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Stevie Doc & Tobias Turley (Mamma Mia!, Mamma Mia! I Have A Dream) - INTERVIEW
00:23:50
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- [00:00]
Mickey Joe Theater
Oh my God. Hey. I am about to chat to Stevie Dock and Tobias turley, winners of ITV's Mamma Mia. I have A Dream, who then went on to win and play the roles of Sophie and Sky in the West End production of Mamma mia during its 25th anniversary celebrations. Having now finished in the show, they are set to reunite with a special concert at Cadogan hall on 10 May, aptly named here We Go Again. A few weeks ahead of this exciting on stage reunion, I chatted to the two of them over zoom about their time in the show, their expectations from the TV series, unexpected challenges of that success, and also how much ABBA might be on the setlist next month. Check out what happened when we said oh my God. Hey, how are you both doing? How go rehearsals for Cadogan?
- [00:42]
Tobias Turley
I'm doing well, thank you.
- [00:44]
Mickey Joe Theater
So a couple summers ago you went on holiday together with a handful of other very talented individuals and had, I guess a little bit of a career and life changing experience. You've been, yeah, you've been in Mamma Mirror in the West End and now reuniting back together at Cadogan hall for a very exciting concert. Tell us a little bit more.
- [01:06]
Tobias Turley
Well, yeah, no, we were saying earlier that obviously we've, it's now been a while since we've performed together. We thought we'd change that. I think we've just been on, you know, such a great journey together that we were like, what better way to, I would say finalize, but this isn't definitely not going to be the last time we do anything. Like, it's just, it's a nice way to like round up everything we've done so far. And I say give back very lightly. But you know, we just want to have a really lovely evening with, you know, our fans and people like that and just, you know, have an intimate occasion for them, I guess.
- [01:41]
Mickey Joe Theater
Very special, very exciting. On the idea of performing together ongoingly, had you at any point talked about other shows like down the Line that would be great to do together post Mamma Mia.
- [01:53]
Stevie Dock
Toby and I have always said so. We discovered this one time doing another interview that we got asked this question of dream roles and I had said, oh, my dream role would be to be a live action Disney princess. Specifically I'd love to be Rapunzel. And then Toby, we discovered his dream role was also to be Flynn Rider. So now we have this thing of if it ever comes as a West End show, if it ever comes, comes opportunity for us to be in the live action, then that Would be particularly.
- [02:24]
Tobias Turley
I think it would be so good.
- [02:26]
Mickey Joe Theater
Amazing. Amazing. Oh, that'll be very cute. Casting. So let's go back then to just before the world of everything happening with Mamma Mia. Toby. We've chatted before a little bit about mindset going into it, but, Stevie, from your perspective, when you auditioned for all of this, was it, I'm going in to win it and to get that part, or was it like, anything that happens here, this is all some kind of beneficial good experience?
- [02:53]
Stevie Dock
Yeah, that. It was very much. It was my first job out of drama school, really. So it was. For me, just staying in every day and not getting sent home was like a plus and a bonus. I think even getting on the show in the first place was a bit of a fever dream, and I think that was something I kind of never really thought would happen, I think. But I think that's probably why I ended up getting to the point that I did, because I didn't put the pressure on myself to go, I want to win this. I want to win this. It was just. Just get to the next. Just get to the next round. Just. Just get through this elimination. Just get to the next one. And even getting on the TV show, it was like, if I get on it, great. And then when I did, it was like, anything past this point is just a bonus now. So the fact that I think the fact that I didn't put that extra external pressure on myself to go, I need to win this then, meant that it got me to where I got to, which was winning, which was great.
- [03:50]
Mickey Joe Theater
Yeah. Had either of you watched many of the series that had kind of a similar format before? And was it jarring doing something that was very different, that didn't have that kind of alive voting aspect, where it felt kind of a little more nurturing in some ways it felt like you all got a little bit closer.
- [04:06]
Tobias Turley
Yeah. I vividly remember watching the Joseph one with my mom. I think that's actually why I had in my head, when I found out we were going to do the show, I had this, like, black studio imagine in my head where, like, we'd come up one by one, we'd all stand in a circle and people would sing and sing each other off. And that's something I had in my mind. But what we did, I think, was so much nicer. Obviously, we were in Greece for, like a month, so you can't really complain there, can you?
