell: Um this is a podcast about SIX: The Musical, um, which is a musical.

[5:01] Josh Mitchell: If you didn't catch that by the title, I just didn't even pick up on what I said just those.

[5:06] Amelia Walker: Right.

[5:06] Josh Mitchell: Um, so how did you get into theatre?

[5:09] Josh Mitchell: What was your introduction to the performing arts?

[5:12] Amelia Walker: So we had a massive discussion about this at college in my third year, um, and like our first ever inspirations, and I think mine was probably watching Annie and Oliver, like as a real young kid, um, and watching those films just on repeat, and then I was remember speaking to my family about it, and my cousins have always been heavily involved in um musical theatre, and more so dance, but um, and we were talking, and they were like, Oh, you can actually do this as a job, you know, like people obviously get paid to do this, and I was like, What?

[5:47] Amelia Walker: Singing and dancing and acting, I can get paid eventually, and like money is never a thing.

[5:53] Amelia Walker: Um, I could actually do this as a job, so I think from watching those, and then little things like going to pantomimes in England um from a young age, and just seeing people up on stage having like such a great time playing a different character, um, stepping away from their own lives and becoming someone else.

[6:15] Amelia Walker: I think they were definitely my first inspirations.

[6:18] Amelia Walker: Um, yeah, for sure.

[6:20] Amelia Walker: I would say that's probably why I started.

[6:23] Josh Mitchell: Amazing, and now we're here, and you're doing it professionally.

[6:27] Josh Mitchell: Um so what was your introduction to this amazing show that we call SIX?

[6:31] Amelia Walker: How did you find out about so of my best friends, Luke and Molly?

[6:37] Amelia Walker: Um, I went to college with them, and they both sent me the show, they both sent me the um soundtrack on Apple Music, and I'd never heard it before, and I was like, they were like, Amelia, this is you, this is you.

[6:50] Amelia Walker: You need to get to I Don't Need Your Love because this is your song, and I was like, okay, I'll give it a listen.

[6:56] Amelia Walker: It's like, oh, that is very me, isn't it? Very jazzy, it's very um, yeah.

[7:03] Amelia Walker: I can imagine myself singing this, and I don't always say that with a lot that I listen to.

[7:08] Amelia Walker: There's always something within the song that I'm like, oh meh.

[7:12] Amelia Walker: Whereas this song, I just fell in love with, and then I continued to listen to the rest of the music, and then I started delving into what it was about, and I just thought this is ground, like it really is groundbreaking to write the way Lucy and Toby have about like to create what they have, yeah.

[7:33] Amelia Walker: Um so yeah, that was my first introduction to the show.

[7:38] Josh Mitchell: Amazing.

[7:39] Josh Mitchell: Um talk me through your audition because you not only auditioned for Parr, you were also in for Cleves as well at one point, weren't you?

[7:49] Amelia Walker: Yeah, so uh I got called in for like um the first, I don't know, maybe it was the second set of auditions they were doing, and it was really last minute.

[8:02] Amelia Walker: It was I think the girls had done a few auditions, um, but they were like we need to see Amelia last minute, so I went in.

[8:09] Amelia Walker: Um I sang my own song, so I went in and sang American Boy by Estelle, um, which was super fun, and then they said, Okay, tomorrow can you come back and can you do the Cleves and the Parr material?

[8:22] Amelia Walker: Um, and I didn't really know them very well.

[8:24] Amelia Walker: I'd obviously heard I Don't Need Your Love, I didn't really know Get Down very well.

[8:28] Amelia Walker: Um, so it was quite a challenge to learn overnight, and I was actually really in love with the Cleves part for a long time.

[8:36] Amelia Walker: Um, and I was like, Well, I can really see myself playing Cleves now.

[8:41] Amelia Walker: Um, so yeah, obviously went in, did that.

[8:44] Amelia Walker: Um, and then a couple of weeks later, they said, okay, we need to see a little bit more.

[8:50] Amelia Walker: Can you come back?

[8:51] Amelia Walker: So I went back in and then uh started the process again, um, which was really cool.

[8:58] Amelia Walker: Got to meet amazing girls, and like the audition process is like, I'm sure all the other girls have said to you, it's like no other.

[9:07] Amelia Walker: Um it didn't feel like an audition, it really didn't like it just felt like a massive female empowerment workshop.

[9:15] Amelia Walker: Um yeah, and it was so nice actually.

[9:19] Amelia Walker: I didn't think I would like it, but performing in front of the rest of the girls within the audition um was something that I didn't expect to like, but because everyone was just so in it together, yeah, um, yeah, I loved it.

[9:37] Amelia Walker: So it was a great experience, and obviously it was successful, which was super cool.

[9:43] Josh Mitchell: Do you remember the moment you got the call saying, Hey, you're a...

