Healthy habits help actor stick to her script

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This article was published 27/06/2020 (2267 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Like most Winnipeg actors, Beverly Ndukwu has been in a professional stall since March, when COVID-19 shut down the world as we knew it.

Previously, Ndukwu was on something of a streak on the stage in 2019, including the Winnipeg Jewish Theatre production of Intimate Apparel in January (in which she played the lead role of a seamstress specializing in undergarments in early 20th century New York), and later at the RMTC Warehouse show Bang Bang, in which she played a police officer confronting an arrogant screenwriter in the wake of her shooting an unarmed Black teen.

Since then, one RMTC gig has vanished in the cancellations that followed the lockdown. And the promise of other jobs has faded, although, with the slow return of film and TV in the province, she has found herself auditioning again, via Zoom.

“It’s so weird not having somebody actually there. I’m definitely not used to that,” she says. “I guess that’s the new normal, though, for film and television. It’s good they’re able to keep things moving.”

Not that she hasn’t been occupied. Earlier this month, Ndukwu participated in a national panel (online, of course) for the Sickle Cell Disease Association of Canada. In 2007, Beverly’s younger sister Andrea died from the disorder. That led Beverly to an advocacy role, starting the Sickle Circle of Manitoba to raise awareness for Manitobans living with the disease.

That’s how she came to spend last Friday, June 19 — Juneteenth — participating in Sickle Cell Awareness Day, which changed its usual medical focus to spotlight the experiences of people living with sickle cell disease — an inherited red-blood-cell disorder — like Ndukwu. Pre-COVID, she had been expecting to go to Halifax for the conference, before the in-person event was cancelled.

“But it was great,” she says. “We had a conference call over Zoom and a bunch of people on the panel who presented. I was lucky enough to be one of the panelists and I presented on five healthy tips for living with sickle cell disease. I made a video on that and I displayed it for everyone.

Her contribution emphasized that people with the condition should seek medical attention when needed, even in a pandemic.

“Everyone is kind of scared of going to the emergency room, obviously, because of what’s going on right now,” she says. “People with sickle cell are immunocompromised and in that sense have a bigger risk with it. But we really wanted to get the word out that you don’t have to be afraid and you really should come in if you need to.”

Ndukwu attended the Black Lives Matter rally in Winnipeg on June 5 and was struck how the protests tie together with her sickle cell work.

“Sickle cell is a disease that is discriminated against in the medical system, in a way,” she says. “People think it’s a Black disease when it’s not.

“The whole (BLM) movement just brings things to light and puts things in your face,” she says. “It’s just like COVID and you’ve got to deal with it.”

In the face of both social and medical crises afflicting the world, Ndukwu’s choice of five things to get through the pandemic are all focused on soothing the spirit.

“The pandemic happening really strips away a lot of the things that maybe I somewhat depended on,” she says. “These are mostly the basics that I don’t need money to get to.”

1. Music

“Music to me is like a mood-changer. That’s a huge one,” she says, adding her choice of delivery system is Spotify. “It’s been able to get me out of the dumps sometimes. There have been times when I’ve been in the worst mood and I’ll listen to some music and come out a little bit more refreshed.”

2. Exercise

“Exercise has been a kind of form of therapy and a good reason to get out of bed in the morning,” she says. “It’s just another way to connect with yourself.”

Ndukwu doesn’t focus on any one fitness program. Like her Spotify playlists, it’s a mix.

“It differs every day. I love yoga but I also like do some weights,” she says. “I’ll watch some videos on YouTube and do some full body workouts. It’s a little bit all over the place.”

3. Meditation

“That’s one thing that I’ve been committing to and it’s really helped to get in a proper mindset for this crazy world that we’re dealing with. It’s very helpful,” she says. “I just play music and create my own space with candles and incense. It sounds a little hippie-dippy but it gets me in the mood.

“I just kind of do what I can in a day, whether it’s five minutes or two minutes. Just a little makes a lot of a difference, especially right now,” she says. “There’s just too much going on and it’s so easy to go straight to anger.”

4. Nature

“Going for walks has been very helpful. Fresh air. There’s a few trails around the city that I will go to,” she says. “I feel like everything I do is somewhat a mental-health thing. But it’s necessary.”

5. My phone/social media

“I find myself surprised about that because there is a part of me that doesn’t like social media,” she says. “But there is another part of me that has found the good in it. It keeps me connected with people when you can’t see your friends.

“Zoom calls with friends is the new way of having a coffee date with friends,” she says. “That’s been really key for me. Having meetings and things like that and now auditions on Zoom as well.”

 

randall.king@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @FreepKing