Interview: Behind the Scenes with SISSI MARTINS & RUBEN MADUREIRA

Known as the "power couple" of the Portuguese Musical Theatre industry for several years, Sissi Martins and Ruben Madureira open up about their memories, insecurities, hopes and dreams... And remind us that 'Love is love is love...'

Did you always know what you wanted to do?

SISSI: No. Since a young age that I loved to sing and dance and my parents loved musicals... There is actually a funny story about that: my father was followed by PIDE [the International and State Defense Police that existed during the authoritarian regime of 1933-74 in Portugal] because he went to the cinema to watch West Side Story seven times! That says a lot about the family I had growing up. My mother loves to sing and always dreamed of being an ice skater... (RUBEN: So did mine!) And my brother, as a two-year-old, only wanted to play the piano. But I was always that reasonable little girl that thought that Musical Theatre had to be a hobby, that I had to live a stable life... It is obvious that we then become conscious of what truly makes us happy, so I had to pursue what I loved the most. Still, I fought a lot, I even studied Social Services, I really tried to have a different stability.

I was lost in Sports for several years... (So you relived that during Popota - O Musical then... [in which Ruben portrait a P.E. teacher]) That tracksuit was actually my father's! My father was the Athletics Portuguese team's trainer and champion with Futebol Clube do Porto, so I brought that tracksuit because it was from the 90's! It was amazing for me to be able to wear that on stage!

But well, since I was little that I had a strong connection with music, art, and the ability to make people laugh. I used to make shows for my mother - if she laughed, I knew I was doing something right (I loved to hear her laugh). Even in school, I was the class clown: when we had to read something, I was always the first to stand up and try to make something funny of it. I constantly had this connection: I saw Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music more than fifty times, I danced with Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire (I remember crashing all my living room, dancing on top of couches, trying to do stunts - never successfully, I must say)... But it was only at sixteen that I became a professional. Even if I had done some smaller jobs before, I never knew I wanted to be an actor from an early age.

We all know that there are good months and bad months in this industry. What do you do to keep positive? Have you ever considered quitting?

For me, voice-overs were always an extra source of income. Besides that, I am also a vocal technique's teacher (at ACT - Escola de Actores). But we have begun from scratch several times, both of us... (Always together, thank God!) Every time that we needed to start over, we did and had no fear. And there were times in which God was not there... It was hard. There were moments that forced us to risk and start over, which is never easy. But yes, we always had extra sources of income. Plus the gigs, the smaller jobs - we even sang in weddings! I believe you cannot close any door because you never know what tomorrow brings. And you always need to think that everything you do is for a reason: I was a hairdresser and manicure, he sold desserts in a restaurant, ... And nowadays, backstage, when people ask for my help with hair and make-up, I know I am only capable of doing so because I learnt that when I couldn't find a job doing what I really wanted to be doing. Therefore, I do believe that everything can teach you something.

We know we are privileged. We have been working non-stop for more than ten years (and we are grateful for the people that gave us those professional opportunities). It is fantastic to be able to do what you love the most, earn money for that and, on top of all that, get an ovation in the end! You have to feel grateful when the curtain falls. However, you also need good financial management and to keep your spirits high and positive - because there are better outcomes like that! We live truly in love with what we do. We keep going in this direction because there is nowhere else to go. What really moves us is to live in love, to live boldly every moment of this career. By doing that, we are able to give 300%, instead of only 100%.

We usually say: love is comfortable. And you cannot love our career, or else it'll go dull. But if you live in love with it, you are happier. And quoting Lin-Manuel Miranda: 'Love is love is love'... The fundamental is to look at this tough lifestyle and just retain what's positive. Only that way you can endure it all.

You are considered the "power couple" of Musical Theatre in Portugal - was it a conscious decision to always work together or did it just happen?

The industry actually thinks that we demand to work together!! We were chosen as a couple for more than three years only because there was true chemistry - and Filipe La Féria saw that chemistry... We did Jesus Christ Superstar, The Sound of Music, Fiddler on the Roof, Alice in Wonderland, Annie, ... all of those together. The truth is that we work beautifully together, on and offstage, so it happened! This partnership began because we had a very special synergy onstage, a lot of stage chemistry. And we were best friends before anything else! But it still makes me proud whenever people ask us if we are a couple, since we are very different, with totally distinctive work methods.

Still, I think that as people in the industry know us both, one of us reminds them of the other. We only hope that that happens because of our talent and not only because we come as a "package"! And it is definitely not a demand!