[9:43] Amelia Walker: Oh so I was working at um Hotel Chocolate in um King's Cross station in London, and um my boss was super cool, and I was telling him about the whole process.

[10:00] Amelia Walker: So every day I'd come in and I'd be like, Oh, I've not really heard anything today, or got another audition, not really sure what's gonna happen.

[10:08] Amelia Walker: Do you mind if I keep checking my phone?

[10:13] Amelia Walker: So he was like, Yeah, of course.

[10:13] Amelia Walker: So I went in to the back office, it was a tiny little office, and um I'd seen I got a missed call from my agent.

[10:22] Amelia Walker: I was like, oh, okay.

[10:27] Amelia Walker: Didn't I really wasn't expecting anything?

[10:29] Amelia Walker: It's kind of my first job.

[10:29] Amelia Walker: And then I said, Oh, Colin, do you mind if I quickly go and um bring my agent back?

[10:34] Amelia Walker: And he was like, Yeah, no, of course.

[10:36] Amelia Walker: So I rang him back and he was like, Oh, I've got some good news for you.

[10:40] Amelia Walker: I thought, oh, this could only be about one thing, and then he said they want you to play Catherine Parr on the Breakaway.

[10:47] Amelia Walker: And I was like, what?

[10:51] Amelia Walker: Ha!

[10:51] Amelia Walker: I mean, I was Colin was like through the window, my boss.

[10:54] Amelia Walker: He was going, What's going on? What's going on? What's going on?

[10:57] Amelia Walker: And I was like, one minute, one minute, I'll be back there in a minute.

[11:01] Amelia Walker: I said, I've just got to go ring my mum and my brother and the rest of my family and all my friends.

[11:05] Amelia Walker: Don't tell anyone.

[11:07] Amelia Walker: So I then ran back outside of the station and told everyone about it.

[11:10] Amelia Walker: And um, it just felt so surreal because it it really is a dream.

[11:16] Amelia Walker: Like it was a dream come true, and I think you don't expect those moments to happen, especially like I feel it's quite early on in my career you don't really expect to have a dream that's come true.

[11:31] Josh Mitchell: Yeah.

[11:31] Amelia Walker: Um yeah, it was like such a surreal feeling.

[11:35] Josh Mitchell: That's awesome.

[11:37] Josh Mitchell: Now Kathy Parr is one of my favourite.

[11:40] Josh Mitchell: It's one of my favourite, is my favorite character in the show.

[11:45] Amelia Walker: Um just the whole everything.

[11:50] Josh Mitchell: I'm gonna touch on this later.

[11:51] Josh Mitchell: I'm not gonna go down this rabbit hole now.

[11:53] Josh Mitchell: Um sorry guys for following along.

[11:56] Amelia Walker: Um so throughout the you you touched on so were you feeling more comfortable as Cleves or as Parr at the point of getting that call?

[11:56] Amelia Walker: At the point of the call, I think Parr.

[12:12] Amelia Walker: Um I would say I for me, I think the girls would never see me as Cleves now.

[12:20] Amelia Walker: Yeah.

[12:21] Amelia Walker: Um, and I'd love to so much of me really wants to do Cleves, uh for even if it was for a show, because it's so so different from Parr.

[12:32] Amelia Walker: Yeah.

[12:33] Amelia Walker: Um but both I have both of those in me.

[12:36] Amelia Walker: I feel like I am that kind of I have that cheekiness about me, but I also have that Parr mentality as well.

[12:43] Amelia Walker: So I would say definitely by the time of the call it was more Parr.

[12:47] Amelia Walker: Um and I think even in rehearsal, um when Joe flew up to uh Tampa and we were just in a rehearsal we were in a like a vocal lesson and he I was just singing and I was I was getting a little bit worked up about the material and um he stopped me and he was like you are so Parr like the things I was saying so I I I was getting worked up and I was going no no it's fine I'm fine and I could literally see myself becoming becoming her um and the casting the way they casted it is so close to how we are because all of the girls are are the characters for me if that makes sense, yeah.

[13:29] Josh Mitchell: Yeah, well I've spoken to Georgia and Amy, so I completely understand where you're coming from because 100% agree with you there.

[13:37] Amelia Walker: Um you touched on the Parr mentality, and that literally is what I have written in my book here is Parr mindset.

[13:45] Amelia Walker: Um because Parr is this really interesting character throughout the whole show.

[13:49] Amelia Walker: She's kind of like the sit back and watch have a say here or there, and then her whole kind of character arc happens in the last like eight, nine, ten minutes of the show.

[14:04] Amelia Walker: Um, it's kind of like hidden behind closed walls, and then here have everything in like quick succession.

[14:09] Josh Mitchell: Yeah.

[14:10] Amelia Walker: Um, so what was it like for you to kind of find yourself in Kathy?

