Explosive topics: Claudia Karvan

SEX

You grew up on the screen. Have sexual policies and safety in the industry changed over time? It has changed a lot. Having intimacy coordinators is a fabulous thing. When I was a teenager, the actors on the set would play, “Who wins the muff cup?”

“muff cup”? Wait, what does that even mean? The Muff Cup goes to the person who can cheer for the most female cast and crew. I’m happy to say that the culture has changed dramatically, [but] It is something to always be vigilant about.

What are the ingredients for good sex? The courage to be vulnerable. Believing that it is important and a privilege to be with someone when all of their limitations have been exceeded. An opportunity to appreciate and love someone, to give joy and to receive joy. And fun and creativity.

What makes a good sex scene? One of my favorite sex scenes, in Bump, was nice. It was a young girl who was having sex and breastfeeding for the first time since having a baby. When she comes, she starts breastfeeding and gets really embarrassed.

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DEATH

We have landed at death. Ah, my favorite topic.

Really? A lot of people don’t want to talk or think about it. My life completely changed at the age of 21 while reading The Tibetan Book of Life and Death [by Sogyal Rinpoche]. He’s basically saying that you have to imagine your death every day. I’ve pretty much been doing it ever since. I attribute a large part of my outlook on life to him.

Some may find this practice so morbid that it prevents them from living well. What’s yours? Well, don’t think of it as morbid. Don’t feel sorry for yourself or imagine people crying at your funeral [laughs]. It’s about being thankful to be alive and realizing what you have to lose – time you can’t waste and the value of the people around you.

Almost 20 years have passed since the death of a child, eight-year-old Lou (Alex Cook). love my way and the audience is still shaken by it. Why does it keep haunting? It was unabashedly and very honestly written and captured. I don’t know if this has ever been done before. We had created a very complete, satisfying, and enjoyable world, and the fulcrum of that world was this young girl. She was the one who brought all of these adults together and we pulled out the linchpin. That really made it unbearable and unthinkable. I don’t think we were manipulative about it either. I think people felt like we, as storytellers, experienced as much pain as they did. what we did

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If you died today, would you regret it? What else is on your bucket list? No, I’m pretty expendable! I could be fired today!

Guide me through your funeral. There’s this amazing African tradition: incredible coffins carved into shapes like roosters, alligators and Mercedes-Benz. So I would have a beautiful, colorful, wonderful coffin, handmade by one of my artist friends – they get to choose the totem. Good music. Funny stories. Lots of laughter.

Claudia Karvan stars in the Sydney Theater Company
The Goat or Who is Sylvia? which runs at the Roslyn Packer Theater until April 1st.