An interview with Alex Lanipekun, cast member of the glittering and cross-dressing production currently wowing audiences at Sloane Square’s Royal Court Theatre.

It is not often that you will walk into the Royal Court and see a catwalk. But Tarell Alvin McCraney’s Wig Out! currently showing in the Jerwood Theatre downstairs is no ordinary production.

Director Dominic Cooke invites the audience into the world of New York drag houses, hugely competitive environments in which drag queens from different houses (the ‘House of Light’ and ‘Diabolique’) compete for dominance at the Cinderella Ball. The performance is surreal and amusing, but also confronts the audience with the complex community of cross-dressing Latinos and African-Americans.

In the middle of it all is Eric, played by Alex Lanipekun (a recently killed off “Ben” in BBC1’s ‘Spooks’). He is the straight-looking and acting gay man, who becomes involved with Wilson, also known as Nina. We see Eric as he learns about the transgender world and struggles to comprehend the idea of being with a “he” who also wants to be a “she”.

“This play was the furthest away from Spooks as I could get and I wanted to remind myself why I got into acting in the first place; to return to my training. TV is great, but it’s a completely different medium,” Alex Lanipekun told RiverOnline. “I think Wig Out! reflects a really important world that doesn’t usually have a voice. There are lots of communities that are misrepresented and it’s important to be a part of that.”

Alex graduated from RADA in 2007, although he left a few months early after successfully auditioning for the part of the late Ben Kaplin in Spooks. “I was just thankful to get the job!” he says. “My agent told me about it. He didn’t think I’d get it but we thought the audition would be good experience.”

But he admits to feeling intimidated on his first day. “You have all these people that have been in the industry for 10 to 20 years, but they were all great and really welcoming; Rupert [Penry-Jones] gave me a lot of advice, and on my second day of filming I had to strip but luckily Miranda [Raison] was really cool about it and gave me some tips.”

A man of many talents, Alex has worked in a variety of areas previously, including journalism and music – he was once nominated for a MOBO, as part of the hip hop group One.

However he gravitated towards acting. “It was what finally allowed me to enjoy being creative. Acting is a real love/hate thing. At RADA you see people go through massive highs and incredible lows. You just need to work as hard as you can.”

At the beginning of February Alex will begin rehearsals for a production of Dimetos at the Donmar Warehouse in London’s Covent Garden. He will be taking on the role of Danilo, alongside Jonathan Pryce as Dimetos, “I’m petrified but I can’t wait!” he says. The production will run from 19th March until 9th May 2009 and will be directed by Douglas Hodge, an actor himself.

“It will be brilliant to have a director who knows how actors work”, he says.  Last time the play came to London the cast included Paul Scofield and Ben Kingsley. “They are big shoes to fill,” Alex continues, “But I’m going to give it a go!”

Also a budding writer, Alex is currently working on a screenplay with a friend from RADA. “Writing is my first love”, he says, “That’s what I really want to pursue.”

So, does Hollywood beckon? “First things first!” he laughs. And what about some recent speculation on internet forums that Alex would make a good Doctor Who in the future? “It would be an honour. I suppose in the 21st Century anything is possible but I think I’m a bit young at the moment!”

Check out the Royal Court website for more information on booking tickets to Wig Out!

Picture credit: Screenrush