I’m doing well, thank you! Hey, I’m Stephie and I’m originally from Hawaiʻi. I actually started performing at the age of four when my mother put me in hula lessons. From that moment on, I was hooked- I completely fell in love with music and dance, and it was the incredible community that surrounded me and shaped me as a person over the years, for which I am so grateful. I went on to pursue degrees in Music Theatre and Economics at Elon University, and after graduating I began working professionally in theatre, TV/film, cruise ships, and live entertainment. I feel so fortunate to have worked all over the world doing what I love, so making my UK debut playing Misa in Death Note the Musical has just been a pretty surreal journey and a total dream come true.

So Death Note tells the story of Light (played by Xander- who is a total rockstar and the complete package), a brilliant young man who discovers a  notebook that has the power to kill anyone whose name is written inside it. He decides to use it to change the world and serve justice, but that power quickly becomes intoxicating — and he finds himself being pursued by detective L (played by Colin- who by the way is a total inspiration).

Enter yours truly, Misa… She’s a pop star and a devoted fan of Kira, but she’s also someone who has experienced an enormous amount of loss and pain. So upon discovering Kira’s identity, she becomes totally infatuated with Light and is ready to risk it all for him and for his cause.

What I love about Misa is that she’s so much more than the bubbly, hyperactive girl she initially appears to be in the anime. There’s a lot of darkness beneath all that glitter. She’s incredibly strong, intelligent, and ambitious, but she’s also deeply vulnerable and desperately craves connection. Finding the balance between those two sides has been one of the most exciting parts of playing her.

I was familiar with the series, as my brother and cousins used to watch it, but I didn’t have this deep connection to it until now. Being a part of this production has brought a new found love for the story and I couldn’t be more excited to be here. 

I do. I love saying that a woman’s superpower is her heart. Despite some of Misa’s questionable decisions, it’s important to me that Misa is portrayed as empowered, intelligent, but also charming and calculated. You’ve already got Light, who’s sanctimonious and cunning, and then L who’s ridiculously sharp. The last thing I wanted was to portray Misa as a lovesick ditz. I’d like to think she can see through Light, but chooses to play his game her way. So I do my best to portray her as a woman who loves fearlessly and moves with total agency- every choice she makes is fiercely her own, never dictated by force.

Run.

I would drop that thing and run. I’m scared of ghosts so no Shinigami hauntings for me. (Lol)

My blog is called Stage to Page. But if you could turn any book, from page to stage, what would it be and why?

If I’m bringing a book from page to stage, it has to be Crazy Rich Asians. Theatre is about story, heart, and scale, and this has all three in spades. It’s a wonderful opportunity to celebrate Asian culture and showcase an extraordinary cast, all wrapped in sharp humour, and real emotional depth. Rachel’s journey could give the show a grounded, root-worthy heart right in the middle of all that extravagant world-building.

Because it is totally epic and completely unique. It’s a musical, but it doesn’t feel totally traditional. It’s dark, funny, disturbing, incredibly theatrical, and the music, choreography, costumes and stage are all extraordinary. You get a battle of minds between Light and L, while Misa brings this completely different energy and emotional perspective. Not to mention, the Shinigami played by Broadway’s Telly Leung, West End queen Grace Mouat, and my girl from home, Chloe Saracco are all just outstanding.

Even if you’ve never seen Death Note before, you don’t need to know anything going in. You can come in completely blind and experience all the chaos with us.