[14:17] Amelia Walker: It was a really tough journey because I found it really difficult, and I kind of wanted to access it from the start. Uh, as I kind of do with a lot of characters that I've played with before, physically, I wanted to try and find something that physically helped me get into her, and it was a real struggle because she does sit back and listen so much, it was hard to sort of find—I didn't want to play her as this sort of wet character, which she is not, but I didn't know how to access her for so long. Um then I sat down with Stacy, who was one of the associates for the breakaway, and she said, for me, Kathy is Kathy Parr a day at the spa. She is—she's never judgmental, she will say exactly what she feels, but she won't be judgmental about it.

So I think that really helped me find her, but it was again it became difficult because, for example, there were certain lines when near the end when Boleyn says the whole Jane can't dance thing, and I was sort of directed to sort of play—sort of go along with it almost as also all the queens are sort of agreeing in a funny way, but I was like, really, if I'm not a judgmental character, I shouldn't react to that, then I shouldn't really be reacting to this. So I had—there was a lot of—there's obviously a lot of shady lines within the show, so it was really difficult for me to sort of find a way that I would react in a not non-judgmental way, but was still reasonable enough for my journey. So I think in the end I found like a really good balance and I think it was something that sort of came from working with the girls more, um, delving further into every little thing I say and obviously like you said she listens so much.

[16:18] Josh Mitchell: Yeah, and she really doesn't say too much until the end; it's literally like she holds everything in and then that last like 15 minutes is like cool now we're gonna ignore everybody else and here is me. Yeah, so I think, yeah, that I think she's such a—she's such a complex character and it was it was really hard for me to watch that a lot of the girls find their queens a lot earlier on than I did.

[16:48] Amelia Walker: Yeah.

[16:49] Amelia Walker: For example, Kelly had such a great journey physically to find Boleyn and she had a great inspiration with Avril Lavigne, like crazy rock chick sort of vibe. Whereas Ali, if you kind of like look at my Queen's creation for parts in Alicia Keys, Alicia Keys is kind of hard to physically portray anyway, so she's very much Kathy Parr. Like she's—she is.

[17:12] Josh Mitchell: Yeah, interesting. Um, now I want to go deep into Kathy because she's literally one of the most—we've gone deep into Howard because I've had a ton of Howard's on the show—um, besides Howard, I think Parr is probably the next deepest character when it comes to kind of not only the song but in history as well. She's kind of got a massive trek to where she is.

[17:48] Amelia Walker: Um, so the arc in "I Don't Need Your Love" is incredible to watch for the first time.

[18:00] Josh Mitchell: Um, so what were—well, you're like smiling along, like yeah, yeah.

[18:05] Amelia Walker: Try learning it.

[18:07] Josh Mitchell: Um, so what was it like sitting down with material for the first time, knowing, seeing the intro, um, like the monologue beforehand and then trying to piece it all together to get that powerful midway through?

[18:29] Amelia Walker: I think it was something that sort of for me, it was something that Kathy found through every little—every line that she said, she—I feel like she becomes more confident that she's gonna say what she really wants to say to Henry, and I feel like every—like every new line, I'm trying to explain. Every new line is a thought that's come into her there and then I think. She's been thinking these things for a while, I think, but I'm literally reading the lyrics as you go just to—it’s such a—I don't—I like I can't even explain how amazing this one song is just to get—like there's just so many different levels where as a character it's honestly the development you've seen in everybody else throughout the whole 75 minutes, as I've said a million times, shortened down.

Um, what was it like for you to like the confidence kick that she gets? She kind of starts in her shell being like, yeah, like I'll miss you, like I have to say goodbye to you, like and then all of a sudden it's like, you know what, damn, let's own this, this isn't what it's like. Um, what was it like trying to find—because usually as a character you've got the whole show to kind of get this arc to the point where usually your song is a breaking point, you're not creating your arc inside your song. Um, so what was it like building up to that point and it—once you've found your emotion, how it—yeah, and then how do you control that to make sure that you kind of get there every night but not too early?

[19:02] Amelia Walker: Um, this is such a hard question. I'm trying to—I know I know exactly what you mean, but I'm just trying to word how—I'm glad you do because it came out like word moment and all these people listening are probably like, how do I say what I'm trying to think? How do I say what I'm feeling? Um, how do I say what I'm feeling? Wow, that's—I am Kathy, story of my life. I would say I think there's a moment—I—this is probably not gonna answer the question specifically, but there was a moment when I turn round when I have—I’ve just said, um, my dreams to care for you, darling, get a clue. And I turn round and I look at the rest of the girls, and it's literally a second where I'm turning around to face back to the front.

But the look that I get from the girls every night was—in fact, it was so real. The look was a feel—a look of encouragement and it was a look of you've got this, and I feel like at that moment she's ready to speak to Henry, and I feel like—yeah, this is so hard to explain.

