The 'Crown' actress has ruled out doing a stage show ever again since she now struggles to memorize her lines because of the brain fog caused by menopause.
- Feb 23, 2024
AceShowbiz - Olivia Colman refuses to return to acting on stage because her "menopause brain" is preventing her from learning lines. The 50-year-old Oscar-winner began her career in the theatre and longs to take on another play, but she's too scared to give it another go because brain fog caused by the menopause means she can no longer memorise an entire script and there are no second takes when performing in front of an audience.
"I started in theatre and loved it so much ... And I think I've left it too long - the fear is too great. Oh, God. I feel it's so far to fall now. And then there's my menopause brain, and the fear that I wouldn't be able to remember an entire play," she explained in an interview with the Guardian newspaper.
Olivia was last seen on stage in a 2017 production of "Mosquitoes" at the Royal National Theatre in London, but she stepped away from theatre roles when her three children got to the "pyjama-time-cuddle-on-the-sofa-before-bed age."
She went on to explain she can deal with her foggy memory when working on films and TV because she's able to look over her lines on the day and do another take if necessary - but that won't work in the theatre.
She added, "When you're filming, you can look and learn on the day, get it wrong, and get to go again. But if you're on stage, and you've forgotten your soliloquy … everyone knows that fear, but I don't know if I can face it again. Maybe when I'm in my 80s with an earpiece …"
It comes after Olivia admitted she keeps her Academy Award locked away in a cupboard because it's too "ostentatious" to put it on display in her home.
"The Crown" star - who won the Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Queen Anne in 2018 film "The Favourite" - told Bella magazine, "It's in the cupboard - it feels a bit ostentatious to have it out. I have it in the cupboard, so I can go [mimes opening doors] 'Hello!' It was out for the first year, but I think after that, you should crack on, forget it happened and keep working."
