Iz Hesketh (born 22 September 1997) is a British actress and drag performer, best known on television for portraying Kitty Draper in long-running British soap opera, Hollyoaks.[1] On stage she is notable for portraying Margot in Legally Blonde at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre,[2] originating the role of Pythio in Europe in Head Over Heels at the Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester[3] and performing as her drag persona Seriah Sis.[4]
Iz Hesketh | |
|---|---|
 Hesketh performing as Margot in Legally Blonde at the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre in June 2022 | |
| Born | 22 September 1997 England |
| Alma mater | Urdang Academy |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2018–present |
On television, she also stars as Valerian in the 2024 British historical adventure series, Renegade Nell on Disney .[5]
Career
editAfter graduating from Urdang, Hesketh embarked on the UK/European Tour of The Book of Mormon in which she toured across five venues: Palace Theatre (Manchester), Theater 11 (Zürich), Sunderland Empire, Bristol Hippodrome, and Birmingham Hippodrome from June 2019 to March 2020 when the tour was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.[6] During the COVID-19 lockdown, Iz participated in (as her drag persona Seriah Sis) and won an online social media drag competition titled 'Lockdown Legends' hosted by Tia Kofi (her drag mother).[7]
In September 2020, after initially delaying its summer run, casting was revealed exclusively by the theatre website WhatsOnStage[8] for the upcoming revival of Rent at the Hope Mill Theatre in Manchester, which included Hesketh as a featured ensemble member. After opening to critically acclaimed reviews and a socially-distanced audience in November 2020,[9] the production had to close after five performances due to a newly imposed lockdown.[10] However, as a result, a series of online performances ran from 27 November to 20 December 2020 on the Hope Mill Theatres' website.[11] The show returned again to the Hope Mill Theatre in Summer 2021, with Hesketh also returning as a featured ensemble and alternate Angel for this iteration of the production.[12]
In March 2022, it was announced exclusively via WhatsOnStage that Iz would portray the role of Margot in the revival of Legally Blonde at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre.[13] This marked the first time Margot was played by a trans non-binary actor in a professional capacity. In an interview with media outlet PinkNews Hesketh said "I can't quite put into words how grateful I am to be taking this huge step in musical theatre history".[14] In response to the transphobic backlash, Iz said "You've made my determination to change this industry that little bit stronger today (...) If anyone feels like I'm not right for this part or that I won't be able to do this role as well as a cis female, PLEASE feel free to drop me a message and I'll be more than happy to buy you a ticket to watch the show so you can sit there for the duration and be proved wrong".[15] The highly praised production ran from May–July 2022, and included a performance at the annual West End LIVE event held in Trafalgar Square by the Society of London Theatre, Westminster City Council and the Mayor of London.[16][17]
At the beginning of 2022, casting was revealed for the European premiere at the Hope Mill Theatre in Manchester, of the jukebox musical Head Over Heels (based on the music of The Go-Go's) this included Iz as the principal character Pythio, an oracle to the fictional kingdom of Arcadia.[18] The production ran from 26 January to 4 March 2023.[19] In early May, WhatsOnStage exclusively revealed the casting of new Weimar-era Berlin musical Fury and Elysium at The Other Palace that included Hesketh portraying Anita Berber,[20] the production ran for a limited run of two weeks in June 2023.[21]
Hesketh also features on the live cast recording of Olivier-nominated autobiographical play My Son's a Queer (but What Can You Do?) and participated in the West End LIVE performance.[22]
In January 2024, it was announced via the official Hollyoaks social media channels and Hesketh's Instagram[23] that she would star as Kitty Draper in long-running British soap opera, Hollyoaks. In March of that same year, Hesketh announced her role as Valerian in the British historical adventure television series Renegade Nell on Disney .[5] She is the first person to portray a non-binary character to appear in a Disney live action series.
In mid-July 2024, Iz won the award for Best Newcomer at the RadioTimes.com Soap Awards 2024. When speaking to Radio Times, she revealed that winning the award felt "unreal" and went on to say receiving the accolade was "absolutely incredible, yeah I'm just buzzing".[24]
Personal life
editHesketh uses she/her pronouns.[25]
Stage
edit| Year | Production | Role | Venue | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-2019 | Aladdin | Ensemble | New Wimbledon Theatre | [26] |
| 2019-2020 | The Book of Mormon | Elder Cross/Davis | UK/European Tour | [27] |
| 2020-2021 | Rent | Featured Ensemble/Alternate Angel | Hope Mill Theatre | [28] |
| 2021 | Cherry Jezebel | Pearl Reckless | Everyman Theatre, Liverpool | [29] |
| Snowflake | Olly | The Lowry | [30] | |
| 2022 | Legally Blonde | Margot | Regent's Park Open Air Theatre | [31] |
| 2023 | Head Over Heels | Pythio | Hope Mill Theatre | [32] |
| Fury and Elysium | Anita Berber | The Other Palace | [33] |
Filmography
editTelevision
edit| Year | Title | Role | Broadcasting Channel | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Buffering | Kaia | ITV2 | [34] |
| 2024 | Hollyoaks | Kitty Draper | Channel 4/E4 | [35] |
| Renegade Nell | Valerian | Disney | [5] |
Awards and nominations
edit| Year | Award | Category | Role | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | RadioTimes.com Soap Awards | Best Newcomer | Kitty Draper | Hollyoaks | Won | [36] |
References
edit- ^ Lindsay, Duncan (15 January 2024). "Three Hollyoaks characters die - with one murdered and a fourth facing death". Metro. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
- ^ Russo, Gillian (4 April 2022). "'Legally Blonde' sets full cast at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre". London Theatre. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
- ^ "Cast for Head Over Heels UK premiere revealed | WhatsOnStage". www.whatsonstage.com. 5 January 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
- ^ "Seriah Sis | Instagram". Instagram.