[21:44] Josh Mitchell: Yeah, no, I went real deep real quick.

[21:48] Amelia Walker: No, it's good for me to talk it out as well. Um, she just—I don't know how to ask this question.

[21:58] Amelia Walker: This is gonna be like real passionate, she's really just gonna explode in a second. I'm literally banging the sofa because I need to find the words.

[22:05] Amelia Walker: Um, how do I say this, Josh?

[22:12] Josh Mitchell: Amelia, that's why I asked you because I—I don't know how. I've watched this show 14 times, and every time I get to "I Don't Need Your Love," I watch this happen, and I'm like, man, like she—when we were looking—when we were in rehearsals, we were looking at the—like the ways we could sort of, um, different scenarios to sort of put to the song, um, to each song for all of the girls to sort of find access it, and mine was sort of that I was a motivational speaker trying to speak to these girls and tell them that you don't need—you don't need that man, you're strong enough. And really her story is so powerful. Like the fact that it's right there at the start of her monologue as well. Like I was married this, and because of the time, like once they died or whatever happened, I had to remarry not to be out—like think of the monologue, not the lyrics, Josh.

[23:24] Amelia Walker: That's the way to go.

[23:25] Josh Mitchell: Like, yeah, no, for sure. Um, yeah, I think she's done all these amazing things, and I think through that journey through the song, she realizes that it's really not about this, it's really not about Henry, and the show's not about Henry, although it is about what she has achieved, I think for Parr. And I think she's achieved all these amazing things that that's what the song is about. It's not really about—it loses the Thomas feel and the—and even talking about Henry, she doesn't even need to talk about Henry anymore. She needs to talk about the books, the psalms, meditations, yeah.

[24:10] Amelia Walker: Do you know what I mean?

[24:11] Josh Mitchell: If this makes any sense.

[24:13] Amelia Walker: Yeah, no, it does. And my brain is sort of just talking at you right now.

[24:15] Amelia Walker: Then she kind of goes into like this teaching point where she needs to kind of convince the other five of her mindset because she's like, yo, like, why are we here? Like, yeah, why does anyone know who we are? Literally, let's quote the whole last section of the show. Um, I think the moment that everyone's like, oh cool, yeah, like why does this—and then Boleyn snap into the whole like patriarchal structures, which I absolutely love.

[24:50] Josh Mitchell: Oh my god, it's brilliant.

[24:52] Amelia Walker: It's kind of like that ultimate moment of like why—why was this such a big thing? Like why did the whole female empowerment movement not come earlier? Like w—like it almost feels like—I don't know, it feels like the way the show is written, the whole—what am I trying to say?

[25:20] Josh Mitchell: I mean we know we're both so—we've gone way too deep.

[25:24] Amelia Walker: I know.

[25:25] Amelia Walker: I know what you mean though, I think. Everyone's screaming at us like right now, like you guys like spit it out.

[25:33] Amelia Walker: Oh man, I really needed to talk about this song because it's just a lot.

[25:38] Amelia Walker: It's a lot, and it's not easy to sort of like—and that's why it's such a special song because it's not straightforward.

[25:38] Amelia Walker: It's not—there's so many things going on.

[25:46] Josh Mitchell: Like so many things.

[25:48] Amelia Walker: And that's why I think she's such a complex character, because she doesn't—it's not always about what she says and about the lines. There's so much going on behind the rest of the show that you don't hear.

[26:01] Josh Mitchell: Yeah.

[26:02] Amelia Walker: Um, and I think that's why she's such a complex character. And then obviously the song. Um, but yeah, why the female empowerment didn't come earlier, the female movement and like it just feels like the way everything's taught, the kind of realization on stage is kind of like, oh yeah, we—we don't need men.

[26:26] Amelia Walker: And it kind of triggers that thought in me, like it's taken us hundreds of years for this equality thing to be a thing.

[26:37] Amelia Walker: Why—what was the fault at the start of it that led to the oppression?

[26:43] Amelia Walker: And like, oh, now we're just getting into people rights.

[26:47] Josh Mitchell: I know, it's just gonna be nuts.

[26:49] Amelia Walker: Um, a lighter note, um, in your whole performance, what is your favorite moment? What's your favorite spot to get to in "I Don't Need Your Love"?

[27:05] Amelia Walker: I think in "I Don't Need Your Love."

[27:05] Josh Mitchell: Yeah, let's do it on a small scale and then just large scale.

[27:12] Amelia Walker: I would say so. The moment before she sings "Remember," there's sort of a—I walk over, walk, a strut, stride over to the girls. And there's always a moment between one of us—not always all of us, but there's always one of us. A lot of the times it was Kelly, and we just look at each other, and I think the encouragement from—like it was just this eye contact thing of let's go. Like, we're ready, and like they don't know what's about to happen. We're about to start back, and we're about to tell them everything you did. Um, and I think for me that was such a special moment, and I like so excited to get to that moment every show because I was like, who am I gonna get the magic eye contact from today?