- [04:35]
Stevie Dock
Yeah, I'd watch the. I'd. I vividly remember. I'd do anything. And I rewatched it before I went out because I was like, I just want to. I feel like I have this image in my head of what that TV show was and then rewatching it. I watched that. I was really young when it came out, and rewatching it older. And as somebody who'd gone through drama school and was watching performers perform and not a little girl watching these incredible performers that, you know, I had no idea what they were doing and how difficult that would be, I think. And also knowing that I was about to go and do that was kind of petrified. And I kind of wish I hadn't done it. But, yeah, watching that. And then obviously, we then had Samantha Barks as a judge on that with us. And I remember having a chat with Samantha about it and her scene. Like, for them, they got to go home after the show and they had the whole week to prepare for it, and then they would come back and then they would perform that night, and then it would be a live vote and then they would go home again. Whereas for us, it was, like, intense. It was. Every three days was another elimination. It was just, okay, you wake up, you don't know what you're doing that day. You do whatever is they're asking of you. You get told your song, you get given a day to rehearse it, and then the next day, okay, someone's going home. So it was very intense. But like Toby said, it meant that we were all really, really close and we all formed such great friendships that it actually, I think, helped when. When you were going through that all together all the time, you sort of just. You do create that bond. And it was just. It was a really, really lovely environment to be in, and everyone was so supportive of each other. So that's great.
- [06:13]
Mickey Joe Theater
Speaking of that bond, I guess another benefit that you two would have had is for a lot of those previous shows, it was a lot of people thrust into the limelight of it all and going through that experience by themselves. I mean, with the Dorothy program, they were also. They were casting like a dog at the same time. Not quite the same thing as the two of you getting to really share in. And even in that live final on the stage of the Novello, when it's announced that it's going to be you two, and then everything that happens subsequently going. I think Toby, you said going really quickly into rehearsals after that, having each other to lean on and kind of be sharing that experience must have been really helpful.
- [06:52]
Tobias Turley
Yeah, absolutely. I think I've said this a few times as well, it really helped because when we were there, we all got on so well. But I do believe that me and Stevie like got on like a house on fire and we became really close friends, like throughout the entire process. So that was really nice having her there, you know, doing the final and then as you say, going straight into rehearsals. And so that really helped with the off stage stuff. But I've said it a few times as well. I think it really helped with on stage as well. Like sometimes, you know, you get cast in a role and you meet the person, you have two, three weeks rehearsals and then you do the show and you're meant to have that chemistry that is, you know, for Sophie and Sky, they've been together for however long it is, so that they already have that built chemistry. And sometimes that can be hard if you've only known the person three weeks. Whereas I'd known Stevie since the beginning of May, 10 months before we actually started doing the show. So that really helped with our on stage chemistry as well.
- [07:50]
Stevie Dock
Really helps when you know someone before as well. Just from the fact that like I trusted Toby on stage to just catch me if I fail, you know, it was always like, as much as it's like, oh, you have to have that on stage chemistry, like having that trust. And also just knowing that I could. Knowing the days where Toby maybe a new warmup where if Toby was having a bad day that day or he would know a warm up if I was having a bad day that day and it was just sort of taking on each other's like, okay, I'm going to help you get through this bit today. Whereas it is that thing of if it's someone you don't know. Yes. Like it would take a bit of time in the show to get to that point. Whereas we were just really lucky that we already had that sort of friendship before we even started the rehearsal.
- [08:31]
Tobias Turley
Could you imagine if we didn't get on?
- [08:33]
Stevie Dock
Imagine could have been a complete. We would not be doing this concert. I'd tell you that tension, the sheer.
- [08:39]
Mickey Joe Theater
Tension the entire time. On the subject of catching you if you fall was Mamma Mia. A show where any kind of onstage mishaps happened during the run. Anything of note.
- [08:51]
Tobias Turley
Yes, well, I think weirdly, not necessarily for me and you, we.
- [08:56]
Stevie Dock
I think we were on stage when one happened and it was brilliant. Actually. No, sorry. It did affect us. It really affected us. We were in the middle of doing Leo, you love and the Flicker boys had been having a laugh in the wings and didn't know where they were in the song and one of them, I think went, oh, we're supposed to be on. So they started going on, but it was a whole chorus too early. So Toby and I are on stage, I think, at this point.
- [09:26]
Tobias Turley
Are you like, I'm. I'm doing the little dog crawl over to you. And I see the boys come on in my peripheral and I'm like, you know what? I never see them in this moment. I went, wow, I never knew they come on and. Because they usually hide behind the taverna and they kind of poke their head out once and then twice. And they come jumping out for the chorus.
- [09:46]
Mickey Joe Theater
Yeah, I see them coming in.
- [09:48]
Tobias Turley
I'll go, oh, I've never seen that. And then Stevie starts singing her chorus and the boys.
- [09:54]
Stevie Dock
That was the problem.
