October 4th, 2023 
W.R. Miller 
Canadian actress Paula Burrows stars in The Dragon Prince as a Moonshadow Elf, a kingdom’s High Councilor, and a parrot named Berto. On July 22, she added “pirate” to her repertoire. During the Dragon Prince panel at San Diego Comic-Con, she and her colleague, Boone Williams, bounded on stage and demanded Netflix show Season 5 five days before its scheduled release. And they insisted on more scenes featuring Berto. Co-creators Aaron Ehasz, Justin Richmond and executive producer Villads Spangsberg complied, and with the press of a button, all nine episodes of Season 5 began streaming online—including more scenes of Berto. The event was staged, of course. Burrows and Williams shed their nautical guises and all was civil again.
Paula Burrows at San Diego Comic-Con, July 22, 2023. Photo by W. R. Miller
Executive producer Villads Spangsberg watches as Burrows and Williams take over the Dragon Prince panel. Photo by W. R. Miller.
After the big announcement, Burrows and Williams officially join the panel. Photo by W. R. Miller.
Immediately afterward, I spoke with Paula Burrows about her time on The Dragon Prince, with all seven seasons already recorded and animated.
Bob Miller: So it’s been four years since we talked last.
Paula Burrows: It has been, yeah.
BM: What have you learned as an actor during this time?
PB: I have learned what a gift it has been to play a character like Rayla. I have, I missed playing her, I really did. And I feel very comfortable with her. I’ve also learned that no matter how comfortable you are with a character, certain things will come in the script that are very challenging, and I can still get nerves even to work for people that I know very well and feel very comfortable in front of. But in a good way, like that challenge is what drives me.
BM: So that’s a perk of the job then, right?
PB: Oh, certainly. It continues to be a very exciting and demanding craft, I would say. I mean, gosh, the last few years are quite a blur. We certainly started up during a time when we were still being tested and the dynamic for recording changed drastically. We used to record as an ensemble that ended, so yes, but not in the early years of COVID.
BM: So there used to ensemble recordings.
PB: For the first three seasons, but then we did not do any more ensemble recordings. Jack [De Sena, voice of Callum] and Sasha [Rogen, voice of Ezran] were often there via video. We were in different rooms, different countries at times. And I think the very end of our recording this year, I did do a session with Jesse Inocalla, and I did one with Boone [Williams] as well.
BM: So that being the case, are you the lead actor who reads the lines and then Jack listens, and then he bases his performance on your performance? Or is it the other way around?
PB: Jack and I are very lucky in that we usually get to record together in real time, even though we’re not in the same place. So there is a program, called Source Connect, that allows us to be connected. He has an engineer in his studio; I’m with an engineer in my studio. Aaron [Ehasz] or Justin [Richmond] or Villads [Spangsberg] are also connected, and we’re working in real time.
BM: So it is kind of ensemble recording.
PB: It is, but if you think about the first three seasons of The Dragon Prince, there were eight of us in a room all day, listening to each other’s work. So for example, should Rayla have a moment with Jesse, I’m not gonna be scheduled to record at the same time as Jesse. In that case, whoever was in that day first or the day before will have recorded their lines. And then you’re reacting to what’s being put down. That being said, we have pickup sessions. The last thing we do each day is we get a list of things that need to change because it is a collaboration. So sometimes what we’ve put down, the animators come up with something magical, and then our intention or our volume or something needs to change, or lines get changed or added. So there are pickups.
Callum and Rayla share a tender moment.
BM: For the benefit of those wanting to be actors, what is your method for the warm-up?
PB: So, very physical, lots of breath. So I start with lots of stretching and yawning definitely just to open up my throat. Then I move into resonators. So like, trying to find vibration within my face, within my chest, and all of it is definitely about opening up and moving my body. Getting breath into the back of my lungs is really important for me. So that’s the next step. And then I do trills, like I play with the range of my voice.
Something that I do a lot is start at the very bottom of my range and go allllll the way up to the top of my range and back down again. I’m sure my neighbors hate it. And then I would finish with some articulation exercises.
That’s my step-by-step process.
BM: Okay. Now you’ve done seven seasons of The Dragon Prince. What moment, or what scenes can you say, “This is my best work. This is me. My greatest acting scene.” Can you describe it?
PB: No.
BM: Because it hasn’t happened yet?
PB: There’s something I’m looking forward to seeing. It was a real challenge. And there was something scripted that was very challenging to me as an actor, and I am looking forward to seeing it. And that’s all I can say about it, really. But I don’t know if it’ll be my favorite, but so far it’s been the most fulfilling day I’ve had on the mic in a while.
BM: Okay. But outside The Dragon Prince, what’s your greatest scene, would you say?
PB: The Dragon Prince is the work that I’m most proud of at this point in my career. Yeah.
High councilor Opeli arrests Rayla—both characters voiced by Paula Burrows.
BM: What did you think about Opeli arresting Rayla?
PB: Oh, that was a delightful scene for me to do. I really enjoyed it, (laughs) but in terms of the story, I think that Callum steals the show in that moment by just being so pure and trusting.
BM: Did you voice the characters back and-forth, or did you listen to yourself in one character and then respond as the other character?
PB: Because we work in the moment, I wouldn’t really need to listen to myself to respond. I believe for that one scene, I just went back-and-forth. It wasn’t a ton of dialogue and it was intercut with Callum, so it was fine. Generally how we work is, we’ll get to a scene and Aaron or Villads, whoever’s leading us, will be like, “Okay, let’s read it through and then we give it a go.” And usually Jack and I are both fighting for a few versions, ‘cause sometimes they’re like, “Oh yeah, that was pretty good.”
