Sydney
Yeah, because remember our manic texts where we were like: this sucks.
Mae
Well, I think we’re similar – it’s just not a normal experience, that level of exposure and I think people are amazingly cool to handle it, but I think it’s a lot.
Sydney
But you also went to your fun little retreat.
Mae
I went to a therapy retreat for a week. I can’t tell if it helped or hurt her. I think it helped. It was just nice that I didn’t have my phone for a week. But, okay, wait, Sydney, wait.
Sydney
Oh, we have to be real? Okay.
Mae
Tell me about your journey into acting. You did shows in school right?
Sydney
We didn’t do school shows because we were too country to have a drama department, so we didn’t even have drama class. I did it through community theatre, but that’s it. But you were doing standup when you were like a teenager! This feels weird to talk only about me.
Mae
I only want to talk about you. You can throw back to me occasionally, but only occasionally. I’m trying to remember how we found you in the audition process. We did a massive, like a massive sweep of Canada and I just remember seeing your tape and everyone was like, “Well, this girl will be in the show, of course”. At first we thought you were going to be Leila.
Sydney
Really?
Mae
You did an amazing tape for Leila as well, but there’s also such a sweetness about you that then we knew we should also have you read for Abbie. It became early on about finding someone to do a chemistry reading with you. You were the first young person that we cast.
Sydney
Ew! That’s crazy. I just remember self-taping and I was on vacation and I was like, “Shit, I don’t have anything. I just have my phone”
Mae
Do you hate self-tapes usually or do you not mind them?
Sydney
I don’t know, I like them.
Mae
I like them because you can just do them at your own pace and not be nervous. Were you nervous when you ended up coming to do chemistry reads with Olivia?
Sydney
I don’t think there’s a greater laxative than anxiety because I was shitting my pants. It was fun when I got in the room. What are you like auditioning?
Mae
I’m similar. Where it doesn’t matter because it’s just: oh, yeah, I’ll do this audition. But then when it gets tantalizingly close to something then I’m a wreck. I unravel and I show them why they shouldn’t hire me. I’m not good at auditions. I really freak out. My voice still shakes and stuff.
Sydney
Really?
Mae
I remember you guys were really nervous at the table read with everyone.
Sydney
I remember they were like: “Can you guys speak up?”
Mae
You were whispering, both of you! That is intimidating – the whole cast together for the first time. You never really know how much everyone’s going to go for it.
Sydney
Do you like rehearsing?
Mae
I do. You don’t?
Sydney
Okay, For TV and film I don’t love it. For theatre I would love to just rehearse and rehearse and that’s it.
Mae
And never do the show.
Sydney
[Laughs] Never yeah. For TV and film. I just like to find it. I like talking about it, but I don’t really go for it until [the shoot] which is so unprofessional of me to say.
Mae
I know a lot of people are like that. It’s more spontaneous that way. I’m just not confident enough as an actor yet. I have such imposter syndrome. I’m always so embarrassed that I wrote it as well. It’s so embarrassing to write something where some movie star is telling you they love you and looking you in your eyes and you’re like: “Sorry about this. I’m sorry.” We only had three scenes together, but I think our first actual scene together was at that gate – at the fence.
Sydney
And you come up to it – first take – and laugh out loud.
Mae
I’m actually so relieved that we didn’t have more scenes together because there’s something about you – you’re a very perceptive person and you’re very like switched on to what’s going on. I just couldn’t fake it. I was like: this person’s going to say what a terrible actor I am. I was crying laughing. And that took us a long time, people were really losing patience.
Sydney
It’s so weird because we had never like, there’s no crossover between the two worlds. I just remember looking at your eyeballs and I was like: Oh my gosh, I’m acting with Mae. This is so weird.
Mae
Also being there with all of you guys – there’s a whole other show going on and a whole other community of actors.vWhat was your reaction to finding out that you were going to do the show and how did you feel?
