Fjaere Harder Nussbaum stars as the Banker in Maurice Herzing’s Bank Robber, a world-premiere, original play about money, identity, and institutions too controlling to fail.
Q: What first drew you to your character in Bank Robber? Fjaere (Pronounced fee-air-uh): I started being really drawn into my character, the Banker, when I started to see how simultaneously sweet and evil she was – how she could be both service-oriented, while being ultimately self-serving. And I always love getting to play evil! It's a fantastic channel for all the evil impulses, eye rolls, and snide remarks I would never say in reality!
Q: What do you enjoy about the production? Fjaere: I have enjoyed the unique challenges that have made this production different than any other I have been a part of. The brief and efficient rehearsal schedule was so manageable that I looked forward to rehearsals rather than exhausted by them. And the task of memorizing the script was more challenging than any other show I've been in, so now that I have (mostly!) got the memory down, I can say that it was a satisfying challenge!
Q: How did you find your path into performing? Fjaere: I found my path into performing in Middle School. My friends and I went out for the 7-12th grade musical, Sound of Music. I had at least 4 different bit parts, with rapid costume changes between maid and nun and I don't even remember what else--a performer and a background dancer? The rush of costume changes, tip toeing backstage, whispering behind the curtains in character with my friends for 3 hours straight, and eliciting my first audience "laugh" – the high and the excitement were intoxicating! I caught the bug.
Q: What inspires you as a performer? Fjaere: What inspires me as a performer is the almost spiritual experiences of complete and utter self-forgetfulness while in character. Being absorbed into somebody else's story and forgetting my own story is a gift. And then to come back to reality and learn of the interesting ways my experience of joining a story had an effect on others.
Catch the Bank Robber until August 10 - https://www.minnesotafringe.org/2019-show-information/bank-robber
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