[28:00] ⚠ About 4 minutes of audio could not be automatically transcribed.

[32:08] Amelia Walker: Um yeah that's really cool.

[32:13] Amelia Walker: Yeah, it's something, and it's something that I was really shocked about when I was doing research because it isn't it's not something that I'd heard before.

[32:22] Amelia Walker: Yeah, no, like, and it's funny how all the other queens are almost connected in the same way because Jane was Anne's letting and waiting at some point.

[32:33] Amelia Walker: Yeah, and Anne was brought into Catherine's court at some point as well.

[32:38] Amelia Walker: Like it's almost like Henry was too lazy to kind of look outside the walls, and then you got to Anna and was like, oh, we're not trying that again, and then like it was goddamn history, man.

[32:53] Josh Mitchell: Um what part of this show did you find the most challenging to learn?

[33:02] Josh Mitchell: Let's go musically, because I want to touch on the music because Catherine's uh Pa's song musically is a tough one.

[33:09] Josh Mitchell: Um, but what what did you find the most challenging part of the show to learn musically?

[33:15] Amelia Walker: Um I would say maybe six.

[33:30] Amelia Walker: Yeah, I would say maybe six.

[33:32] Amelia Walker: Um Heart of Stone harmonies were always fun.

[33:39] Amelia Walker: That took a while actually, um, for all of us to sort of finally get together.

[33:45] Amelia Walker: Yeah.

[33:45] Amelia Walker: Um and sort of the balance between it.

[33:50] Amelia Walker: Um six was six was fun.

[33:54] Amelia Walker: Um it took again, it took a while uh for it all to to sort of become muscle memory.

[34:02] Amelia Walker: Um I don't know, I think we worked we had like a really good process actually within rehearsals with we worked with um a woman called Ellie, who was incredible, and I think she had so much patience with us to sort of that it never felt like anything was that was something that I was never gonna achieve.

[34:23] Amelia Walker: Yeah, if that makes sense.

[34:24] Amelia Walker: So I don't I wouldn't say that anything was um I say this now in rehearsals, I was probably crying because I couldn't do it.

[34:31] Amelia Walker: Um but no, I think I would say they're probably the two things that we had to work on a lot.

[34:38] Amelia Walker: Actually, no way was although the harmonies are quite quite simplistic, um remembering when to do which specific harmony with which movement and when one has a slide and one doesn't was quite quite challenging to sort of put with the movement.

[34:57] Amelia Walker: So I'd say that too.

[34:59] Amelia Walker: See look, it's all coming out now.

[35:00] Amelia Walker: There we go.

[35:01] Josh Mitchell: Um, the start of I don't need your love, the note that you start on, is that like kind of half plucked out of thin air?

[35:11] Josh Mitchell: Like, how how where do you find your starting note?

[35:14] Josh Mitchell: Because every time I've watched the show, it's like the the chord that you would pick your note from is like nearly two, three bars earlier than when you start.

[35:28] Josh Mitchell: So, like, how did you get used to?

[35:31] Amelia Walker: I would say, you know, it's something that I never really thought about.

[35:34] Amelia Walker: I think in a way, in some ways, I don't have a good musical there, but in a lot of ways I do, yeah.

[35:40] Amelia Walker: Um so I think it generally I never thought about it, and I think God damn mate, I may have just cursed you. But yeah, I don't know. I just kind of I think I was just so lost in the whole it's such a good vibe to the a start of a song, like you hear that first, and you're like it's gorgeous, it's just and it's so like chilled, you're like, I'm here for this, and then it amps up and amps up, and you're like, okay, I'm here for this, and then we get to the remix, and it's like okay, which leads me to my next question. Um, here we go. Your riff.

[36:19] Josh Mitchell: My riff, which one?

[36:21] Amelia Walker: The last one.

[36:24] Josh Mitchell: The the the very last yeah, yeah, yeah.

[36:28] Amelia Walker: At the end of I don't need your love, the remix. How I feel like everyone's I don't need your love riff is different, mainly there's so many different vocal types. So, yeah, what is the structure on page for that? Like, is there because obviously like most musicals are written out that you have to follow these notes?

[36:52] Josh Mitchell: Yeah.

[36:53] Amelia Walker: What what was it like? Because all the riffs that I've heard are fairly different?

[36:59] Josh Mitchell: Yeah, so.

[37:00] Amelia Walker: So what's that massively a massive structure on it to be fair? We sort of sat and talked about it and we sort of played, and I'm sure the other guys have said we played the riff game. And we we kept going along with the the melody, and we just kept going round and round, and sort of me, Ellie and our Joan, um Danny, we went round and we all had different riffs and we sort of played with it. So it was really free to be fair.

