Sope Dirisu, 22, joined the National Youth Theatre in 2006. After finishing his degree in Economics at the University of Birmingham he auditioned for a place in the prestigious NYT REP Company, now rehearsing for their upcoming West End season. Below Nathan FitzPatrick talks to Sope about his experiences with the NYT, his upcoming role in Tory Boyz, and young people in politics.

Nathan: How did you get involved with the National Youth Theatre?

Sope: I’ve been a member of the NYT for seven years now and I’ve always felt very comfortable here, they’re brilliant. I started acting when I was eleven; I’d just joined a new school and didn’t really know anyone so I thought that drama would be a good way to meet people. It really worked out and I was encouraged by my teachers to apply for the NYT, which I did, and I got in on my first attempt. I went to university rather than Drama School but halfway through my degree I just knew it wasn’t for me anymore. When I did Our Days of Rage with the NYT in 2011, at The Old Vic Tunnels in Waterloo, it was just one of the best times of my life and it came right after this period of depression with my economics work. So it was at that point I knew that acting was what I wanted to do.

Nathan: This is your second time performing in Tory Boyz, what role did you play last time and who are you this time?

Sope: I played Tommo last time, one of the school children, and this time I’m playing Nicholas. When I first got the script for Tory Boyz back in 2008, when James Graham was still writing it, I read it through and thought I’d really like to play the character of Nicholas; he’s got so many levels and there’s so much fun you can have with him. Daniel Ings, who played Nicholas in 2008, has gone on to do amazing things: he did Frankenstein at the National and was in Pete Versus Life with Rafe Spall. Revisiting Tory Boyz now, with more maturity, hopefully I’ll be a lot better suited to playing Nicholas than I would have been five years ago.

Nathan: How important was the experience of doing Tory Boyz the first time round?

Sope: Tory Boyz was a really great experience for me; I was studying politics at the time so it married perfectly with that. It was the first play that I did with the NYT too, the year before that I did outreach work in Tower Hamlets. The NYT is definitely about the ensemble, but it was really exciting to get a speaking part. Tory Boyz was the first time I had a paying audience, the first time I’d performed just off the West End. It was a lot of firsts for me. Every time you do an NYT show you always make these amazing friendships that you carry on for the rest of your life.

Nathan: What challenges are involved in performing in a play with characters modelled on real people from recent history?

Sope: I think when you’re playing a historical figure it’s very important to be truthful to their character. Niall McNamee, who’s playing Ted Heath, is working very hard at that; he’s been doing a lot of work on his accent and the way he carries himself. He’s also been reading autobiographies and watching a lot of interviews. I think it’s a different but equally challenging and respectable skill to reincarnate someone rather than create them.

Nathan: Sam is a character who, in who he is and what he believes, defies stereotyping. How important is theatre in defying prejudice?

Sope: It’s really important that he’s not a stereotype, but if Sam wasn’t gay there’d be no play! That stereotypical flamboyance, it’s used as an excuse for people to not see the person, to justify their own prejudice. But because he’s this Northern, working-class, not-camp guy; you know when you think something and you’re proved wrong and you’re like, ‘Why did I ever think that?’ It’s definitely a great device to make people think about how they perceive things, and it’s so important to keep challenging intolerance.

Nathan: The political world has changed a lot in the five years since this play was written. What do you think is the most important difference between now and when the play was originally written?

Sope: When we performed it last time Labour were in power and the Tories were the opposition. There were lots of references to that in the play so there’s been rewrites. I think that in itself is the biggest change. But also at the time it was first written I also think homosexuality was a big, not taboo, but definitely something that people were still working out how to talk about. I’m not sure personal attitudes towards it have changed too much but legal attitudes definitely have, especially with the introduction of gay marriage.

Nathan: Do you think that young people are involved enough in politics?

Sope: I don’t think we are. Young people have so much to say, but they feel like their opinion isn’t valued and I think a lot of that comes from the voting system; young people can feel like voting doesn’t make a difference. Apathy builds up, but I think if we can get people going into schools to encourage young people to take stances and have discussions about politics, in the same way Sam does in the play, that would be a start.

Nathan: What sort of opportunities have you found through the NYT?

Sope: I think one of the most important things the NYT has done for me is to have given me confidence. The ensemble nature means everybody’s important, people listen to you, even if you’ve got a small part. It’s definitely made me more willing to just go for things I’d never have done before. In terms of becoming an actor, which is what I want to do, the NYT has been fantastic, but a lot of people join the NYT with no intention of becoming actors; it’s not drama school. The NYT also have a partnership with IdeasTap; they do wonderful things with Old Vic New Voices and the things I’ve been doing with the REP are things I would never have been able to do at my age. The wealth of knowledge that you get exposed to has been fantastic. Paul Roseby, the NYT’s creative director, he’s really got his ear to the ground and he’s very passionate about being in the moment. Our Days of Rage was a play about riots and there was a riot right outside our rehearsal studio. We’re discussing something as it’s happening, we strike while the iron’s hot.

Nathan: What advice would you give to young people interested in auditioning for the NYT?

Sope: Do it. Audition, make the effort; for those who are looking for confidence building and for those who want to become actors, this is one of the greatest opportunities you can have. Also, go and see theatre. I know money is an issue for a lot of people, it’s still an issue for me, but Michael Grandage’s ten pound tickets are great, and the RSC do five pound tickets. Do some theatre yourself as well; I did a play at school, just me and two other guys. It’s one of the greatest feelings, something you can really be proud of, and it’s a great way to learn too. So definitely do something, don’t just wait for it to happen.

Nathan: What now?

Sope: We’ve got our season coming up: Romeo and Juliet, Tory Boyz and Prince of Denmark. All fifteen of us in the REP are in all three shows, and we open on the 23rd September. So that runs through until the end of November and after that it’s out into the big wide world. The future’s bright.

Tory Boyz runs from the 23rd September to the 27th November at the Ambassadors Theatre. An original commission by the National Youth Theatre, it was written by James Graham and has been updated for a political landscape that is very different from that of 2008. Directed by Thomas Hescott, this challenging take on politics and identity is not to be missed.

Tickets start at £12 and are availiable here.