I had never heard of Iceland. Of course, like many children around the world, I had watched LazyTown, but I had no idea of the connection between LazyTown and Iceland. When I found out I had to come here, I looked up Iceland on Google, just to get a little taste of what the country was like,” says 11-year-old Chloe Lang, who will soon make her global debut as Stephanie. Chloe is the second actress to play Stephanie in the LazyTown series. She took over from Julianna Rose Maurielo, who played Stephanie in the first two series, but their production ended in 2007.
When Turner Media Group bought LazyTown almost two years ago, it was decided to restart production of the shows. Stefán Karl Stefánsson and Magnús Scheving were in their place as Robbie Rotten and Sportacus, but Julianna had outgrown the role and was now almost 23 years old. An extensive search for a new Stephanie began immediately, and eventually 10-year-old Chloe was chosen.
Chloe spent six months in Iceland last year (2012) filming at the LazyTown studio in Garðabær, and her role will make her world famous this year. The series has been broadcast in the UK, and is on its way to be broadcast on television in many parts of the world, including the United States on 27 May 2013. The young actress says she has butterflies in her stomach that her friends in Connecticut will soon see her singing and dancing in the pink dress. After all, everyone knows LazyTown. Her mother, Tina Lang, says she never imagined that her daughter would one day become Stephanie of LazyTown.
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Stephanie of LazyTown
To understand the kind of fame that Chloe is about to experience, we need to consider the following facts: The series LazyTown has been shown in more than 170 countries, in 500 million homes. You can shamelessly call it “conquering the world”. Especially when you are only 11 years old. But it also means saying goodbye to your siblings and father for a while and going on a trip to Iceland – last year to star in the third season, which is now being shown on television, and again this year to start working on the fourth season.
Yesterday was the first day of filming. Mother Tina and Chloe know how it goes and they try to arrange things so that life is as simple as possible for Chloe, so that when the journalist and photographer from Sunndagsblað Morgunblað arrives at the studio, Chloe is in her room having lessons with her private teacher. They are reading Greek mythology, Pandora, the first woman on earth according to that tradition, is the subject.
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A lesson with Laurie Berg before lunch; Greek mythology is the subject that day.
“I was very excited to see the country with my own eyes after Googling. On the internet I saw waterfalls and the landscape. But of course that was very different when we landed here early in the morning. “We don’t have this incredible view of the mountains at home,” says Chloe. But her mother knew a lot about the country and its people. As a Björk fan, she says it’s inevitable to learn about the musician’s background. Then her former colleague, who often traveled to Iceland, showed her photos from his travels. “So Iceland was on the list of places I wanted to visit at some point in my life. I consider us incredibly lucky to be able to live here, for half a year last year and now for another half a year. It’s very different from being a tourist: we get to know people and make friends.” When American kids get roles on TV, on stage or in commercials, they have to work hard. That doesn’t mean you have to sit idly by and wait for someone to ‘discover’ you. But you definitely have to have talent, a lot of talent, to play small roles in a country with millions of people.
The talent was discovered by chance
“I don’t know where Chloe got this great talent from.” Neither on my side nor on my husband’s side of the family are there people who dance or sing, let alone act. My brother plays an instrument and that’s it. In families where parents or close relatives work in the entertainment industry, it’s almost decided in the womb how their art education should behave when they come into the world. For us, it was complete coincidence. It’s true that Chloe started learning dance at a young age, between two and three years old, but it was her talent that made us want to do more with her career and support her in it,” says Tina.
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Dance steps practiced in the morning with dance teacher Stella Rósinkranz
Chloe remembers nothing but dancing. She was soon competing in dance, both as a solo dancer and in a small group, and the awards started pouring in. She often won first prize in dance competitions, and her artistic nature led her and her dance friends to also try singing and acting. “When I was seven years old, I was introduced to auditions through my best friend who had been to auditions. I enjoyed it so much that I haven’t stopped since. Auditions for different roles, TV shows, plays and commercials have been a huge part of my life and have been for the past five years. Once or twice a week we drive from Connecticut to New York and I go to an audition. Yes, it’s been very successful. I got an agent right away and got roles in commercials for Pillsbury Toaster Strudel, Baby Alive, Cablevision, and Yale-New Haven Hospital, among others. Also in commercials for GAP and Project Runway.”
However, many child stars audition every day. The reason the family limits Chloe’s auditions to once or twice a week is that they are usually about a five-hour drive from their home. “We drive about five hours for an audition that’s maybe ten minutes.” So every audition is a trip for us. Of course, this would be much easier if we lived in the city, she could come home from school, eat dinner, and go to the place herself. So, when I was in a transitional phase at work, I decided not to go back to work but to support Chloe in her progress. I have worked as a social worker in schools, but it was a joint decision of the family to go this way.” Tina is often on the phone and computer while her daughter is filming, remotely managing the education and needs of Chloe’s siblings – a 13-year-old brother and a 16-year-old sister – and running errands at home. “But we’re lucky with our parents that my grandparents live close to home, as do my sisters and friends. So there are a lot of people who can help out while Chloe and I are far away.”
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The vocals of the song is being recorded. Chloe is considered very versatile and excels in studies, dancing, singing and acting.
But what did the father of the family have to say about those mothers going to Iceland? Tine laughs. “Before LazyTown came along, we had talked about Chloe maybe auditioning for another year. And now we’re here. My family and I have never been apart for so long – a week at most.” Chloe describes how she felt when she got the call that she had landed the role of Stephanie. “I auditioned and the next day I got a call back. Then they tried on the pink wig to see how it would look on me. Two weeks later I still hadn’t heard anything and I was getting very impatient. I asked my mother every day if there was any news, but there was never any news. I was at my grandmother’s house when my mother called me with the news, and my grandmother and I were jumping for joy.”