- ^ a b c "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
- ^ "Iz Hesketh - Followspot". DressCircle.co.uk.
- ^ "Lockdown Legends: The Final! | ⚡️Lockdown Legends: The Social Media Drag Competition!⚡️ EPISODE 7 📺 ⚡️ The Final ⚡️ Join our host Tia Kofi and head judge Sum Ting Wong as the top... | By Two Box Productions | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
- ^ "Rent musical revival at Hope Mill Theatre full casting announced | WhatsOnStage". www.whatsonstage.com. 24 September 2020. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
- ^ "Review: Rent (Hope Mill Theatre) | WhatsOnStage". www.whatsonstage.com. 5 November 2020. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
- ^ "Prime Minister announces new national restrictions". GOV.UK. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
- ^ Darvill, Josh (15 November 2020). "Rent revival at Hope Mill Theatre online trailer revealed". Stage Chat. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
- ^ "💥 The incredible @iz.hesketh will return to the cast of #RENT as a featured ensemble member and alternate Angel this summer!". Facebook. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
- ^ "Legally Blonde at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre announces lead casting | WhatsOnStage". www.whatsonstage.com. 16 March 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
- ^ Yates, Jonny (29 April 2022). "Trans non-binary star of hit musical Legally Blonde claps back at transphobic post". PinkNews. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
- ^ "Iz Hesketh - I'm out here too busy being successful to get my nails infilled and people have the time to photoshop whole logos? Could never be me". Twitter. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
- ^ Legally Blonde | West End LIVE 2022, 25 June 2022, retrieved 11 April 2023
- ^ Legally Blonde perform Bend and Snap | West End LIVE 2022, 26 June 2022, retrieved 11 April 2023
- ^ Darvill, Josh (5 January 2023). "Head Over Heels cast announced for UK premiere at Hope Mill Theatre". Stage Chat. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
- ^ "Head Over Heels – Hope Mill Theatre". hopemilltheatre.co.uk. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
- ^ "Anita Berber wild child, bisexual icon, lover, groundbreaking artist and true legend, most famously painted in red by Otto Dix. Played by the sensational iz.hesketh". Instagram. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
- ^ "Cast announced for Fury and Elysium musical at the Other Palace | WhatsOnStage". www.whatsonstage.com. 3 May 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
- ^ "My Son's A Queer (But What Can You Do?) cast recording to be released | WestendTheatre.com". www.westendtheatre.com. 15 September 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
- ^ "Looks like the cats out of the bag… I'm so proud to announce that I'm the new girl on the block in the @hollyoaksofficial Village! This character is one that I feel British TV has needed for a long time. She's fiery, independent and has a huge heart. I'm so excited to show that trans people are just like everyone else. We have flaws, we fall in love and sometimes we make bad decision for good reasons… Thank you so much to @peterhuntcasting and everyone in casting for trusting me to tell this story. Thank you to my amazing agent @nultus @keddiescottassociatesltd for always pushing for me to seen in rooms I never dreamed I'd be in. Thank you to @rayburmiston for the amazing shoot and capturing this photo. I can't not also thank my amazing friends and family who love me so fiercely and make it so easy for me to feel I can make the impossible possible. Here's to 2024 kids, I think it's gonna be a good year 🤍". Instagram. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
- ^ "Hollyoaks' Iz Hesketh celebrates positive impact of trans youth storyline". Radio Times. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
- ^ "Twitter | Iz Hesketh (She/Her)". Twitter.
- ^ "The Home Page". www.wimbledonsw19.com. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
- ^ "The Book of Mormon tour casting announced | WhatsOnStage". www.whatsonstage.com. 8 May 2019. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
- ^ "Rent musical revival at Hope Mill Theatre full casting announced | WhatsOnStage". www.whatsonstage.com. 24 September 2020. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
- ^ "Cherry Jezebel (rehearsed reading) | Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse theatres". www.everymanplayhouse.com. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
- ^ Darvill, Josh (17 September 2021). "New Musical Snowflake to make world premiere in semi-staged concert". Stage Chat. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
- ^ "Legally Blonde at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre announces lead casting | WhatsOnStage". www.whatsonstage.com. 16 March 2022. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
- ^ Wild, Stephi. "Luke Bayer, Iz Hesketh, Jenny O'Leary, and More Will Lead European Premiere of HEAD OVER HEELS". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
- ^ Timoshina, Tatiana (12 April 2023). "Fury and Elysium". The Other Palace Theatre. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
- ^ "Iz Hesketh on Instagram: "I guess the Wolf puppets out of the bag… Tv debut let's go ✨ Thank you so much @stevebugejacomedy and @iaindoesjokes for having me on Buffering Season 2. You can catch me playing Kaia on @itv and @itvxofficial later this month. Thank you also to @francesca_bradley_casting and @sophiekingcr for letting me be so authentic. - Soppy section. When I signed with Neil @keddiescottassociatesltd early last year the first thing I said I wanted was to make my tv debut. So thank you for constantly working so hard to get me into rooms I'm not normally first thoughts to be in and supporting every crazy decision and thought I have. Also I really need to thank @nadine_higgin who In summer, reminded me of exactly who I was and that what is for me will not pass me. Everything truly happens for a reason. Here's to 2023 being the most exciting year of my life! Oh and changing my professional name to Iz is also very slay I suppose ✨"". Instagram. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
- ^ "Hollyoaks confirms gripping impostor story as Iz Hesketh joins the show". Digital Spy. 15 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
- ^ "Hollyoaks' Iz Hesketh celebrates positive impact of trans youth storyline". Radio Times. Retrieved 23 July 2024.