ELARICA JOHNSON PUTS POWER IN 'P-VALLEY'

From the classic, old world charm of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and A Discovery of Witches, to the bleak, yet beautiful dystopian future of Blade Runner 2049, English actress ELARICA JONES goes to the dirty South playing the role of Autumn Night in the STARZ strip club drama P-VALLEY.

P-Valley is centered on the stories of legendary strippers who work at the run-down “The Pynk” strip club somewhere in the Mississippi Delta. The core of this new drama is centered around the extraordinary Black female characters and their stories of courage, hard work and survival.

In this exclusive interview, Elarica opened up about P-Valley, her experiences leading up to the show, playing Autumn Night, the unique perspective of the show, acting, dreams, and her desire to be a butt-kicking super hero.

You moved to the US to film, how was that?

A complete whirlwind!

A completely different country, culture and city compared to where I have previously spent time in the States before! Everything happened so quickly, it only all settled in after the first 2 weeks and I thought 'ahhh I miss home’.

I’m a lover of home comforts, but I quickly found comfort in the food and welcoming culture in Atlanta. Overall, a lovely experience.

Having visited LA a lot, how is it now seeing your own show’s billboard in Sunset Boulevard? How was that journey?

I wrote an Instagram post about this recently. I’m currently home in London so I haven’t seen the billboard in the flesh.

I’ll end up quoting what I said, but my whole first experience of LA is SUNSET BLVD. I ate with friends at The Saddle Ranch often and spent a lot of time at the Standard and Mondrian Hotels on Sunset while taking auditions.

Four Years later a Billboard of my character, advertising P-VALLEY sits right above the same place that I had previously spent time, across the street from those hotels I hung out in. It’s quite mind blowing.

To those curious about P- Valley, what is in store for the audience? What should they look forward to?

This is a show full of unpredictable moments, hard truths and lies. The audience should get ready to meet some extraordinary characters with a lot to prove and they should look forward to it all!

How does P -Valley’s unique perspective explore Black female empowerment from a Black female perspective?

In general it showcases these women in all aspects of their lives and highlights not only the good areas, but also those areas that are not so pretty.

P-VALLEY shows a unique perspective on what it’s like to work in a strip club and how it affects the lives of these young Black women, both inside and outside of the club.

Being any colour and working in a strip club does not make you less, these are Black Women who happen to work in a strip club, but their stories are more than that, they are Mothers, Daughter and Lovers, hardworking, strong women with dreams and aspirations just like anyone.

Every story should be told.

How did you prepare for your role as Autumn Night?

I spent hours on YouTube watching videos of southern women and life growing up in Houston, also a lot of listening very closely to Kelly Rowland!

Learning to pole dance and trying to get in shape to take on the tough training was a huge part of preparing, but most of all I spent time with Autumn's character, preparing myself to take on the emotional rollercoaster ahead.

What’s the best part about playing her character?

Autumn night is an incredible woman! Tough, determined and strong like the other women in the show.

She’s everything on paper I know women to be and everything I think people should be seeing more of on screen.

How would you describe Autumn Night’s character evolution throughout the show?

I would describe it as experimental!

When we meet her she has clearly been through a turbulent time, she’s trying to find her feet again and within that, figuring out how to hide who she is from the new people around her. Although her heart has other ideas, she ultimately wants to learn more about these people and maybe even love them.

It’s a journey, and once the story unfolds, everyone will realize what she has had to do to get to where she is going.

What were the challenges and also the highs that you experienced during filming?

For me, accents are always a challenge, so learning a new dialect was difficult, but most of all it has to be learning to pole dance! So so hard, but also one of the most rewarding things I’ve done!

What’s the most memorable moment for you throughout the whole process of making the series?

I had such a wonderful experience on the show. Wonderful crew, cast and so many memorable moments! I think something that stands out the most was the pole training! I loved it and plan to continue!

How did acting start for you? Was it something that you’ve always wanted to do from a young age?

I knew I wanted to act after watching 1982’s ‘ANNIE’ when I was just 6 years old. I saw a girl my age with big hair like mine and not such a glamorous story to tell on screen. I couldn’t believe little girls could do that. Soon after I watched a theatre production of it, and I made my decision there and then! I joined The Brit School at 14 and soon after leaving I bagged my first role in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.

Who and what inspires you?

Angelina Jolie has always been a huge inspiration to me when it comes to career and humanitarian work, but closer to home I’m inspired everyday by the women around me, I honestly have some incredible friends and family who are constantly surprising me with their drive and ambition.

What’s your dream project?

Somewhere between a butt-kicking spy and a super hero.

Out of all the roles that you’ve played, is there any role/character that resonated with you the most and why?

Honestly there have been so many characters that I’ve been able to really relate to. Although seeing so many similarities in Autumn Night and myself, was quite eye opening from the start. Her determination and drive is definitely something we both share.

What’s a valuable lesson that you’ve learned from your career that you think is still universally relevant

Patience! There are a lot of lessons to learn along the way, through different productions, people and the roles we take, but patience and timing is huge. Trusting yourself and the hard work you put forward will pay off.

Everyone has a different journey, own yours.

If you were a book, what book would you be and why?

I believe in the magic of our world and the endless imagination that comes with story-telling so...I would be a Fairytale!

P-VALLEY Premieres July 12, 2020 SUNDAY on STARZ