Stephenson Ardern-Sodje: “You are what you are in conversation with the rooms you're in”
The actor on the building blocks we're given, intentionality and existing in the centre of the Venn diagram
Hi, welcome back to Mixed Messages! Before we get started, have you got your tickets to Mixed Messages Live? On Tuesday 1st July, we’ll be at Lush, Beak Street, with William Hunter, Deepa Paul and Megan Jayne Crabbe, where the authors will also be signing books. Last year was such a special evening, I can’t wait to see you IRL again soon!
But back to today – this week’s guest is actor Stephenson Ardern-Sodje, who is of mixed-Nigerian and British heritage. Stephenson is currently on stage as Simba in The Lion King, and has also appeared in Hamilton, As You Like It, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Tempest, with a focus on Black roles. I’ve known Stephenson since we both started out in our respective industries through Creative Access, and it’s been amazing to see his star ascend. Read his story below.
How do you describe your identity?
I would say I’m mixed-race, Nigerian and British. There are so few roles that are dedicated to mixed-race people on stage and screen that you often get lumped in with a non-white mass, more specifically as Black, which are predominantly the non-white roles we see on stage.
As an actor, I often feel as though I am identified as Black rather than me identifying myself as Black. I’m happy to be in that category – it's easier for people to see you as Black than white, even though I'm 50% of each.
Race is socially constructed, and as a mixed-race person, you are what you are in opposition to, or in conversation with, the rooms that you're in. As much as you might have an internal sense of self identity, there’s only so much you can insist upon when people perceive you a certain way.
What was your cultural upbringing like?
I grew up in Shrewsbury in the West Midlands, a very white, middle class area. I always had a very strong connection to my Nigerian side. My dad is the eldest of ten and I had lots of interaction with my cousins, uncles and aunts. I went to Nigeria quite a few times too.
I was always aware of the reality, the nuance and the day-to-day life of what it means to be Nigerian, or British Nigerian. That was a part of me that I could go to, if not necessarily the part of me that I visited day-in day-out. The journey for me has been about uniting those two elements, understanding the intersections are between them and how they aren’t separate spaces that I can visit, but that I exist in the centre of that Venn diagram.
Do you think you’ve achieved that?
I don't think you ever do. It constantly shifts, from day to day, place to place. It’s been interesting being in a predominantly Black space, and predominantly African space, with The Lion King. When we sang through the script as a cast, hearing so many native South African voices all singing Circle of Life in Swahili, you suddenly realise this is a place that feels authentic and true. It reminds me of going to Nigeria, being around my family.
It must be amazing to work in a predominantly Black space like this.
Spaces that are predominantly Black in acting are rare. But if you’re intentional about your career – and lucky, as I’ve been – you can make those decisions. I was lucky that my first show out of drama school was Hamilton. I got into that through open auditions because I think they struggle to find talent through traditional avenues who can rap and know that style of music and movement. I was catapulted into a show at a high level in the industry because of the specificity of what I could bring to the table.
As a performer, you can spend a lot of time pushing to be in spaces that you don't necessarily see yourself in. You can also navigate into spaces that do work for you. I've done a lot of shows that centre on Blackness, race or difference and there’s a bit of a chicken and egg there – am I drawn to them because I fit them, or because they speak to me?
Is that intentionality something you’re continuing throughout your career, or are you going with the flow?
Why not both? It's incredibly important to be intentional with what you do. There is scope to have a career that is successful by an external metric, and it’s very tempting to move down that road. I’m lucky to have been in shows that are household names. But I put myself forward for Once On This Island at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre. I knew the show was a pioneering work of Black theatre. I played the love interest, who is a person of mixed-French and Caribbean ancestry who falls in love with someone outside of his social class. That role was one I really advocated for.
That role had an impact on people, especially mixed people. I think it's really important to make those choices and arm yourself with the information to allow you to shape your career the way you want to, but to also be open to the possibility of being put outside your box.
It sounds like you’ve always been confident in who you are – is that the case? Did growing up around Nigerian heritage give you a good grounding?
I think it has. Well, we’re as confident as we are. I think there’s a confidence in resignation as well, knowing that for better and for worse, you are the person that you are. The building blocks you’ve been given are the things you have to work with.
Growing up, there was definitely a sense of wanting to fit in to the point of non-existence, like most teenagers. Growing up in a very rural, white, middle class town, there were incidents of racism. Nothing particularly scary, but things that made me aware of not being like everybody else. You have these moments that catch on your subconscious, especially in a white majority area where you know your friends aren’t racist or prejudiced because they like you, but when certain things happen and you’re the only person who feels questionable. It builds a sense of self doubt.
You are constantly doing the mental work to balance those truths that don't feel like they completely weigh up. That’s how I’d categorise my upbringing, as trying to balance an equation without the full information or the confidence in myself to call things out that felt wrong. I didn't have the language or the knowledge to put a finger on why.
Something I’ve wondered since starting this newsletter is whether mixed people tend to be open-minded and patient, knowing two things can be true at the same time.
I think our openness as mixed people is a mixture of necessity and opportunity. We are very fortunate to have a view of the world that is, by necessity, broader than most people's, or an opportunity to view the world in a broader way. You have to learn to navigate those two spaces and you realise that there are fascinating things happening in different places. Hopefully it does open you up to the potential outside your own sphere of existence, in a way that monocultural people might find harder.
Have you noticed any stereotypes around mixedness? How do you want the conversation to develop?
We need to allow for bothness, so there’s an end to the tired conversations about being Black enough. People want to know where you lie within the spectrum and which side you grew up with more, like ‘are you secretly one of us or one of them?’ It’s very reductive.
Growing up, I felt a necessity to figure out where I was more connected. Actually, the chameleonic nature of what we are, what we represent and the lived experience we have is so much more fluid. There’s a lot to be learned from that and there’s a lot we can offer people who haven’t grown up with that. You don't have to stay in your little box – you can open up and explore. You can be excited by and interested in people and things and culture that is not your own.
What’s the best thing about being mixed for you?
That appreciation for two different cultures. The journey I’ve been on has allowed me the understanding that I can feel comfortable in any space. You spend a lot of your youth being one of the ‘only,’ whether you're in a Black space or a white space, you are almost always going to be in the minority. So you learn very quickly to assimilate, to watch, to mimic.
It's also given me the ability to see that nobody is all one thing. It's sort of a cliche to say, but it's our superpower, in a way that other people are having to navigate as they leave their protective bubbles for the first time.
How would you sum up your mixed experience in one word?
Powerful. It’s a word which is both true for me and becoming more true for me, aspirationally. I feel very powerful with it. I haven't always – I've often felt disempowered. When I was younger, it was something to be avoided, sidestepped or apologised for in order to make people feel comfortable. I'm done with that now. It’s something I can turn to, an anchor to remind myself where I'm from and where I want to go.
Remember to get your tickets to Mixed Messages Live here, and catch Stephenson on stage in The Lion King now. Next week, I’ll be speaking to musician Nxdia. Subscribe to get Mixed Messages in your inbox on Monday. Shop Mixed Messages tote bags and bookmarks on Etsy now!
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Mixed Messages is a weekly exploration of the mixed-race experience, from me, Isabella Silvers. My mom is Punjabi (by way of East Africa) and my dad is white British, but finding my place between these two cultures hasn’t always been easy. That’s why I started Mixed Messages, where each week I’ll speak to a prominent mixed voice to delve into what it really feels like to be mixed.