Part of the creative journey for me was not to come up the conventional route. I didn't go through drama school. I chose not to. I came from a very working-class area, a child of Nigerian immigrants. DeObia Oparei areachildchoose Change image and share on social
I always wanted to experience what performance would be like without the fourth wall, so I formed a company in Australia, and we did avant-garde theater, playing with gender norms, conversations about race - we just had a box of issues that we wanted to subvert with our stories, with dance. DeObia Oparei australiaavantbox share on social
I got into this thing called the National Youth Theatre, and to me, that was all about the status quo. It seemed to me like 'Downton Abbey' - all the working-class and black people were playing servants, or the gravedigger in 'Hamlet,' and the boys from Eton and posh private schools got Hamlet, all the big roles. DeObia Oparei abbeybigblack share on social
In Australia, there just weren't strong roles for actors of colour. I was often being asked to turn up for commercials with a ghetto blaster on my shoulder. I thought, 'Are we in the '60s?' DeObia Oparei 60sactorask Change image and share on social
I came from a very poor background. I came from children's homes; I came from a violent family, and against all the odds, I succeeded. DeObia Oparei backgroundchildfamily Change image and share on social
I did everything, I used to be a drag queen, I used to be a stripper. DeObia Oparei dragqueenstripper Change image and share on social
It's all about the sensuality of movement, every movement you make. That's why I love doing action movies. It's all about movement, dance - even if you're hitting someone in the face. You've got to sell it all with great passion. There's a narrative to the body. It's exactly the same as dance. DeObia Oparei actionbodydance share on social