[37:26] Josh Mitchell: Yeah.

[37:26] Amelia Walker: Um so we'd kind of work on one section and then build from there. Um but no, there wasn't really much that I had to follow. Um which was great.

[37:42] Josh Mitchell: Yeah.

[37:42] Amelia Walker: Uh yeah, because I think that's where the the best riffs come. And I think I'm generally quite a jazzy singer, so Ellie was really happy to sort of play on that jazzy sort of jabby chord and sort of yeah, play it, you know what I mean.

[37:57] Josh Mitchell: Yeah, awesome.

[37:58] Amelia Walker: I love that. I've I've always these are the questions I've always wanted to ask, and I'm finally getting them from my brain to my mouth, folks. We are knowledge. It's um it's just funny, like watching it and listening to the soundtrack and watching the show are two completely different things, and there's so much more, even if you know the songs off by heart, there's so much that I'm more aware to now in the soundtrack. Like I heard um Zuki's um riff on the soundtrack the other day, and that's when I tagged you guys in the story, which none of you did. Um, asking you guys to do like yeah, I don't need your love riffs. Um, because it was just like I'd never heard it so distinctive in the recording before, and it was just like all the harmonies behind just kind of faded away, and it was just her going nuts.

[38:46] Josh Mitchell: And I was like, yo, this is like the the tip of the show. This is like the this is it, like it's not like a mid-show arc. This is like we're ending on a high, let's go.

[38:57] Amelia Walker: And it's like, oh, and I remember like the first opening night in Australia, we got to the end of I Don't Eat Your Love video hit the hit that riff, and everybody just leapt to their feet.

[39:09] Josh Mitchell: Get it.

[39:09] Amelia Walker: Yeah, it's it's such an it's such a great feeling, and I feel like she deserves that. Like Pa deserves to have that moment where she can just let go, and I feel like it's so nice that there's so much freedom for each part to sort of find their own interpretation within that because although they're musical notes, like there's so much feeling behind those musical notes dependent on each structure.

[39:35] Josh Mitchell: Yeah.

[39:35] Amelia Walker: Um yeah, and I feel like that's what separates every part. Um yeah.

[39:43] Josh Mitchell: How do you go about controlling yourself, coving off the remix? Because the remix is kind of like it's hype hype hype, and then you have to get your breath under you to set yourself for that.

[39:55] Amelia Walker: Get your breath, that's definitely something. Um how how do you go about setting yourself up for that?

[40:04] Josh Mitchell: I think I don't actually know. I just kind of I don't know, it just kind of happens.

[40:10] Amelia Walker: Um, yeah, I mean, breathing physically it's a breath thing. Um, but I think emotionally it's sort of the girls are just like a great help.

[40:22] Josh Mitchell: Um and I think just sort of giving each other that sort of I don't know it's going back to the story I think and the message that we have to tell and I think and I think I kind of that's that's so important and I think that kind of brings you on from the remix if that makes any sense.

[40:41] Josh Mitchell: Yeah 100% I love that.

[40:45] Amelia Walker: Going into pretty much next scene heading into six and then the whole kind of bye see you later we're not we're done like I haven't even delved into this part of the show yet on this podcast. I'm so damn excited right now I'm just gonna carry on. Um what's it like coming down from that high of getting that applause after I don't need your love to needing to turn around and be like cool this is it see us later bye like how how do you how do you control that to know that you're then stepping back on stage to do six it's like I think it's sort of knowing that you've got this little sit like a little secret like you you know what's coming but they don't know what's coming yet.

[41:29] Amelia Walker: Um and Kelly did the most convincing um see you later and then when she came they I mean the director's the same when we were working on that they generally thought our cast were just going um I almost I do pretty much leave the stage and I'm holding on to sort of the light um for most of the times I do it was like literally holding onto the night and pushing my head back around the corner.

[41:52] Josh Mitchell: So I think I think just that little secret and I think that's something that you can't wait to see you can't wait for the audience to experience this.

[42:04] Amelia Walker: It was weird. Like the first time I saw the show, I was sitting front row, and like obviously knowing the soundtrack, I was like, cool, six is next. And then to see that and I'm like, what's going on? Maybe they cut it. Excuse me. I know there's two more songs. What's going on? Yeah. Um so going from there in into six and that moment before six, the one of a kind, like the very chilled out.

[42:38] Josh Mitchell: Yeah. What is that moment like for you on stage?

[42:44] Amelia Walker: It's like it's so special. Like um I think when you when you hear and it's so nice of me to start that as well. Yeah. And I always I always turned to Georgia, and there was always a special moment between us two. And it was so I think at that moment it always felt like it was me singing to Georgia. Yeah. Um rather than like a character thing. I don't know, obviously it's this you know what I mean. But I was always saying to Georgia, you're one of a kind, and I and we always found a little playful physical thing that we did as well. Um I don't know, it's just such a it generally just all I can describe it as is a really special moment. Um it sort of brings it back to the fact that like this was this is a dream job.

