Interview: Ell Potter, the gender-fluid actor taking on the role of Unity Mitford in The Party Girls

Gender-fluid actor, Ell Potter (She/They) is currently taking on the role of the infamous, fascist Mitford sister, Unity, in Amy Rosenthal’s play The Party Girls, running at Birmingham’s Rep Theatre until 11^th October for the final leg of its tour.

“Unity Mitford, I think, is the first straight person I've ever played,” Ell explains “and that's a slightly strange facet of me approaching the character because I don't think Unity would particularly like me.

“In terms of the emotional work of it, it's been challenging. I think if I were to meet a character like Unity on the street, I probably wouldn’t want to talk to her; I would probably just shut down a conversation, so it's taught me to listen, to have empathy even with people who are monstrously different to who I am because we’re living in a time of extremism, and I don't think we'll get anywhere without listening. No one’s gonna change anyone's minds without listening.

“I think it's a huge responsibility actually. It's emotionally challenging to bring those views to life because they're so extreme, but it's way better than not talking about it, that would be the worst thing we can possibly do.

Ell Potter as Unity (credit Mark Senior)

“It's been a real opportunity for transformation. I've also never worn a wig playing a character so I would love to give big shout out to the wigs, hair and makeup department. The job of an actor is to transform, and we do so much of that work in rehearsals but with a character like Unity, who is so distant from me in terms of my political views, it’s really aided along by the physical transformations.

“Every day I put on this gloriously coiffed golden curly wig and cover my tattoos with a really pigmented concealer; there's something about the ritual of that process, there's something about literally stepping into the character that is a real boundary.

“Sometimes characters, when you play them for a while, there’s a blurring that occurs but I’m pleased to report that has not occurred.

“The context that we're doing this play in, makes it a vital play. It's easy to look back in time at characters like Unity Mitford and Diana Mitford and flatten them into a caricature of something that couldn't possibly be real. There's a safety in the distance of time, in thinking something like that couldn't happen now but we look around and it is. We’ve been going to lots of corners of England [with this tour] and seeing the St George’s flag flying and there’s been far-right rallies, and it just makes Amy's words all the more vital.

“I think what's so compelling about the play is the fact that these characters are three-dimensional, and they are offered their humanity by a Jewish writer. That's a pretty remarkable thing."

Ell Potter added that they “loved the opportunity to step into a role that I wouldn't normally be considered for,"; thanking director Richard Beecham, writer Amy Rosenthal and casting director Annelie Powell “for thinking outside box and trusting me with it because there's so much debate about whether straight actors should play queer roles but we don't really talk about queer actors playing straight people.

"What I love is that plays don't have to be about queerness but the queer lens is a mechanism through which we see something so it doesn't matter that the thing itself isn't queer, it's fascinating to just bring my experience as a queer actor to a straight fascist person in history and find some common ground which you wouldn't expect.”

Preparing for the role, Ell read about Unity’s childhood, “trying to understand where that fanaticism came from. I really related to elements. I didn't grow up in a huge house in the countryside in the aristocracy, but in terms of her playfulness, she was a clown, she was so loved by her sisters, and was a bit of a comedian. I’ve done quite a lot of comedy, so I was really sort of beguiled by those early descriptions of who she was."

They were also interested in “when she became such a bigot full of vitriol and hate. Where the turning point, the twist began, where a rot set in.

“I'm from a big family myself and I do think that when you're one of many children you try to find the thing that sets you apart, you try to distinguish yourself. [Unity] really emulated Diana, she idolised Diana, and sort of wanted to surpass her. Diana ended up with Oswald Mosley so that meant that Unity was going to go for Hitler. That sense of one-up-man-ship and also the jostling to be noticed, was the key in figuring out that twist where she changed."

While the Mitfords' stories aren't an intrinsically queer story, Ell Potter does mention Pamela, the sister who isn’t featured in the The Party Girls but is the “silent queer story in the background."

“I think Pamela would be a fascinating person to explore,” Ell adds, “She's not in the play because she lived a relatively quiet life, but I think there's definitely a spin-off that could exist for her.”

Returning to her role as Unity in The Party Girls, Ell continues: “It's a challenging piece of theatre but the cast and the crew, we all have such a deep affection for each other and so much love is in there, so we all feel very supported even though we're dealing with some different things.

“It’s easy to make the play sound very serious and terribly dour but it is full of light and love. It’s about these sisters who have so much fun together in their repartee, and there's a love story in the middle of it. The spine of the show is a love story between Decca (Jessica) and a wonderful Jewish man called Bob Treuhaft, so it would be remiss of me not to mention how beautiful and uplifting the show is as a whole, in spite of Unity Mitford’s problematic views.”

The Party Girls plays at The Rep, Birmingham until 11th October.