Melkorka Davíðsdóttir Pitt was chosen from a whole host of talented girls to play Stephanie in the next LazyTown play at the National Theatre and she is looking forward to putting on the pink wig. This 16-year-old actress and dancer could hardly be a better role model for the young generation. Melkorka never expected to get the role which relieves her of her nerves during her auditions at MR.
“On the way to my very first audition I said to my mother: ‘Oh, shouldn’t we just go home and do something else?’ But she encourages me to go because we were already halfway to the theatre. I have often wondered what would have happened if we had turned around that day because that was kind of the beginning of my theatre life. I played a poodle in that show, 11 years old” says 16-year-old Melkorka Davíðsdóttir Pitt.
Melkorka is going to play Stephanie in the LazyTown production in the National Theatre that will go into premiere next fall. Rúnar Freyr Gíslason is directing and Magnús Scheving is the author of the work. Magnús is the one who has played Sportacus from the beginning but is retired as Sportacus. The planned premiere is in September.
Melkorka was chosen from a group of nearly two hundred talented girls who applied for the role of the pink-haired, cheerful girl in LazyTown. The character is one of the most well-known Icelandic children’s roles in recent times, and therefore there is a certain pressure to put on the wig.
“I am stepping into a pre-formed role that everyone knows very well and I am going to do my best to deliver the role well. Stephanie is a cheerful and fun girl who started out as stiff but now dances and sings in LazyTown. I watched a lot of LazyTown as a child myself and now my sister, who is nine years old, is a fan. I haven’t told her the news yet. I think she will be very happy that her sister will be Stephanie.”
Did not expect to get the role
Melkorka met a journalist at a café downtown. The school books and the eraser are not far away as she is on her way to an Icelandic exam. Melkorka is in her first year at Menntaskólinn in Reykjavík where she is getting her feet wet in high school life. “I was just studying for a history exam when Rúnar Freyr called me and told me that I had been chosen. That made the audition much more fun, but I never expected to get the role. There were so many beautiful girls applying.”
Melkorka lives in Skerjafjörður with her parents, Guðrún Edda Þórhannesdóttir, a film producer, and David Pitt, an architect. She is the oldest of her siblings, with a sister, Ísold, who is nine years old, and a brother, Höskuld Þór, who is one and a half years old. Melkorka has also lived in the UK for a while, where she attended a British school with great discipline. She is now a Vestur resident.
“I came from a small class at Landakotsskóli, there were only nine of us in a class, so it is a definite change to come to MR. A lot is happening and I find it incredibly fun. I have joined Herranótt [MR theatre company] and will be there next year,” says Melkorka, who has trained ballet for many years at the Icelandic School of Dance and that is where she was recruited for her first audition.
The enchanting scent of theatre
The theatre has long fascinated Melkorka, who is no stranger to the stage and has played more roles than a poodle. She played in Oliver Twist, The Wizard of Oz and most recently in The Promised Land at the National Theatre last year. She is not sure that acting will be her choice in the future, since her dream is to be able to study abroad.
“There is something about the stage and the theatre itself. There is a special theatrical scent in the air that I love, the atmosphere is exciting and you get to meet fun people.” Melkorka realizes that she will now become a role model for young kids of all ages and is well prepared to shoulder that responsibility. “Rúnar Freyr asked me if I had any inappropriate pictures of me on Facebook, but he doesn’t need to worry about that. I checked the other day just to be safe” says Melkorka, laughing, full of anticipation for the times ahead.
She is not worried about not being able to combine school and the play in LazyTown. “When there is a lot to do, you just get better at organizing yourself and I thrive that way. Most of the summer is spent preparing for the play and I really can’t wait. It’s going to be a fun adventure.”
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