We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Shannon Corbeil a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Shannon, appreciate you joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

When Napoleon Bonaparte’s little sister was given the chance to pose for a statue as the virgin goddess Diana, she instead shocked the world by posing nude like Venus.

I first read about Pauline Bonaparte and her statue — rightfully titled
Venus Victorious — in National Geographic magazine. I found her act of rebellion so inspiring, especially for her time. As I began to do research into the Bonaparte family, I noticed something: every historical book written by a man classified Pauline as a shameful wh*re, some with especially scathing language.

When I found a biography about her written by a woman (VENUS OF EMPIRE by Flora Fraser), I recognized my own feelings about Pauline in her descriptions; Pauline was frivolous, yes, but she was brave in a time when women were not allowed to be so.

What a difference, when men wrote about her, versus women.

I decided to write a play about Pauline and I gave myself the deadline of putting it up for the Hollywood Fringe Festival. I advertised it and rented the theater before I’d ever finished the script. As the deadline grew closer I realized what a vulnerable risk I’d taken — if I failed, it would be in public.

I stayed the course, along with an incredible support network and four talented cast mates, and I’m proud to champion this story of a woman from a female perspective and I hope she can inspire everyone who sees NAPOLEON’S WH*RE SISTER.

Shannon, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’ve always loved storytelling, acting, and the arts. I pivoted after 9/11 to volunteer for the United States Air Force, but serving during the shadow of war made me realize how much our stories can influence our culture — how we define strength and power and who gets to have those things.

After my commitment was complete, I returned home to Los Angeles to pursue the entertainment industry full time. I’m fascinated with deconstructing the hero archetype and exploring what a modern hero might look like, one who does not resort to violence to overcome their enemies, but who might instead employ traditionally feminine-coded strengths of compassion, inclusion, and cooperation.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I arrived in Los Angeles with a healthy dose of delusion; I was special and it would only take a few weeks for someone to notice me and launch me into stardom.

The truth is, so much of this industry is about endurance, discipline, ingenuity, connection, and luck. I couldn’t just go to auditions and hope to get the role that would lead to the bigger role and so on until I was starring in Academy Award-winning pieces.

I had to stop making my artistic career about ME.

I became a writer so I could offer entertainment and catharsis to others. I began producing my own films so I could hire people in my industry. And I more and more became deliberate about the stories I would tell, choosing ones that would empower, inform, and uplift.

This is a competitive industry. There are hundreds of thousands of talented people competing for roles in a constricting environment. We must return to the root of why we make movies and series and plays in the first place — for the humanity of it, the collective experience of gathering around a fire with fables and legends.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

Creativity is not just about the end product — it is about the artistic journey to create it. This is something we take for granted with knockoff art and the emergence of AI.

It’s important that we not only enjoy art but support the people who create it because art is part of our humanity, our experience on this earth, and our culture.

It names the ache. It teaches us lessons. It inspires us to be better to one another and ourselves. If we cheapen it, we cheapen our lives and our time on this planet.

Go see live theater. Buy handmade art. Support your local bookstore. Dress yourself in slow fashion or secondhand garments. Create something that makes you happy…or just something that is fun to make.

Art is something we cannot take for granted. We don’t want to find out what will happen if we lose it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.shannoncorbeil.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shannoncorbeil
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/ShannonCorbeilActing
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannoncorbeil/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/shannoncorbeil
• Other: https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/11772

Image Credits

Featured Image: Shannon Corbeil on the red carpet of Netflix’s MEDAL OF HONOR by David Tenenbaum

NAPOLEON’S WH*RE SISTER Images by John Duah Photography