[43:32] Josh Mitchell: Yeah.

[43:33] Amelia Walker: Um it's just magic, I think. It's just another one of those scenes that is hella powerful because like you strip it right back to just this colour. It's so strict out and then that last harmony, and it's like and it's like we're six, and you're like, poof, and you're like, let's go.

[43:53] Josh Mitchell: Let's end it.

[43:53] Amelia Walker: It's like, yeah, it's like, oh man, like I freaking love this show. And I think it is like it's so it's just incredible. There's no other words, is there? It's yeah, it's magic. I don't think anyone's broken down this show as much as I have trying to like do this podcast.

[44:09] Josh Mitchell: And the more that though.

[44:11] Amelia Walker: The more I talk about it, the more I'm like, 'cause I replay the show in my head and I'm like, oh, there is just so many things, and it's just like there's so much detail that to look at, there's just so much detail, and every line has gotten it. It's 75 minutes of pure just creative genius. Like there is not a weak spot, there's not a a spot that you thought was thrown together for the sake of adding time. It was just like I mean, besides the how it pause for a minute and a half, but we're not gonna count that.

[44:46] Josh Mitchell: Um what was it like having your first audience?

[44:52] Amelia Walker: Especially on on the ship. Yeah, it's a weird, weird, weird vibe actually. Um our first our first ever show was actually a crew show. So it was performed just for the group. Um and obviously it was a brand new show to the ship. So they'd been talking about it leading up to for ages. They were like, guys, Rock of Ages is finished, six is coming on. This is huge. This is they hadn't had a new show for years. So every member of the crew on the ship wanted to be there as people standing at the back. So I think walking out from the kabuki was like it it it felt like a concert, and it felt like we didn't always get that because I think a lot of I mean some people that came on the cruise had never seen I'd never seen a musical before, so I think yeah, they didn't know the sort of vibe that the show you know they didn't really know what the show was but yeah these people had done their research these these crew members have done their research so I think walking out at that moment behind the kabuki was just so surreal like it did feel like I was in a girl band at my concert and people were just I don't know it's just it's magic and I think the first show I was I mean I I'm a very very very nervous performer um but this show it's the first show so I think the nerves were so real but and the there's a lot of pressure as well you're we had the creative team sat in the front row um there's pressure to show what you can do um and not fall apart um so yeah I would say it was I think really putting it on in front of an audience actually to be fair sorry I talk a lot um I'm just watching your brain tick over and it's just yeah fabulous um the first show that we ever had the first audience we had was actually in the rehearsal studio in Florida um and we performed it to a school uh and it was it was magical because they had they didn't really know the show too well, and some of them did really know the show.

[47:18] Amelia Walker: So I think and performing it in that kind of intimate venue in a rehearsal space with no lighting. Um is the first time we'd done costumes.

[47:27] Josh Mitchell: Um that was cool because we were so close then.

[47:31] Amelia Walker: They were literally sat at our feet, so you could really find the interaction, um, which the show usually requires. So again, magic. Magic. I think that's just a word to sum up this show. Magic.

[47:45] Josh Mitchell: Um the choreography is insane throughout the show.

[47:50] Amelia Walker: Amazing. What's your favorite choreographical piece?

[47:54] Amelia Walker: Um so I think it started with get down. Just because I think it's so the timing and the breath um in that number is just so so fun. Um, and you do feel like a real unit. Um, and I think that kind of style is very me as a performer, so I think that's why I loved it. Uh originally so much as my like that was my definitely my favourite to start with.

[48:26] Amelia Walker: And then as we kind of went through the show, a number that I actually found quite challenging in rehearsals, uh, timing-wise, was no way. And then when I finally um when I finally got the choreograph in, it became really in my body. I found no way no way was my favorite number.

[48:44] Amelia Walker: Um, and the the chorus in that is so much fun, and I feel like yeah, that became my favourite. I love the little breakdown towards the end where everyone kind of goes into their own little style y kind of thing, and it's kind of like half choreographed, half character.

[49:02] Josh Mitchell: Um, or is it am I thinking of a mega six?

[49:06] Amelia Walker: I've got no idea. Well trying to think of my brain just exploded.

[49:12] Josh Mitchell: You've got so much six going around in there.

[49:15] Amelia Walker: Crazy. Um that pretty much brings us to the end. We've kind of babbled a lot, but um, what is your favorite memory of this whole experience that you've had?

[49:27] Amelia Walker: Um, my favorite memory. I mean, there are so many. Um I would say so probably performing the show for the first time, and actually I would say when we were doing the um what's the word, the sits probe.

[49:46] Josh Mitchell: Um, and sort of hearing us together for the first time.

