Eleven years ago, a con artist from Manchester arrived at a train station and met… herself. A double, a woman who looks exactly like her, whom she’d never met — and whom then immediately walks into a train. Seizing the opportunity, the con artist, Sarah Manning, takes the woman’s identity in order to escape her current dismal life, only to find very quickly that there’s more to the resemblance than just face value — more than one, of a few. No family, too. Who are they?
Orphans. Clones. Friends. Lovers. Killers. Sisters. Scientists. Suburbanites. And, sometimes, musical theatre aficionados. But, who are they? What do they sacrifice? The world soon learned from the series Orphan Black, and viewers fell head-over-heels not just for the cast beyond the identical clones, but the clones themselves — Sarah, Beth, Katya, Alison, Cosima, Helena, Rachel, Tony, Krystal, MK, Jennifer. Every single viewer had a favourite clone; no two viewers had the same. And through its wonderful, queer, geeky, Canadian brilliance (due in part to being helmed by several of the creatives behind the Ginger Snaps film series), it became a worldwide success for five seasons, winning not just Canadian awards for excellence, but a Emmy for acting.
Yes, Emmy, singular. Even at the time, it rankled fans of the show, called the “Clone Club” (from the group of clones in -show) , that the show only ever received one Emmy for acting — not least because they felt it deserved it every year. But what might surprise you about that Emmy is that it singularly honoured multiple roles in the series — for, if you didn’t guess already, all the clones were played onscreen by one woman: Tatiana Maslany. She has gone on to Broadway and to Marvel since, and had an impressive career even before, from working with Cronenberg and Romero to delving into Cassavetes-inspired relationship dramas, historical limited series, and standout guest roles, but, even to Maslany, the Clone Club, and the show itself, remain a sentimental favourite, and perhaps what she’s still best-known for — particularly as a new continuation series from original co-creator John Fawcett, Orphan Black: Echoes, starring Krysten Ritter, Amanda Fix, Keeley Hawes… and a few surprises, has rolled out in weekly release since June 26th.
But one person can’t possibly be in two places on screen at the same time, you might say. Well, you’d be right — she may be a Marvel superheroine, but not even Maslany has that ability in real life. It takes an actor with the exact same amount of genius as Maslany to stand opposite her, reflect her own performance back to her, even improve it in ways — but to never, ever, be seen. To be right off on the side, in the corner of shots, glimpsed as hands or over-the-shoulder. To be every bit the powerhouse as Maslany, happy to share the work, in full knowledge that the awards are at least in part from her. Humble, and brilliant, and a perfect scene-partner.
If you’re a fan, you doubtless already know her name. If you don’t, allow me to introduce you to Kathryn Alexandre — the clone double from Orphan Black. Alexandre has had a busy schedule since the show’s run ended, moving coasts and starting new ventures in fashioning Portuguese recipes from her own heritage (Sao Miguel, in the Azores) into dishes vegans can enjoy and in a tasty, thrifty, and timely fashion — all hosted on a YouTube channel called, appropriately enough, TastyThriftyTimely. For North American food shoppers, it’s an amazing service to provide.
But it’s not her day job — that’s still acting. Having moved from Toronto to Vancouver in the wake of the pandemic, her career is still going strong, but she always has time to talk about Orphan Black. She graciously gave us at AndersonVision her time to answer questions in both text and video form, and speak about her own family background, her love for the arts, what inspired her to break into the industry, her early work, having this series as her first-EVER television job, finding the authenticity and truth of the women she played on the show, creating characters alongside such a brilliant scene partner in Tatiana Maslany, the publicity, the love from fans, the experience of the show’s massive success, what she kept or took from it, her post-show work (including scripting for herself!), the pandemic, her newfound joy of cooking, the work that goes into the channel, and her continuing relationship with the fans, the people, and the saga of Orphan Black.
Welcome to the trip, man:
ANDERSONVISION: To begin, which university did you attend, and which acting school or courses did you take?
KATHRYN ALEXANDRE: The University of Toronto/Sheridan College joint theatre program. My degree was in theatre and drama studies, with a double major in English, and a diploma in professional acting.
AV: That’s very impressive! What was your audition piece for university? I know acting schools usually have them –- a monologue, a classical piece, and a song, right?
KA: Gosh, let me think. I did a monologue from a George F. Walker play, and I don’t actually remember what my classical piece was. I’ve tried to block my song from my memory!
AV: What was your audition piece for Orphan Black?
KA: The first couple of auditions for OB were Sarah sides, maybe with Katja. [Katja is another, short-lived clone on the show.]
AV: Were you present at every table read for every season?
KA: Yes, always, and always very happy to be there and watching everyone work.
AV: What was the first scene you shot with a cast member other than Tatiana?
KA: I believe Jordan [Gavaris], playing Felix, was the first actor to be brought into the fold for a clone scene.
AV: How long would you generally spend having hair and makeup done? Considering how long each clone look would take to be done, was it a longer or a shorter process, on your end, than what Tatiana had?
KA: Shorter than Tatiana. I never had makeup applied unless there was something specific they might catch on the side of my face. I was done up as a corpse for one episode, actually. They must have been using me out-of-focus, in the shot. But, typically, I was just wigged, and even then, the wigs only had to look good from the back and sides, so the lace would often show in the front, etc. I was much quicker to process.
AV: We bring up something called a “technodolly” in the video portion of our interview, but I have a feeling some people watching might not immediately understand or know what that term means. How would you best describe it, for those who don’t know, and as an actor, on OB?
