The multi-award-winning British actress and singer is taking the cinema by storm in her latest role as Elphaba – and she also boasts an enviable marathon PB.
By Rachel Boswell and Nick Weldon
Now defying gravity in the 2024 film adaptation of the magical West End musical Wicked, Cynthia Erivo is sending cinema-goers wild with her exceptional singing and acting ability as protagonist Elphaba.
But although award-winning Erivo is best known for putting all her energy into portraying other characters on stage and screen, she also likes to spend time expending energy as herself – through running. Indeed, when she’s not performing and recording alongside co-stars like Ariana Grande and Jeff Goldblum, also of Wicked fame, London-born Erivo is putting one foot in front of the other as a way to let off tension and train for the physical demands of her musical career.
What’s more, the Yellow Brick Road is not the only iconic road that she’s known. Erivo has also flown down the famous red tarmac road that is The Mall in London – better known to many runners as the venue of the London Marathon finish line.
‘I can’t tell you how happy I am with the time as I smashed my PB,’ said Erivo, elated, after completing the 2022 London Marathon in a fantastic time of 3:35:36 – a new best by around 20 minutes. ‘I am trying hard not to cry.
‘I can’t believe I did it and I’m feeling overwhelmed,’ continued Erivo, who hails from Stockwell and trained hard for the event. ‘I felt a bit weird around the 17-mile mark but managed to get through it. This is my hometown and the support was amazing. I just want to thank everybody who came along and shouted their support.’
Erivo on The Mall with her 2022 London Marathon medal, having just run a PB
Erivo’s 26.2-mile outing in London followed her epic running experiences in The Big Apple a few years ago.
While starring as Celie Harris in the Broadway revival of The Color Purple, for which she would later win the Tony Award for ‘Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role’, Erivo was also busy training for the 2016 New York City Marathon.
Part of that training involved running the Brooklyn Half Marathon, also held in New York City, the morning before two Broadway shows that same day. It was an all-in experience which she described to the Los Angeles Times as being ‘Painful… but glorious’.
Running a half marathon then headlining two major, full-length performances comes across as an extreme endeavour – but Erivo, it seems, thrives upon such a challenge in spite of her energy-sapping day job.
‘I have eight shows a week,’ she told Runner’s World US in 2016, shortly after completing that year’s New York City Marathon in 3:57:07, all the while maintaining her prominent part on Broadway. ‘It’s extremely physical. In my role as Celie, I rarely leave the stage over the course of two-and-a-half hours. There are fights and dancing and it’s a workout every time you get on stage.
‘When you’re in a class full of young actors, everyone’s both hungry to get started and petrified, and running is a really good way to let some tension go.’
Smiles and nails at the ready at the start of the 2022 London Marathon
Having started running at the age of 22 while studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, first as a way to complement her strength training, Erivo then began to feel the many other mental and physical health benefits of the sport.
‘Being physical outside of work allows me to have the stamina to do that,’ continued Erivo, who enjoyed running mostly around Brooklyn while starring in The Color Purple. ‘There are days when your mind is tired and the only thing that can get you through is your body.
‘I love my speed run on Wednesday. Maybe I’m a glutton for punishment, since I have two shows that day. And Saturday long runs are fun because I like going for as long as I can and seeing where I can go. That’s always refreshing.’
And while Erivo is now the owner of two enviable marathon finish times, achieved in the bright lights of New York City and London, she still likes to approach her long runs with a sense of calm.
‘Patience is a really useful thing in distance running. It’s taken me a long time to learn that, and it’s a valuable lesson. If you’re always sprinting, you might miss something – slow down and you might catch what you need to catch.’
With running now a central part of her life, chances are we’ll catch Erivo on another marathon start line soon – no matter how busy her life gets on the silver screen.