And we’re like, “Yeah, but [can we do] a couple more?” I think both of us like to do it at least three times, and then we would go back and work on any individual lines that need clean up.
BM: Do they actually allow you the freedom to do a little bit of improv, then?
PB: I don’t think that we’re improvving. Jack improvs a little bit. I don’t think improvving is my strength. I feel that they have written such a full character that I just get to breathe life into her, vocally, so it’s not improv. We get together just like in anything, two actors. All we’ve seen is the piece of paper. Sometimes, Aaron’s really good about reminding us of circumstances. Like, okay, this is the moment, this is what just happened before. But that’s also my homework. I have that written on my script. Then we read the scene. Just two actors. You read the scene. You do what you think it is while having the pleasure of getting to react. I can do whatever I want alone in my living room, but then Jack’s there giving me something different, and that’s delightful. That informs my performance.
BM: Well, Kevin Conroy, the definitive voice of Batman, was trained at Julliard. And he says that acting is reacting.
PB: Yeah, that’s very famous.
BM: And so it helps the actors to respond back-and-forth and that’s why ensembles are so important. Right?
PB: Yeah. Well, that’s why my preference was to record all together. Because if something’s already laid down, you only have what they’ve chosen. ‘Cause if the actor isn’t there, then they will play you what they did.
BM: Do you have any behind-the-mic anecdotes?
PB: Behind-the-mic anecdotes? The trouble being that we’ve not really recorded together in quite a long time. So there isn’t a lot of secrets to tell about the rest of the cast, to be completely honest. Jason [Simpson] would say I’m always cold. I like to bring a lot of layers and I bring my slippers. I don’t like to wear my shoes when I’m recording (laughs) ‘cause I want to feel grounded. I want to be in socks. I’m always cold. I’m always drinking tea. Yeah. (laughs) That’s me. But otherwise I don’t know, ‘cause it’s hard to have an anecdote when I’m often in the room by myself.
The Dragon Prince Cr. COURTESY OF NETFLIX © 2023
BM: In our last talk you said you had received a positive fan response from Seasons One to Three. Are there any specific fan reactions up till now?
PB: Someone named their daughter Rayla.
BM: Really?
PB: Yeah. And that really hit me. That was beautiful. But I love seeing the fan art that’s constantly coming, and young people that aren’t afraid to show their process. I know for me as a young person, I would be very shy to show developing abilities. And because it’s been so many years, I’ve gotten to see some of these young people really develop their abilities. You can see their progression over the years. The fact that they continue to want to draw these characters is very nice to see and to be able to look back and I love that. Makes me feel like I was part of something special. (laughs)
BM: What do fans like about Rayla?
PB: I think fans like Rayla because though she has strong values and an inherent sense of right and wrong, she still makes mistakes. She isn’t perfect and we get to go on the journey and grow with her emotionally as she makes mistakes and learns from them.
BM: What do you like about her?
PB: What do I like about her? I’m biased, because she feels like a part of me. I’m proud of her, I hope to be as fearless and altruistic as her. Her loyalty and sense of responsibility to her family is something that I really connect with and admire about her. I love her strength in dealing with the responsibility she feels towards her family.
BM: Has there been fan reaction to Berto and Opeli and if so, what is it?
PB: I have noticed that fans are often surprised that I play Berto and Opeli which is fun! Especially since I think Opeli sounds just like me! I hope they are loved. I delight in playing both, Opeli is maybe me as a mom. Berto is so outside the range of the type of characters that I thought I would play that I get VERY excited when I see his name in a script!
BM: What do you know now that you wish you had known when you began your career?
PB: That I don’t need to be what they’re looking for. I just need to show them who I am and it will be right for the part, or it won’t be right for the part.
BM: That’s kind of liberating.
PB: It’s … yeah. It’s much easier. I couldn’t possibly guess what every producer is looking for. So I can just enjoy the weirdness of myself and show it.
BM: What are your current projects?
PB: I don’t think there’s anything I can say.
BM: No.
PB: Yeah.
BM: Because of the strike?
PB: Well, there isn’t a lot going on because of the strike, right, though I’m not on strike, but a lot of our work comes from the United States. I’m Canadian, so there’s not a lot happening at the moment.
BM: Well, are there any final comments you’d like to make to the readers?
PB: Can’t wait for Season 6. (laughs)
BM: Well, you do know how it’s gonna end.
PB: I do. I guess I do. Yeah. Honestly, I read my scripts on my balcony with my cup of tea. I hunger for them. I get so excited when I get them in.
BM: So you actually read the whole script then?
PB: I do, yeah.
BM: Because I’ve heard of other actors who look at the script and they go BS, BS, BS, my line, BS, BS, BS, my line.
PB: Yeah, there are some actors in this show that prefer to be surprised, and so they only read their storylines. But I don’t have that patience. I want to know. As soon as I can. That’s the treat I get from being part of the cast, is I get to read it all.
BM: Sure. Yeah, that’s great. Well, Paula, it’s been a pleasure as always.
PB: Thank you. My pleasure. It’s been lovely.
Paula Burrows, July 22, 2023. Photo by W. R. Miller
Special thanks to Jennifer Greene of Illuminate-Communications.
He has just completed Batman: The Animated Interviews, a five-volume work featuring the executives, producers, directors, writers, actors, designers, storyboard artists and composers involved with the making of Batman: The Animated Series and its spinoffs. BearManor Media is the publisher.
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