Rachael Beck – Coffee Break

Rachael Beck is much more than just a familiar face from the Australian stage and screen. While Beck admits to many personal career highlights, she is probably best remembered for the 1990s sitcom Hey Dad..! and her role as Belle in the original Australian cast of Beauty and the Beast alongside Aussie heartthrob turned Wolverine, Hugh Jackman.

Beck showed a passion for the performing arts early in life, but unlike many others in the industry, she chose her own path, which was certainly seen as risky at the time. She left school at the age of just 15 to pursue her dream by ‘giving it a crack’.

“I think in some instances, university courses can hinder an actor’s development, producing talented young artists who are not always able to set themselves apart from others,” she tells Australian Life. And maybe she has a point when you look at her successes.

She remains grounded through her philanthropic pursuits as well, working with young performers who are the same age as she was when she started out. Her career has come full circle.

“When my kids finished school and started to pursue their own way in the world, I thought to myself, ‘What is my next chapter, and what is that going to look like?’” she explains. Almost as if finding a new passion in life, Beck now helps to shape young people in learning, developing and using critical and creative thinking through ‘Artist in Residence’ programs with schools.

“The creative arts are a wonderful avenue for young people to grow and express who they are,” she says. Similarly, Beck is the proud ambassador for the Australian Children’s Music Foundation, which is tackling the inequity for children in accessing music programs and musical instruments in our country.

This month, Beck found time to sit down with Australian Life (over a cuppa of Bean and Barrel coffee) to talk about the latest project that is footloose and fancy-free. After portraying Mrs White in Cluedo! The Play, Beck is now starring as Vi Moore in DV Live’s Footloose — the staged musical version of the 1980s film starring Kevin Bacon and featuring hit songs like Holding Out for a Hero, Let’s Hear it for the Boy, and Almost Paradise.

“Vi’s songs and character certainly resonate with me, being a mum and living my own ups and downs, and I’m looking forward to bringing her to life.”