Tina says the next task on the agenda was to ask where they were going and then explain to the family that they were going to Iceland for many, many weeks. “During auditions, you don’t think about everything until it’s clear that Chloe has a chance of getting the part. I remember telling her dad that she was auditioning and that she should expect a call the next day asking if she had a chance. Then I added very quickly, trying to be as vague as possible: ‘and-it’s-filming-in-Iceland-for-13-weeks’. Of course, he was surprised and asked: ‘Did you say something? Where?’ I reassured him and told him not to worry, she definitely wouldn’t get the part. Two weeks later, trying to sound vague and forgetful, I said: ‘As I remember, Chloe got the part.’ But we see it as a blessing. We see this as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Is Chloe excited to see Magnús Scheving and Stefán Karl again? “We just met Stefán Karl yesterday at Laugavegin, for the first time in over six months, because filming only started today of course. Stefán is very funny and fun.” Tina describes the celebrations at Laugavegin and it is clear that there was a lot of joking around and Chloe can’t stop laughing as she describes the reunion – they were in a car, and Stefán Karl came running. “Chloe shouted ‘lock the door’ when Stefán Karl came running like a screaming madman”
“Magnús Scheving has a very infectious energy. His anticipation and joy is infectious to the rest of us.” They also used Google to get to know Stefán Karl and Magnús Scheving before they came to Iceland for the first time. “Everything we read about them was true. It’s amazing how many beautiful things have been written about them and I almost felt like I knew them from everything we had read. The internet is full of information about LazyTown and we can confirm that we had enough. We also looked on Google Earth afterwards to see where we were going and saw the roof of the studio here in Garðabær before we arrived!”
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Chloe Lang in her pink and white room at LazyTown Studio in Gardabaer. There she studies and rests and listens to Justin Bieber’s music.
Chloe says that Stephanie is like her in many ways. “We both have a lot of energy, we are fit and friendly. Here in Iceland I have Icelandic friends and I don’t know anything better than being with them, going to Laugardalslaugin and Smáralind, and besides that I always have my friends from home with me during the day on the computer. I also have a good relationship with my brothers and sisters. I am the youngest. Of course it is very good to be the youngest. For example, I can get away with a lot of things! “If my sister and I have a fight, she has to stop because mother tells her that this is her role because she is older,” Chloe says laughing. “But it is also very nice to be able to get help from an older sister with homework and other things.”
As mentioned earlier, Chloe has a private tutor during her stay at the LazyTown studio and of course her own room; a white and pink room with a desk, chairs, Justin Bieber posters and everything an 11-year-old girl needs. The advantages of private lessons are numerous. “I can’t get away with pretending that I know the subject and I can better explanations of what I don’t understand than when there are a lot of students. On the other hand, I can quickly go through the chapters that I know well, without having to wait for the other students. I do my homework in the evening when I get home, after I shower and eat.”
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The idol; posters of Justin Bieber on the walls of her room
Chloe sounds almost flawless and extremely conscientious. But Tina reminds me that she is a supernormal child who is not always willing to throw herself into math. And it is her job to be a mother on set, finding her in the cafeteria having fun and chatting, when she should be studying math in her room. After all, the cafeteria is attractive. Although there are no children, the LazyTown Studio is full of adults playing with Chloe. “I have to remind everyone not to let her get away with everything just because she is the youngest.” “But I can’t get away with anything, Mom!” “That’s because I already told them,” her mother replies.
But what does Chloe do to fulfill her role as best as she can? Has she learned anything new? And what does she do when she’s not in LazyTown? “Of course I dance all year round. There are about five dance competitions a year that I participate in. This summer, there’s a competition scheduled in July. LazyTown has a vacation that month. There’s a lot of work behind every competition. Here in LazyTown, I learned things like dribbling and throwing and catching balls. I wasn’t good at those at all. The future? Sure, I’d like to continue on that path or in some form of creation, even in art. I draw a lot.”
Is it ever hard for Tina to see others telling her daughter how long the workday can be? “I hope that her talent and this training to work hard will serve her well throughout her life. I love people who work hard, it’s very important in life. Seeing her here fills me with pride. I’m proud of her hard work and I was very excited for her to have the chance to experience this strange environment and learn new things. Here she also gets a unique chance to learn all about television production, and whatever she does in the future, this is a part of life that is full of learning.”
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Tina Lang is no less of a mom on set than at home and has to make sure she learns math in between scenes. She says she reminds the adults at the LazyTown Studio not to let Chloe get away with everything just because she’s the youngest.
She is only 11 years old but sings, dances and acts like a pro. Chloe Lang plays the main character Stephanie in the new season of LazyTown, which airs on Saturdays this summer.
How old are you? I am eleven years old, turning twelve in November. Where are you from? I was born and raised in the state of Connecticut in the United States.
When did you start acting, singing and dancing? I starte...
Chloe Lang is the name of the ten-year-old American actress who plays Stephanie in the next season of the TV series about LazyTown, which is currently being filmed. Chloe is a great athlete who loves to sing and dance. She is excited to see herself on screen.
...
Julianna Rose Mauriello, who has played the role of the pink Stephanie in LazyTown, is twenty years old and of course too old to play the role of the young TV hero. Her career has been flourishing, she was nominated for an Emmy Award for her performance, and after ...
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