Welcome
to another edition of Mai-Multiverse Interview series with the English
voice actors from Bandai Entertainment's English dubs of Mai-HiME and
Mai-Otome!
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MM = Mai-Multiverse
ML - Marcy Lannan
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MM: Meeeeeeow! Don't answer those texts! You could be the next victim of next
Mai-HiME voice actress from the English dub - Marcy Lannan! She's voiced the sexy Nao Yuuki in
Mai-HiME and Juliet Nao Zhang in
Mai-Otome! We have her with us today, thank you for joining us!
ML: Thank you so much for interviewing me and for the snippit of Nao (from her
Mai-HiME Omake that I provided for Marcy before the interview) it was definitely a trip down memory lane!
MM: How did you get started in voice acting?
ML: I started voice acting when I was just finishing my acting training at university. I had the opportunity to audition for
Mai-Hime and was cast as Nao and the rest is history!
MM: Share some of your experiences as an actress in general. Did you perform in theater?
ML:
I work mostly in theatre, both as a performer and a theatre educator
working with young people. I work a bit in film and television too
though I would say that theatre is my first love.
MM: What were your most fond memories of working in any recording studio?
ML:
I have a lot of great memories working at recording studios, one of my
favorite things about this work is how specific it is, working with a
director who really is only directing my voice can at times be a great
challenge.
MM: What was the casting call and audition like for you when
My-HiME surfaced?
ML:
The casting call was really great, I was still pretty new to voice
acting so when I went in to read I just really relied on what the
director told me to do and luckily that worked!
MM: Your thoughts on Nao Yuuki's character in
Mai-HiME?
ML:
I loved playing Nao, at first she was so mysterious - even to me! I was
really excited to play a character with a bit of a darker side and an
unexplained past it made the role quite rich.
MM: Nao Yuuki and Juliet Nao Zhang were both very laid back girls. Do you consider yourself laid back? LOL!
ML: I like to think I'm laid back, but like Nao I like to have control of the situation every once and a while!
MM:
Nao was involved in a lot of fight scenes throughout the entire series.
Was it fun doing what voice actors nickname "foley". The recording of
grunts, grrs, and panting during fight sequences and running scenes.
ML:
Nao had a lot of fight scenes it's true, doing foley is a lot of fun
and again it's a situation where I really rely on the director who knows
what they want for the tone of the fight and what they are asking from
the other actors. I quite enjoyed myself.
MM: Was Nao the only role you auditioned for or played in the series? Just in case you did additional voices here and there.
ML:
When I originally auditioned I believe it was more of a general
audition where I was putting my voice out there to be considered for
different roles, they had me try a range of voices, emotions and
accents! In the end I was cast as Nao and every so often I would voice
incidental characters (characters who are just in one episode) or I
would do background for large group scenes.
MM:
What was it like for the first few recordings, after getting to know the
character of Nao better? Did things just click from the start or did it
take a while to slip into her twisted mind?
ML:
For the first few recordings of Nao I just tried to have fun with the
concept of who Nao was and what she was up to! It was definitely fun to
talk with the director and hear what Nao was up to this time, and as I
continued to learn about Nao and her past I tried to incorporate some of
that into my work as well.
MM: Many voice
actors say they never meet the rest of the cast since recordings are
done individually. Did you end up meeting the rest of the cast like
Cheryl McMaster (who voiced Natsuki) or Melanie Risdon (who voiced
Shizuru)? You voiced many scenes with both. Canada's finest brought
these characters to life.
ML: It's true I don't
often get to meet other voice actors in the studio I would say I am more
likely to meet them doing other theatre shows! And I never did meet
Cheryl or Melanie so it is interesting to actually have done a lot of
scenes with them!
MM: Do you have any funny recording stories during work on
Mai-HiME and
Mai-Otome?
ML:
The most unusual thing that ever happened to me while recording was
once we lost visual feed during a really active session. It was exciting
and challenging to then try to record the voice with proper timing with
the director basically having to describe every action and scene! we
had a few laughs but we got it done.
MM: What was your favorite moment in the entire series? For both
Mai-HiME and
Mai-Otome.
ML: I think my favorite episode was in
Mai-Hime
when we finally learn Nao's back story, it was so emotionally different
for me and for Nao and I love getting that sort of insight into a
character.
MM: Nao Yuuki is a character that
loves to text and bait men into her spider-like traps. Are you a text
freak too, in addition to being popular with the guys?
ML:
I don't know that I use texting in the same way that Nao does! I can
safely say I prefer talking face to face but I do text a lot. And in
terms of boys, I dunno, I'll have to let them decide!
MM: One of Nao's signature traits is that she loves to lick her fingers. Is that something you secretly do?
ML: Nao has some strange quirks! though I got to voice her finger licking antics, I left those habits in the studio with her!
MM: Have any of you read the manga or watched the original Japanese anime of the Mai-Series (HiME and Otome)?
ML:
I have watched some of the original Japanese anime, actually sometimes
we would use the originals in recording sessions to help get a feel for
the emotion or intention of the scene.
MM: Do you own anything of
My-HiME? There is plenty of cool merchandise out there, especially for both Nao.
ML: I don't own any
My-Hime merchandise, I did look a lot of it up when I was working on Nao to help get a better sense of her!
MM: In
Mai-Otome,
Nao's character became Juliet Nao Zhang. An incarnation of Nao Yuuki
that isn't evil or hold any malicious grudges with anyone. Did you
notice the change during record? Like "Gee, she's tamer than she used to
be!"
ML: I did notice the shift in Nao's
character between series it was interesting to play the change, I like
to think Nao still had some of her old incarnation...
MM: Do you still keep contact with any of the other Mai-HiME/Otome voice actors/actresses?
ML: As I mentioned I do see some voice actors that I've worked with when I work with them in other shows.
MM: Any advice for anyone wanting to pursue a career in voice acting or acting in general?
ML:
I think if you are pursuing an acting career it is good to always
continue training, and work with people and companies that really
interest you, it is a great way to learn and deepen your abilities.
MM: Are you a cat person or a dog person?
ML: I have two cats that I love! but I love dogs too. I love them all!
MM: Name 3 words that describe you best.
ML: 3 words that describe me best...kind, quiet, silly!
MM: Favorite hobby?
ML:
My favorite hobby, is actually now a part of my work: I have been
training for some time now as an aerialist, so someone that does trapeze
and silks like in the circus. At first it was a great challenge and way
to get fit, but now it is a passion of mine and something I love to
perform.
MM: Favorite food of all time?
ML: I love sweets! So while I advocate healthy eating, chocolate is my weakness!
MM: Favorite Tv shows and movies?
ML: Right now I really love the show 'Smash', but I love going to see plays those are my favorite shows.
MM: Thank you for joining us on this exclusive interview. Please finish this interview off with a shout out to the fans of
My-HiME and
Mai-Otome who continue to support your work today?
ML:
Thank you so much for all the questions I had a lot of fun! And thank
you so much to everyone that enjoys the shows, I know that there are a
lot of actors out there that love doing this work for you so thank you
for watching! - Marcy
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