Cush Jumbo on Her Unusual Name, Her New Buddy Hugh Jackman & Starring in the 'Shocking' Drama The River

Age: 29

Hometown: London, England

Current Role: A Broadway debut as “The Woman,” who accompanies her new boyfriend (Hugh Jackman) to a remote cabin for night of fly-fishing in Jez Butterworth’s mysterious drama The River.

Stage Cred: A rising star of the British stage, Jumbo won raves as Mark Antony in an all-female Julius Caesar (which transferred to St. Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn last year), Nora in A Doll’s House, Rosalind in As You Like It and Josephine Baker in her self-penned solo show Josephine and I.

“With a name like Cush Jumbo, you never get forgotten. The ‘Jumbo’ is from my father, who is Nigerian, and ‘Cush’ was a king in ancient Egypt. It’s a name that took a few years to grow into, but now I feel it was meant to be. It’s absolutely who I am, and I love it.”

“I’m the second of six children, and we’re all about two years apart, so [life at home] was kind of busy, but I always had a ready-made audience. I started working on stage as a dancer when I was four; by 14 or 15, I knew I wanted to study the craft of acting.”

“It’s hard to describe The River without giving anything away. You’re going to laugh and cry and be happy and sad—and you’re going to be shocked. Let’s just say you’re going to have quite an immersive experience for 85 minutes!”

“When you’re working with a big star you always wonder what it’s going to be like. Hugh Jackman puts you at ease within 10 minutes. He has such a wonderful energy and is so generous when you’re doing a scene. He’s just so funny and friendly and playful—he instantly becomes your friend.”

“Playing Mark Antony in Julius Caesar was the most thrilling thing I’ve done. You get these speeches that were written for men, and you’re running around like an action hero, climbing scaffolding and beating people up. It was very freeing.”

“I love having my own place in midtown like a proper grown-up. I was born and bred in a city, so I’m most at home when I can see the lights and hear the cabs going by in the middle of the night. New York is a spiritual place for me.”