- [09:56]
Tobias Turley
Oh, that was. And the boys jump out and they're going like, don't go. And they instantly realize they're in the wrong place. And they do like the Little Spider man meme where they all look at each other like this and then go running off.
- [10:10]
Stevie Dock
Oh, it was incredible, right?
- [10:12]
Tobias Turley
You go into. It was like shooting a sitting duck or something and you sing that.
- [10:17]
Stevie Dock
So then there was just silence on stage while I tried to figure out whether I was wrong and I completely was in the wrong place in the song or if I could. Honestly, I just had no idea what had just happened. And then. Yeah. Until they then came back on and did it again. So for the audience, that must have been.
- [10:34]
Tobias Turley
The footage is phenomenal. The footage is brilliant.
- [10:37]
Mickey Joe Theater
Amazing, amazing. And you were also, Stevie, when you weren't singing with Toby and playing this relationship on stage, you got to share a lot of amazing scenes with the force of nature that is Maz Murray.
- [10:51]
Stevie Dock
Oh, yes. She is an absolute godsend to this industry. She is phenomenal as a human being, as a performer, as everything. I have so much love and respect for Maz. And we got on so well, which again, was also really, really nice because it meant that our chemistry on stage, our mother, daughter relationship on stage, there was never. It was just so easy. And that could have been really difficult as well. As much as it's hard to play opposite somebody that you're supposed to be in love with that you hate. It could have been really awful if we're trying to play a mother and a daughter and if we didn't get on, but luckily we did. And, yeah, Maz was just. She was so good at helping me as well be my first job. And she was so good at just guiding me through a lot of things. I probably Wouldn't have known otherwise. And letting me know when it's okay to ask for something or to, you know, brush that one away or, you know, like, let's bring this up again, or, you know, she was just. Yeah, she was like. She was like a mentor. She was like a mum to me in the show. So it was. It was. Yeah, I love Maz.
- [11:57]
Tobias Turley
Yeah, it is with Maz as well. Like, she's so like that on stage and in a professional manner. But also, like, I remember, you know, she got us presents for, like, our first show. She bought me presents for my birthday. Like, she's generally a great person as well. And she's like, I miss her very much.
- [12:13]
Mickey Joe Theater
She's.
- [12:13]
Tobias Turley
She's great.
- [12:14]
Mickey Joe Theater
I heard there's a part of the show where she stands in the same place every night and has, like, packets of sweets for people as they're coming down the stairs or.
- [12:21]
Tobias Turley
Yeah, it's the goodbyes. It's the goodbyes.
- [12:24]
Stevie Dock
Yeah. So there's a bit. We're all. We're just about to come on do. Well, for me it's the wedding. So she comes down and she'll come down the stairs, she'll give. It's usually the Sophie and the Ali and the Lisa, whoever's on for that, she'll bring down a little sweet in her hat that she puts on her head. She brings down sweets in her hat and then she'll go. She gives them round to everyone. She'll bring down a couple more. So whoever's around at that point. But it's always, like, us in, like, the three. Yeah. And then so, like, maybe whoever's dressing as that day or whoever's holding the door or whatever, she'll give them a little sweet. If someone didn't want on that day, then some, like the. Someone in the stage crew would get one and. Yeah, and then we'd all go on. But she would always have, like, secret ones hidden so that then when she went on stage, she then would pass one to Toby or she would pass one to, like, the dads, or. It was just. She was just always her little thing. And it was every single. Every single night. There was never a night where she missed it. There was never a time where Maz came downstairs and went, oh, so I did have a suite. It was every night that she was on.
- [13:24]
Tobias Turley
Well, there was a time she forgot mine. And we'd, like. She'd come over to me and we'd do this and then she'd place it in my hand and then we'd Hug. And I'd put it in my pocket. And then some night she'd walk over to me and she'd go, okay, don't give me a hug. I don't want a hug.
- [13:43]
Mickey Joe Theater
At that point as well, are you, like, saving yourself thinking, like, I'm not going to have, like, a dessert type thing in the dinner break because Maz Murray is going to give me sweets on stage later. And then there's always two circles.
- [13:53]
Tobias Turley
Dessert belly, dessert belly. There's always room.
- [13:56]
Mickey Joe Theater
Listen, you're doing a West End show. It takes a lot of energy. Were there surprises about doing the show and, like, the logistics of that, especially for you, for it being your first contract of eight shows a week and all of this and everything else that came with it.
