by Mike Romero
Photography: Jemima Marriott // Stylist: Prue Fisher // Makeup: Joy Adenuga // Hair: Flora Masiya
Introducing Mimî M Khayisa. Best known for starring as the powerful Fringilla Vigo in the Netflix original series The Witcher, Mimî brings unique flair to her roles due to her British-Zimbabwean-South African background. She just concluded a run at the Royal Court Theatre and The Bristol Old Vic, where she starred as Bonolo in A Good House. She'll return as Fringilla Vigo in The Witcher season 4, which is currently in post production and due out later this year – this time with Liam Hemsworth taking over as the titular character for Henry Cavill.
Your breakout role was as Fringilla Vigo. How did you feel when you received the news that you'd gotten the role? How did you prepare for it?
Gosh, that day was almost seven years ago now. What I loved about that audition process in general was we had no idea what we were auditioning for. The show was casting under an alias at first, so our sides were exclusively written for auditioning. All character names and references were removed, so the process becomes about discovering a quality of human being. We spoke about the essence of her, where both her strength and vulnerability lay. It was incredible to be relieved of the pressure of expectation and instead allow her humanity and relations speak for itself. I don’t think I would’ve found that level of detail had I known prior. In hindsight, I think my insecurities at the time would’ve swayed me in a different direction – maybe one that was a little more superficial, maybe a little less fulfilling. To this day those early conversations influence me. She fascinates me. Inherently, I think she’s a gentle soul navigating the brutalities of The Continent. I’ve been consistently excited to explore that since finding out I could seven years ago.
Now, almost 4 seasons in, how do you feel about the role? How has your approach to the role changed over the years?
We’re actually gearing up to start filming season 5. Our finale! The scripts are in and rehearsals are in full swing. How I feel about her is very much entwined with what she’s been going through since the end of season 3. Let’s just say she hasn’t caught a break. I wish I could share more on that with you, but the wait continues. My Drama Therapist says I speak about her as I do my siblings, with love respect and care. I get defensive over her, that’s for sure. Although, during season four, I’ve found myself crying for her. Mecia Simson (Francesca) and I can barely speak about our characters' “friendship journey” without welling up. I definitely cry more for Fringey than she does for herself. Yes, this is a fantasy world, and “The Continent” is full of extremities, but the heart of her is no less rooted to me than when I’ve played characters like Ophelia.
"When you’ve been with a character this long, inevitably they become a big part of you."
Your most recent role was on stage as Bonolo in A Good House. Which do you prefer: screen or theatre? And why?
I’ve always said that theatre is my first love and I guess that’s because my training was centered around it. My introduction to the arts was through theatre. Youth theatre. Those are the steps that led me here. Screen work always felt like a beautiful extra. I don’t feel like that anymore.
Now I know that they work in tandem. They compliment one another, and I simply don’t have a preference anymore. What I love is being able to move between the two. What I love is full nuanced characters. Our humanity fascinates me. How we choose to be fascinates me, so I guess my preference is the part. It’s the team. The preference is to be in spaces that both champion and facilitate growth. Spaces that challenge our thought process and invite a new conversation. That’s what this play, A Good House does. More often than not, such spaces are called daring, brave, controversial. Since lockdown there’s been a bigger adversity to risk and yet we are all craving it. We were lucky enough to be working with both a writer and a director that understand the importance thereof.
Do you have a pre-show ritual or tradition with the cast of A Good House?
I guess my pre-show ritual is an individual one. As a person I can be quite insular anyway. That headspace is important to me. There’s something about the gap between our person and the character. For years I believed that whatever lays within me should be allowed to flow into my character. Now I think that sometimes that can do a disservice to the writers' works. Bonolo’s foundation in life is very different to mine; her approach to life is very different to mine; so I enjoy marking that gap.
In answer to your question, no. Aside from our group warm up we don’t have a cast pre-show ritual. We do have a post-show one though. At the end of each show before taking our bow, we gather as a company for an embrace. It’s an opportunity to be held and to hold, to slightly shed the characters and claim our space as actors. Nancy set up this wonderful premise within the rehearsal process of not leaving the room without having an opportunity to connect with one another outside of our characters.
"So often as actors we’re given space to get into a character but never given the tools on how to shed. The process with Nancy in many ways has been a holistic one."
Tell me a little bit about yourself outside of your career. What's it like to do the dishes or take out the recycling with you at the end of a long day?
Family! I fill my time with an abundance of family. I have a tight friendship circle. We’re all in the process of building families and homes at the moment. Caring for aging parents and sharing the load of that in the most beautiful way. I’ve just set up my own production company so there’s a variety of exciting projects being birthed there. My main goal right now is to create: create work based on the stories I was raised on, those parts of life that are so often under-spoken about. I think that’s why this play A Good House resonated with me so potently. I’ve never had the opportunity to play a South African before. I guess not being raised there and having lost my mother at such a young age I have always felt underqualified to claim it within my identity. This play touches on that: who has the right to claim this land and on what level. For some, heritage is such a clearly defined part of themselves. For others it’s more interlaced. It’s nuanced. Ticking-the-box-black-British definitely feels insufficient.
Outside of performing, what's a talent, hobby, or cause that you are deeply passionate about?
History, which my childhood self laughs at a little. I hated history as a kid. I never had the mind for dates, so that completely put me off, but several years ago a close friend of mine began writing a book based on her family history. She shared the most fascinating stories about ancestors who were famous convicts on the run. Traveled all through America retracing their steps and meeting lost relatives. It opened up her horizons, and she’s been on that discovery journey for years, often bringing us along for the ride. Last year she decided to take a break from her city slicker life and spend a year focusing on compiling all her findings. She inspired me. She nudged me, maybe even gently pushed me, to start gathering information on my own family history.
So that’s what I’ve been doing. I’ve built up an incredible team of researchers and historians both in England and South Africa. The goal is to be able to share more on that within the next year or two.
What I can say for now is it’s become somewhat all consuming, a beautiful evolution of mine and my father’s relationship and a restoration of our family's written history. So much gets lost when our elders pass, but it doesn’t have to be like that.
Make sure to follow Mimî M. Khayisa on Instagram to stay up-to-date with her latest projects.