‘We Have to Reinvent Ourselves Time and Time Again’: Inside Variety’s Power of Women London With Cynthia Erivo, Emilia Clarke, Suki Waterhouse, Emma Corrin and Hannah Waddingham — Plus a Surprise Appearance From Dame Joan Collins..
Cynthia Erivo, Emilia Clarke, Suki Waterhouse, Emma Corrin and Hannah Waddingham took center stage at Variety‘s inaugural Power of Women London, presented by Lifetime, as the five women reflected on their careers, the importance of community and the causes they champion.
Held Wednesday at the Chancery Rosewood and hosted by “Saturday Night Live U.K.” cast member Ania Magliano, the event began with Waterhouse’s performance of her new single, “Back in Love.” Variety publisher and co-president Dea Lawrence gave opening remarks, touting London as “arguably the biggest entertainment hub outside the United States,” followed by Variety co-editors-in-chief Cynthia Littleton and Ramin Setoodeh.
Lawrence surprised the crowd by presenting the Power of Women Icon of the Year award to Dame Joan Collins, who reflected on her successful career as a performer and producer: “I discovered that to survive in this business and to thrive, you have to show which women are needed to reinvent themselves. We have to reinvent ourselves time and time again.”
Collins also teased her upcoming film, “My Duchess,” in which she plays Wallis Simpson, the Duchess of Windsor: “It’s in the last nine years of her life when she was a strong and powerful woman at the beginning, but her strength and her power were totally destroyed by, sadly, another woman. I think it shows a lot of what is going on in the world, which is elder abuse.”
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| Joan with Hannah Waddingham |
“Ted Lasso” star Waddingham talked about how the conversation around powerful women in the industry should go beyond strength: “You see us front-facing, you see us strong, you see us glamorous in whatever way. You see us falling apart when we’re meant to on camera, or on a stage, you see all those sides. But it’s the quiet part that we have to support. Myself and Cynthia [Erivo] have supported each other a lot, both in theater and on screen, when we’ve had really difficult days.”
