Born and raised in Cape Town, dancer, singer and actress Mila De Biaggi has found her niche in theatre.
Having performed on stage locally and internationally in big name productions like Dirty Dancing and Sunset Boulevard, the award-winning triple threat recently won critics over in the South Korea’s International Touring Company’s production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s hit musical, CATS.
When we heard that the ultra-talented and gorgeous stage star has a thing for makeup, we just had to coax her away from her busy schedule to talk beauty with us…
What’s your daily beauty regime?
It varies but skincare is always my number one priority. With up to eight shows a week, all that makeup can cause havoc with my skin, so I try to use natural products whenever I can. I can’t live without Neutrogena Visibly Clear Pink Grapefruit Daily Scrub (R80, Dis-Chem); and I love Lush Vanilla Dee-Lite body lotion (R215, LUSH) and treat myself to a weekly Lush Fresh facemask (R125, LUSH).
Theatre makeup is an art. How long does it take you to apply a full face before a show?
For CATS, it took 45 minutes to an hour, but when you’re performing four times a day, you learn to do it in just fifteen minutes! Having to do it on your own is a great learning experience.
What’s your favourite stage beauty look?
We just wrapped up production for Singin’ in the Rain in Australia, where I played the Cyd Charisse character. Cyd rocks a smokey eye, which I love to recreate. It’s charming yet sexy, so I bronze with MAC Mineralise Skin Finish in Dark Golden (R350, MAC) and add a bold red lip and false lashes for extra drama.
Who are your beauty icons?
Nicole Kidman’s natural beauty proves you don’t need to do a lot to your face; and Cara Delevingne with her smouldering, sexy trademark brows and long lashes is also a favourite of mine.
What’s your off-stage makeup look?
Very natural! I like a bit of shimmer so I use MAC Chilled on Ice Paint Pot (R230) and MAC Fluidline Gel Liner (R210) for a subtle cat eye; and then, depending on my mood, I’ll pop on some MAC Blankety or Rebel lipstick (R195). I don’t like heavy foundation so I usually opt for Revlon’s Nearly Naked (R165, Clicks).
What are the travel beauty essentials you never leave home without?
I’m very lucky with my skin in that I don’t have to use a lot of different products. I’m headed to Singapore soon, where it’s extremely humid, but past experience has shown me that, regardless of the weather, I can always rely on Neutrogena.
To stay up to speed with Mila and her upcoming stage performances follow her on Facebook here.
BB’s, what are the everyday beauty essentials you can’t live without? Let us know below…