- [14:10]
Stevie Dock
Obviously, you're told the whole way through drama school. You're told the whole way through, like the TV show, everything we kick, they kept seeing and it kept coming back to. Do you think you could do? Each was a week. And I went, yes, I've just come out of drama school. I don't think anything could be harder than second year to drama school. Like, that is a hard, hard year of your life because you're training all day and doing, like, you're so physical, so active, so you're using your voice all the time. And I was like, I don't. I was like, yes, I could do this. I've just left drama school. Like, I'm probably the fittest vocally and physically that I've ever been in my entire life. Yes, I could do this. But then you go and you do it and it is not what you think it's going to be. It's mentally tiring for me, is what I didn't realize. It's being switched on for two and a half hours, knowing that people are watching you being Sophie as well. You're barely off the stage, and every time you're on the stage, people are going to be looking at you. It's not like you can hide at any point. You're doing a lot of the. Especially in Act 1, you're doing a lot of the storytelling. You're doing a lot of directing people on what they need to know that you can't switch off. And for me, yes, vocally, it's tied. And I sung a lot in the show. Yes, physically, it's tied. And there's a lot of dance in the show as well. There's a lot of running around on the stage as well. But it was more the mental, oh, my gosh, how am I going to do this today was so much harder than I expected it to be. And I went so full out at the start with. I was like, I'm going to get a pt, I want to stay fit. I want to make sure that I'm eating healthy every day. I want to go and do singing lessons every day and make sure that I keep up all of these things. And I burned out so quickly. And what I really should have done was go, Let me just take a month to get used to doing the eight shows a week, then I can start adding in all of the other extra bits that I want to help me keep up, you know, my technique and my craft and all of those things. But, yeah, it was mentally so much more tied in than I ever expected it to be.
- [16:07]
Tobias Turley
I think the thing is, as well, I had that when I. When I left drama school and did my first show. Seems like forever ago Now, 2021, like, it is so different. And there's something that you. You can. You can prepare all as much as you want at drama school, but there's something so fundamentally different to actually doing eight shows a week. And it's not even something you can teach, it's just something you have to learn as you go. But there was something also vastly different about the process of the shows for Mamma Mia. There was so much buzz around my mirror at that time because of the TV show and us joining, that it wasn't that we were just doing eight shows a week. We were also doing. We're doing eight shows a week. We were doing. Me and Stevie were getting thrown everywhere to do interviews. We were doing this morning. And they're all amazing things, and I look back on them so fondly, but that is also so hard. Like, I found it really difficult, you know, sleeping well, getting up early to do interviews or whatever we were doing. We were very busy for the first five months. So to do all that on top as well and it be your first job is even more incredible.
- [17:12]
Mickey Joe Theater
Yeah. But you also kept being busy. You've been doing all sorts of things during Mamma Mia. And since you're like, what if I also had a podcast that I was launching at the same time and making all sorts of appearances and singing at the Royal Albert hall and. Yeah, just throwing that in alongside.
- [17:32]
Tobias Turley
It's so much work, Mickey. It's so much work. The podcast is so much more work than I thought it'd be. Oh, my.
- [17:38]
Mickey Joe Theater
Oh, preach.
- [17:39]
Tobias Turley
Listen, I absolutely love it. I absolutely love it, and I do love putting in the time, but God, it's a lot of work. But, yeah, you're right. It's also like, you know, creating a profile outside of this Mamma Mia. World, like, obviously, that is a massive part of who I am as a performer now, and I absolutely love it. But I also have to make sure that there's the other Tobias Turley, which is, you know, I have this and I have this, and I've got, like. It's like building a brand, I guess, or just building my profile as a performer.
- [18:13]
Mickey Joe Theater
Got.
- [18:13]
Tobias Turley
Keep yourself busy, I guess.
- [18:15]
Mickey Joe Theater
Yeah. Is that something that you both felt a sense of pressure to do? Having? I mean, you'd had this opportunity and this experience. You'd just been on TV and you'd had that endorsement of so many people voting for the two of you and believing in your talent and getting to know you through the series. Was it then a case of were you able to just prioritize the show, or was that voice at the same time saying, like, I have to keep up this momentum of this moment?
- [18:38]
Tobias Turley
Personally, I don't think it was pressure. I think I saw it as. I've had this really amazing experience which has risen my profile in our industry, and I'd be silly not to capitalize on what's happening right now, you know, so although it was a lot of work and I was tired, it was the best thing to do going forward, you know, and it was the best time to do so.
- [19:00]
Stevie Dock
Like, I was quite happy to just at that point, there was. I mean, there was so much going on already that. I mean, yes, of course, as Toby said, like, there was such a buzz around us at that point, but I think I. There was so much going on that I just couldn't think of anything else. So anything that sort of did happen was more. It was just. I was given another opportunity. It wasn't like I was out there, I suppose, searching for them. I think we just were very lucky at the start. A lot of things just kept coming to us, which, I mean, yeah, was incredible, but I don't think it's something that I actively thought about. I mean, during Mamma Mia. Probably I was too busy thinking about if I could sing Chance that night, you know, so there was a lot of other things to think about.