[49:50] Amelia Walker: I haven't even touched on sits probes in this show. Oh my goodness, oh my god, guys, I'm letting you down.

[49:57] Josh Mitchell: That's all good about it.

[49:58] Amelia Walker: I know I keep thinking of new things to be fair. Yeah, that was a magical moment. Again, one of my favourite words, magic. But um sits probes are just there's something special about them. Like it doesn't matter what show it is, like it's so that was like an an amazing moment.

[50:17] Amelia Walker: Um I'd say living with your cast is generally and genuinely an amazing moment. We swam with Stingrays, which was amazing. Oh scary, but amazing. Um I don't know, I feel like there's not like a for me the whole thing is just an amazing, amazing memory, and every day, even if it was a little thing like we're just going to sit with the girls and in someone's cabin, that was an amazing moment for me. But I think the show performing the show with the girls every night that we did was a dream.

[51:06] Amelia Walker: And I I think the first show will always be something that is the most special for me.

[51:11] Amelia Walker: Um and our last show, knowing it it wasn't we didn't even know it was our last show, which was sad. But um Amy touched on this in her episode and we got hella emotional about it.

[51:24] Josh Mitchell: Yeah.

[51:25] Amelia Walker: And it was it was a real and it was really sad when when we realized that it was the last show, and we realized that we didn't get to do it. Obviously, it's we didn't get to do it with Amy, which was which was sad, but um who knows, yeah, what will happen. Fingers crossed for the future, Queens.

[51:44] Josh Mitchell: That that does wrap things up.

[51:46] Amelia Walker: Um we if you're really shook in this episode. I'm sorry, guys. I love you. We've gotten to a point of where I'm just like now emotional about this show, and it's just gonna be.

[51:58] Josh Mitchell: I know, you've made me very emotional as well.

[52:01] Amelia Walker: I'm sorry. Um guys, if you want to follow Amelia on socials, I will drop all her ads down below so you can uh go show her some love.

[52:11] Josh Mitchell: Um, let's touch on that. What was the experience like the first time the Queen got involved in your life?

[52:15] Amelia Walker: Like after your announcement wild, so wild, and nothing that I ever experienced. Um I don't think I realised the following of the show.

[52:29] Josh Mitchell: Um it's it's amazing, and I don't know if any other show has the same following.

[52:35] Amelia Walker: No, I don't they definitely don't. Um but you do genuinely feel like a queen, and I feel like the first time we realized that was when we were in rehearsals and um a fan had made a page for the breakaway queens, and to me that was surreal.

[52:57] Amelia Walker: That was it was just mad to me, absolutely mad. And then somebody made me a page.

[53:04] Josh Mitchell: I was gonna say I've got two or three that follow me that are about you.

[53:08] Amelia Walker: Which was just I mean, it to me is just so surreal and it's unbelievable. And I think the support that we get from the fans is so special, and it's it just makes what you do that much more special.

[53:28] Josh Mitchell: Yeah.

[53:28] Amelia Walker: Um that they're all along this journey with you, and yeah, there's just so like the even like the fan art, like I've got somebody drew me a picture yesterday, and it's incredible.

[53:43] Amelia Walker: Like these people spend so much time putting their love and their their talent into making these accounts, making these videos, making these, and it's so special, and I think it's something that has really again made the whole thing a whole lot more special.

[54:01] Josh Mitchell: Shout out to the queen I'm right there, um to wrap things up, Amelia.

[54:06] Josh Mitchell: Um being away from the show, being away from the girls. What is the biggest thing that you miss about Six of the Musical?

[54:18] Amelia Walker: Um the girls. I mean, I miss I miss them so much, and I think we had like a special connection as a group, but individually as well.

[54:28] Amelia Walker: Um you could go and sit with it. And I think just sitting and talking with the girls, I miss, I miss um performing the show, I miss rehearsals, I miss um warm-ups. We had such amazing warm-ups.

[54:48] Amelia Walker: We did warm-ups with um the other show on the ship burned the floor. So we got to learn some ballroom and Latin. So I think the whole experience, I just miss I miss the music, I miss singing, I miss so much of it.

[55:06] Amelia Walker: Um and it's weird at the minute being on my own. I'm I'm with my mum, but being on my own and not living with five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, amazing other girls.

[55:18] Josh Mitchell: Um that on note, we will wrap things up here.

[55:27] Josh Mitchell: Thanks, Amelia, for coming and joining us.

[55:29] Amelia Walker: Thank you for having me. Anytime.

[55:31] Josh Mitchell: Queens, no way you can follow me. That is Ozqueenam and the Queenham cast on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. Check us out, show us some love. Uh, and we will be back next week with a brand new episode of the Queendom Podcast.

[55:43] Amelia Walker: Thanks, Queens.

[55:44] Josh Mitchell: Bye.

[55:52] Amelia Walker: We're six.