One-woman show in Toronto traces the life journey of trans actress Sandra Caldwell

Sandra Caldwell has lived a fabulous life.

Her autobiographical solo show, “The Guide to Being Fabulous,” now playing at Soulpepper Theatre Company, shows Toronto audiences exactly why.

Caldwell was born in Washington, D.C. in 1952. In her early 20s, she transitioned to presenting publicly as a woman, and gained acclaim as an actress in films like “Shall We Dance” and plays like the off-Broadway “Charm” in 2017, inspired by the real-life story of Miss Gloria Allen, a Black transgender woman who worked with students at an LGBTQ community centre in Chicago.

“’Charm’ was the moment I turned my life around,” she said in an interview with CP24. “Because I saw so many expressions of folks being themselves.”

In “The Guide to Being Fabulous,” Caldwell shares her story – and speaks more truthfully and fulsomely than she might have when she first started developing the show.

“The first version of the show was called ‘The Guide to Being Fabulous After You’ve Skinned Your Knee,’ and that wasn’t totally honest,” she said. “I was still living in panic and fear. So subconsciously, I think the ‘skin your knee’ part was based on me not being completely truthful about my life. So it progressed to just being fabulous, because the joy of being free, so to speak, and living in the truth, has been quite rewarding.”

Caldwell says the run of her show at Soulpepper has been a learning experience for her. “I’m learning the pronouns, and what people are thinking, and what I’ve not been aware of and not paying attention to,” she said. “I’m learning more about people’s histories…I’m collecting memories. I’ve been just over the moon, overjoyed with the response.”

Caldwell splits her time between stage and screen work, a balance she says has taken on special meaning since being more forthcoming with her audiences about her life as a trans woman.

“I’m discovering both these art forms while living in truth,” she said. “Film…is a calmer kind of acting. It’s focused and centered. But in theatre, I still get a thrill. I get to be that big person, that actor onstage, and I’m able to switch into that bigger-than-life person onstage.”

As Caldwell approaches the end of the Toronto run of her show, she says she hopes audiences feel empowered to live however they choose, and in their own truth.

“I’m telling my story because it’s time,” she said. “I was tired of being scared all the time. I hope everybody comes out of this show knowing that they can live exactly as they want to live – by just being themselves.”

“The Guide to Being Fabulous” runs at Soulpepper until Nov. 12.