THE AMERICAN DREAM

ACTING at Harare’s Reps Theatre and bagging accolades at a young age shaped her career.

Today, she is living the American Dream in New York City.

H-Metro’s Nyasha Kada (NK) caught up with Bella Kouds (BK) for a one-on-one interview.

Read on…

NK: Please share a brief history about yourself and your acting career.

BK: My name is Bella, real name Gabriella Kouds. I was born and raised in Harare, Zimbabwe.

Growing up, my thoughts and imagination had the freedom to roam.

It was easy to observe nature’s magic daily and this helped create imaginary stories constantly.

Being the third child often called for sudden or rather automated skill to enable attention or to deter from it – depending on the situation.

This sparked the “performer” or “entertainer” in me.

Drama fascinated me and I was a keen participant in primary school, and this extended to theatre classes as extracurricular outside school.

After completing the IB programme, I moved to New York to train in the performing arts and since graduating have played various lead roles.

NK: How has your acting career been in the US?

BK: I have been fortunate with vibrant activity. I am based in New York City and am currently playing the role of Hamlet in an off-Broadway production of an adaptation of Hamlet.

The show takes place at The Flea Theatre and I feel incredibly grateful to act in this esteemed theatre.

I have just wrapped on a short film called “The E’s” which is expected to be out in September.

The previous leading roles I have played have been Eurydice in “Eurydice” by playwright Sarah Ruhl and directed by Ilana Stein.

Another is Anna in “Anatomy of A Suicide” by playwright Alice Birch directed by Olivia Songer.

These two roles have definitely been the most challenging, in the sense Eurydice being a naive, frail, innocent lady to Anna who was a drug addict and suffered from postpartum depression.

NK: A synopsis of the upcoming film and what it means to be part of the cast.

BK: ‘THE E’S’ is a film I am very grateful to be part of.

It was a very unique position to be in, our team was composed of my former classmates— all of us at the beginning of our careers—  as well as three veterans— Academy Award winning producers at the top of the industry.

Legendary filmmaker, Irwin Winkler (Winkler Films) not only produced the film but mentored our team through pre-production and on set.

The two other producers, who mentored us and funded the film, have asked at this time to remain anonymous until the film’s release.

“THE E’S” film follows pop-star girl group — The E’s — the night of their sold-out stadium show moments after a shooting erupts in the audience. The girls are in lockdown for the night in their hotel suite. Reeling from the tragedy in different ways — numbness, detachment, paranoia — they are united in grief. Their relationships with one another, their fame, and the world at large are forever altered.

Maya Winkler wrote the script, and co-directed the film with Sophie Fazio.

Sophie is a former classmate of mine. She has worked on the directors’ teams of Luca Guadagnino (Challengers), George Clooney (Tender Bar), Ben Cleary (Swan Song), and Steve Buscemi (The Listener).