It's funny because people always ask us if it is hard to have been working together for so long. I don't think so! It's not hard at all because we share the same career... As I usually say: the main reason for us to get along so well is because when he comes home upset, I know why.

Sissi, you recently embraced the challenge of directing a musical. Was directing something that you always thought about? In general, is the creative part behind it all something that appeals to you?

In the past, I would have said no. I actually said no, when they first invited me! I recognize that I have teaching skills and that I can explain my way of seeing things to other people... And the producers (that already knew me from previous projects) knew that, inside of me, there is this intrinsic will to help others (and for me, directing starts as a form of helping others). Therefore, Popota - O Musical turned out to be an opportunity to accept that side of me. And to me, as an actor that was directed by the newcomer director Sissi, I can say that she has the decisive factor that any director needs: the careful sensibility that makes an actor get to a certain place, with passion and commitment. Sissi has a gift of being able to impart knowledge very easily, making any actor stand out - which resulted in an overwhelming symbiosis with a not very experienced cast, that made thousands of children's eyes sparkle.

As for me... I cannot think of me as any of that because I do not have the patience to deal with every actor's process, to explain, to wait... I am too rigid with my job, I have a lot of rigor while doing what I love... And I just don't have the dexterity of a leader.

You were both in the SIMONE - O MUSICAL cast, that ran for months and was on a national tour. Do you think this means that Musical Theatre is a growing genre in Portugal? What is left to do to create a true Portuguese Broadway?

I am very happy because there is a great deal of young people with the desire to learn about Musical Theatre and ever more there is a new generation in love with Musical Theatre. As for what is left to do: I feel like it is needed to assure people that Musical Theatre is not a lesser genre and that it is not the same as revue.

I feel like there are missing more Portuguese stories that make our youngsters and history closer together. Simone - O Musical did just that: it brought different generations to the Theatre, to see a personality from our parents' generation. It was beautiful to witness that "hand-over". So, I believe what's missing is to convince younger audiences that Musical Theatre is a form of art as complete as any other, so complete that makes any spectator fall in love with it. The truth is that people don't know what Musical Theatre is, especially contemporary Musical Theatre. In general, it is common to hear people say that they don't like musicals, even if they have only seen one... I usually make a parallel with literature: as with a book, people need to find the right show for them. But yes, it is a universe that is definitely expanding in our country and we are very happy with that.

Are you thinking about opening a Theatre school?

That is really something that is never off our plans, in the long term. It will need to happen naturally, when the right pieces of the puzzle come together. I believe that we can both give something to younger artists but we will wait anxiously until that can become a reality.

Finally, the obvious question: what advice would you give to someone with the dream to build a career in Musical Theatre?

Fight. A lot. And be positive! I'll quote something that I learned with Terra dos Sonhos and that I used to tell the Popota - O Musical cast every day: 'Live as if you were amazed by being alive', on and offstage. Only that way you can keep going and not give up. This is an industry that can easily disappoint you and make you want to quit. Quitting becomes easy... There will be so many people trying to make you quit, that it will seem like the easy way out. But, as Leslie Odom Jr. says: "Fall down a hundred times, get up a hundred and one!" It is very easy to ensue disbelief about this career, influenced by parents, family, friends...

But there is something that no one can stop: dreaming and believing.

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RAPID FIRE QUESTIONS with Sissi Martins & Ruben Madureira

Last musical you saw live?	In The Heights, at King's Cross Theatre (London).
What have you been listening to in your car?	Terra dos Sonhos - O Musical (because we are studying for the revival)! But it would usually be Dear Evan Hansen.
Do you have all-time favorites?	Hamilton - An American Musical, Dear Evan Hansen and Ghost - The Musical.
Dream characters?	SISSI: Peggy/ Maria (Hamilton - An American Musical) or any female character in it, honestly! RUBEN: Roger (RENT) and Jean Valjean (Les Miserábles).
Biggest role-models/ inspirations?	SISSI: Chita Rivera and Lin-Manuel Miranda. RUBEN: Lin-Manuel Miranda, Bob Fosse, Steven Pasquale, Ramin Karimloo and so many others... And Sissi Martins (which is also a huge inspiration)!
Projects in the near future?	Terra dos Sonhos - O Musical (Culturgest and Casa da Música) and Suite 647 (Auditório dos Oceanos, Casino Lisboa).

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