KA: A technodolly is a camera on a crane that can memorize a sequence and repeat it mechanically. We as actors would then need to have our timing spot on every take because the camera would move to the next mark with or without us. This exact timing every take allows the post production team to layer shots on top of one another, etc. to allow for multiples of Tatiana to appear like they are in the same space.
AV: The Season 2 finale featured a very memorable scene involving a fire extinguisher, a pencil, and two clones in a hospital setting. What do you remember about it, and how long did it take to shoot?
KA: I don’t remember how long but I don’t think it was particularly longer than others. I mostly remember being very hot in those hospital gowns under the set lights!
AV: Did you have a favourite director to work with on the show?
KA: I can’t choose a favourite. John [Fawcett, co-creator and frequent director] was so passionate about the show, of course; it was lovely to work with Helen Shaver! I learned something from them all.
It was a gift … I felt very fortunate whenever I got to be on set with one of these actors I’ve watched for years.
Kathryn Alexandre
AV: What differences, for you, did you find between working with directors on the show, like John Fawcett, Helen Shaver, Vincenzo Natali, and Aaron Morton, to name a few?
KA: Every director has a different style and way of communicating. Some speak more of a performance language, like Helen, who is an actor. Some are more camera, or light-driven, like Aaron, who was also our DP [director of photography]. But they all have their unique vision of what they are creating, and I like seeing the differences in how they make it a reality. It’s always a slightly different dance, which makes it fun.
AV: Speaking of dancing, I can’t help but bring up – we spoke about the Season 3 ending clone dinner party in the video portion of our interview, but I have to ask about the Season 2 ending clone dance party, a stand-out moment in the show and absolutely beloved by fans. Did you get to be involved in the filming of that?
KA: Yes! The clone dance party was a blast. When more than two clones were present at a time, there were other doubles who would come in, so there were lots of versions of dancing clones. It was always fascinating to watch Tatiana play a scene with all of us, and then she would inevitably have to do takes with no one else there, and you would never know. She’s a pro!
AV: That’s amazing! Were there any shooting days, in particular, that you wish you’d been on set for?
KA: The Jesus Christ Superstar days [for Season 3] would have been fun. I’m lucky in that I got to watch all the dailies, so I got an inside glimpse at everything.
AV: What was it like working with incredibly talented actresses like Maria Doyle Kennedy and Alison Steadman and Rosemary Dunsmore throughout the whole series run?
KA: It was a gift to work with Maria. Just thinking about her relaxes me. She’s so steady, and wise, and powerful, and hilarious, and just so magnetic. I felt very fortunate whenever I got to be on set with one of these actors I’ve watched for years.
AV: Do you remember when it was realised that OB would be wrapping up? How early or late were you told?
KA: Hmm… I don’t remember. I think we might have all known after season 4 that there would only be one more.
AV: Was it difficult filming the dinner scene on the island in Season 5?
KA: I don’t remember anything being particularly difficult about filming this scene.
AV: What do you remember about shooting the final episode of the final season of OB?
KA: The final episode was a marathon, both in content to shoot and emotionally. Every day we seemed to have a big goodbye to a character, and therefore an actor, and it was always emotional. We cried, we laughed, and, in the case of the baby scene, we did all that, plus we were peed on! That scene was exhausting for everyone.
Tatiiana … was the single hardest working person on OB, and she never complained, never took anyone and their role for granted; she never phoned it in, always pushed her characters into the uncomfortable, and she also set the example for a safe and fun work environment. That’s not always the case … I’m so lucky that she set the bar very high for my first experience on a set.
Kathryn Alexandre
It was also the very last scene we shot. I don’t know it if it got much more raw than that scene. Holding newborn babies covered in slippery goo is a quick way to ground you and force you to be present. It was a huge emotional release of a scene, and a mirror of all the love everyone put into the show, but also all of the grind and grit that had to go into it to make it possible. Cast and crew who weren’t even required for that scene came to watch, and I think we wrapped at 4 or 5 in the morning. It was special.
AV: That’s absolutely wonderful. You know, the show just kept racking up award wins from 2013 on, right to the very last season – including, yes, the Emmy that Tatiana finally won, in 2016. I remember it broke Tumblr, at the time, the night it happened. Were you watching, that night? Were you rooting for her?
KA: Oh, yes! I was watching and rooting for her. We all were, and still are. I don’t think you could find one person who doesn’t wish the best for Tatiana. She was the best example for me of what a number one [the lead actor on a call sheet] on a show should be. I don’t think anyone would disagree that she was the single hardest working person on OB, and she never complained, never took anyone and their role for granted; she never phoned it in, always pushed her characters into the uncomfortable, and she also set the example for a safe and fun work environment. That’s not always the case for a number one, and I’m so lucky that she set the bar very high for my first experience on a set.
AV: Of course. Post-OB, have there been roles you were up for that you wish you’d gotten, because you knew you could do them, just from your experience on the show?
KA: I try to move past those ones.
AV: Naturally! Finally, in the video, we touched upon Da Terra, your vegan cookbook, but I am a little curious about the process behind it, and behind finding the recipes you’ve put in them – from your Portuguese heritage, but with vegan ingredients and healthfully cooked. Do you think we could go into more detail about it here, or do you feel we’ve covered it? It’s a remarkable book.
KA: I think we covered Da Terra well. It just came out of lots of experimenting. I have my memories of those flavours and textures, so I try lots of combinations of ingredients until I get close enough to the traditional recipes as I remember them.
Check out Da Terra and TastyThriftyTimely!
Da Terra is available for purchase from the TastyThriftyTimely website, which also has an array of vegan recipes cooked up by Kathryn and her husband Bryan in their own kitchen! They upload videos to their TastyThriftyTimely YouTube channel every Sunday.