- [19:48]
Tobias Turley
I guess. You were a lot busier than I was during the show.
- [19:53]
Stevie Dock
Yeah.
- [19:53]
Tobias Turley
Maybe I'd sit in my dressing room editing the podcast before, like, going on stage or something. Like, you gotta. You gotta find the time.
- [20:02]
Mickey Joe Theater
Big question, important question. Are we gonna hear any ABBA at Cadogan Hall?
- [20:06]
Stevie Dock
Be rude not to, wouldn't it?
- [20:08]
Tobias Turley
It'd be rude not. But yeah, we were like, we've had lots of discussions about set lists and, you know, it's. I think it's a lot of pressure deciding on the set list. You know, we want to make sure we're doing a lovely amount of songs from our journey together that people will want to hear and reminisce on. You know, there are lots of songs we did on the TV show which might make an appearance because, like, you know, they're fan favorites and it'd be silly not to do those one more time for the people who want to see it. But it's also like doing those ones that people want to see and singing stuff that we want to sing. And it is impressive to hear and, you know, so it's about juggling six different elements of one, making a good show. Two, songs people want to hear songs are impressive for us to sing as, you know, dream roles or whatever. So there's, there's a lot of decisions to make. But yeah, there's definitely some. There's definitely some upper in there.
- [21:00]
Mickey Joe Theater
And you have some very exciting guests in my good friend Jacob Fowler and the very talented Esme, who was of course with you on Mamma Mia. I have a Dream. Kind of exciting. Well, very exciting that almost everyone from the series has gone on to. I think everyone's worked professionally now within a couple of years of it in one form or another. Desmond is in the West End doing Hadestown and Stefanie's doing Pretty Woman in Zurich.
- [21:30]
Tobias Turley
I think everyone's done so well and it's so lovely to see. Is so lovely.
- [21:35]
Mickey Joe Theater
Is there a thriving group chat that carries on or just.
- [21:38]
Stevie Dock
Yes, when we're, whenever we're. I mean any, any birthday event, any, you know, just. Did anyone want to go for a catch up? Gets put in the chat quite often. I mean, you. Toby sees the boys quite a lot. I asked you to get. I was a bit upset, actually. Gutted. The girls all had a catch up recently and I think I was a wee for some reason. But yeah, I hadn't. So I haven't. I feel like I've not seen them in a little way or no. But I keep up with Maddie, still see Maddie quite, quite often. I mean, we live together after the TV show, so she's still one. I'm definitely. I text quite regularly and then yeah, of course Esme's joining us. So I mean we're. Yeah, still very much a.
- [22:20]
Tobias Turley
There's always a. There's always a message on a Friday or a Saturday night to the boys. Pints, question mark.
- [22:25]
Mickey Joe Theater
And Maisie's now in Mamma Mia. At the Nirvana.
- [22:29]
Stevie Dock
Yes, she is. I know. That was, that was. I was so happy for her when that happened because she's got such a beautiful, beautiful voice and she's a beautiful, beautiful person. And I just think that show is so perfect for her that I'm just really glad that she got the chance to do it.
- [22:48]
Tobias Turley
Yeah.
- [22:48]
Mickey Joe Theater
Can't wait to hear more from the very exciting concert coming up at Cadogan. Remind us when people need to go and see you there.
- [22:57]
Tobias Turley
The 10th on the 10th of May.
- [23:01]
Stevie Dock
At 7:30pm you go.
- [23:04]
Tobias Turley
10Th of May, 7:30.
- [23:07]
Mickey Joe Theater
Amazing. Amazing. I'm sure it's going to be very special. Thank you for taking the time to let us all know about it.
- [23:12]
Stevie Dock
Thank you for having me.
- [23:14]
Mickey Joe Theater
Thank you so much for checking out this interview. Thank you to Stevie and Toby for taking the time to let us all know a little bit more about their upcoming concert at Cadogan Hall. You can catch them both in Here we go again on Thursday, 10th May at 7.30pm they will be joined by Esme Bowdler and Jacob Fowler and it promises to be a very exciting evening full of thrilling musical theatre talent. As always, let me know who you would like me to interview next in the comments. Thank you so much for watching and I hope everyone is staying safe and that you have a stagey day. For 10 more seconds, I'm Mickey Joe Theater. Oh my God. Hey, thanks for watching. Have a stagey day. Subscribe.