Rep Talk: The Lion in Winter

Princess Alais is played by Georgia Bishop.

Meet the French Princess Alais, sister of the King of France and mistress of King Henry II of England.

Princess Alais is played by Georgia Bishop who arrived in Whanganui in January 2022 to take up a position as a lawyer at the well-known Whanganui law firm of Treadwell Gordon.

I asked Georgia if she’d had a lot of involvement in theatre but she said that apart from plays in intermediate school she’d not been in any theatre since.

“I was inspired to come along and get involved when I saw my friend Isham in The Woman in Black,” she told me.

“What’s Princess Alais like?” I asked her.

“She’s a gentle person but as the play progresses she comes into her own, starts to take charge of her own life,” she replied.

When I suggested that the powerful King Henry would be difficult to say no to, Georgia replied, “Ah ... but she’s in love with him.”

When Georgia isn’t rehearsing at Repertory Theatre she enjoys music, playing both piano and guitar.

“I mainly play to accompany singing and I don’t just enjoy any one particular type of music. I like all of it.”

Every Saturday morning Georgia goes down to the SPCA where she volunteers her time caring for the animals, especially the dogs.

“I love dogs. I clean out their cages and give them some attention because they need attention.”

It appears that Gentle Georgia has a lot in common with the gentle Princess Alais. She’ll be a super princess and I’m looking forward to seeing her onstage next month in The Lion in Winter, opening on July 20.