Fueled By A Dream: Italian Actress Francesca Ravera
In retrospect of following one’s dream and passion it seems that the path of inspiration was always the correct choice. Yet often times, when faced with choosing a more secure career route or an inner dream that carries a bit of risk, the choice can be quite difficult.
Stay safe? Or push ourselves through the uncertainty in order to attain what really brings us to life? That is a questions actress Francesca Ravera had to ask herself back home in Italy three years ago when it came down to sticking with her career as a dentist, or following her real passion as an actress.
“Acting has been a passion of mine since I can remember. As a kid I fell in love with the theater, to me it was a magical place. I would memorize monologues and scenes from films, get together with friends and put on shows that we would perform in front of our parents and friends,” recalls Ravera. “But growing up I put this huge passion of mine aside, and after high school I enrolled in dental school. However, I knew that I was missing out on something that was just too important.”
While Ravera tried to box herself into a career that provided a more safe and predictable way of life, her passion to perform continued to burn strong. It was something she couldn’t ignore. Afterall we only get one life (depending on your beliefs), so we may as well throw caution to the wind and follow what really lights us on fire.
Ravera says, “Upon graduating from dental school I knew that I wanted something more from my life. My desire for acting was still there so I decided to move to New York to train professionally as an actor. The rest happened quickly.”
Since making the previously challenging decision to follow her dreams, actress Francesca Ravera has been well rewarded, and in little to no time at all she’s become a known figure on both the stage and screen. Over that last year she has come to amass an impressive body of work that spans the stage and screen, and includes taking on leading roles in hit theatre productions such as the Access Theater’s staging of “Two Rooms” written by Lee Blessing, the Chain Theater’s staging of “North of Providence” written by Edward Allan Baker, “The Nina Variations,” “Taxi Tales,” “A Thousand Clowns” and more.
She says, “I am drawn to dramatic roles and I enjoy playing complex characters. I always want to explore as many layers of the character I’m playing as I can and dive deep into their personality, their needs, their contradictions. I love details I always find something new about the person I’m bringing to the stage or to the screen.”
Last year Ravers wowed audiences with her leading performance as Laine, the wife of an American hostage being held in Beirut, in the play “Two Rooms.” Never one to shy away from a challenging role, Ravera immersed herself in her character, exposing all of Laine’s vulnerabilities and fears (concerning her husband being imprisoned in the Middle East) on stage.
Another theatre production where Ravera left an indelible mark in the minds of audiences with her performance was the Chain Theatre’s 2018 rendition of “The Nina Variations” directed by Francesco Campari and Emma Arlauskas. Taking on the lead role of Nina, the play, which was written by American writer Steven Dietz and was inspired by Chekhov’s masterpiece “The Seagull,” follows Ravera’s character Nina and Treplev as they explore the role art plays in their lives.
“It’s a beautiful 42 scene play,” says Ravera. “I’ve always loved ‘The Seagull’ and Nina has been a dream role of mine for a long time, so I was excited to be cast in it. I had the opportunity to dive deep into Nina’s personality, her relationship with Treplev, her love for Trigorin and her need to act.”
While Ravera has made a strong name for herself on the stage, she’s also made a large impact on the silver screen. Last year she was sought out to take on a key role in the feature film “Ulysses: A Dark Odyssey” directed by Federico Alotto (“Sport Crime,” “L’uomo col cappello,” “Spirit Chaser”).
Andrea Zirio, who co-wrote and produced the film, explains, “We were in the preproduction stage and we were looking to complete the cast but we couldn’t find any good actress to fit the role of Scilla. Finally we heard about Francesca, a young girl perfect for the role… We asked her for a self tape audition and we were very impressed by her performance. We decided to take her right away… we made an excellent choice.”
Though Ravera has taken on lead roles in other films, such as “Claire” from director Andrea Silvestro and “Creature of the Night” directed by Kaya Tone, she marks “Ulysses: A Dark Odyssey” as a major turning point in her career — and it’s no wonder why as she acted alongside four-time Primetime Emmy nominee Danny Glover (“Lethal Weapon,” “Highland Park”) and other internationally renowned starts.
Taking place in 2023 in the United States of Europe “Ulysses: A Dark Odyssey,” which also stars Berlin International Film Festival Award winner Udo Kier (“Melancholia”) and BAFTA Award winner Anamaria Marinca (“Sex Traffic”), follows a destitute soldier who returns home from war in the Middle East in search of his beloved wife. In the film, Ravera takes on the role of Scilla, one of the film’s antagonists.
“As soon as we watched the self tape audition we knew that Francesca was the right one. She is a very good actress… and she was very accurate and specific when she was presenting the character,” explains Zirio. “It was very important for us because we were working with important actors like Danny Glover, Udo Kier, Anamaria Marinca and we wanted to keep the acting on a highly professional level. We looked about 40 actresses for the role of Scilla but Francesca was simply the best one.”
Ravera’s role in the film has undoubtedly shone a bright light on her talent on the silver screen, and it’s also led her to be tapped for other projects. The film “Claire” that she recently shot was produced by Zirio’s production company, Adrama, and she’s also been cast to star in the upcoming film “Osiris” directed by Tamara Hansen. “Osiris” is a Sci-Fi film that deals with the issues of the future of healthcare. Hansen is known for her film “Two,” which earned Best 60 Seconds Film at New York Film Week in 2017, and Best music at the Wildsound Festival in Toronto.
Ravera also plays a lead role of Beth in the stage production of “The Way We Get By” directed by Kim T. Sharp, which opens today, March 31, at the Urban Stages theater. Written by Neil LaBute, “The Way We Get By” first debuted Off Broadway in 2015 and starred Amanda Seyfried (“Mean Girls,” “House”) and Thomas Sadoski (“John Wick,” “Wild”).
With several acclaimed projects under her belt, and many more in the works, it is clear that following her dreams has paid off for talented actress Francesca Ravera.
“For a long time I had forced myself to put aside my love for acting and invest my energy in a more secure career. That’s how I got into dental school. So, when I finally decided to move to New York and pursue a career in acting, I was literally turning around my whole life to devote myself to a profession that offers no certainties and a lot of rejections. But I knew I had to,” Ravera explains. “Acting is to me so much more than just a job: it’s literally part of who I am. I need to act.”
