Wednesday evening was a period of intense hard work (and thus never drinking a cocktail) rewarded with a Musical Award. “I hadn’t prepared a speech because I thought: I’ve already experienced so much beauty, this is just too much.” But yes, 2015 ended with a bang and 2016 started with an award. “The next day I woke up with the statuette on my pillow.”

We always start this column with the question of when the weekend begins for the interviewee and what’s in their glass, but for you, the answer is certainly two times ‘no’ to this question?

“That’s right, no TGIF but Thank God It’s Sunday for me, because Monday is my weekend so Sunday evening is my Friday. While other people have the weekend, I still do four shows. But it’s extra fun on the weekend, the audience is off work and gives so much energy. They enjoy a drink during the break and sing along to everything. So it’s really a party to work then.”

And when you have a weekend, what do you do?

“I have quite a boring life now. Socially speaking, that is, because I’m completely focused on my work. That means doing little fun things with friends, because I have to save my voice. I do the groceries, do some laundry, and I can be intensely happy watching Netflix. I just started Breaking Bad but I didn’t like it much so if anyone has a good tip…”

And you’re probably not listening to Whitney Houston?

“No, haha. Not Whitney for now, but I used to of course. I love her voice. But I go from Adele to Johnny Cash, I have a very broad musical taste. I’m so happy because I got tickets for Adele and on May 24th I’m going to a concert by Hans Zimmer, he composed the film music for Pirates of the Caribbean among others. Those are my outings. But I absolutely must not sing along.”

Just a bit about Whitney, how do you feel about the idea of playing in front of an audience every night for a year?

“I’ve sung ‘Ánd Iiiiiii…‘ 97 times now and I’m going to do that many more times. The nice thing about a musical is that I have my fixed spot. I have my own dressing room so my life is very stable. That’s different from when you go on tour and end up in a different situation every time.’

Just a bit about the real weekend.

What does your Saturday look like?

“I’m a real sweet tooth. I love to have a nice lunch with my mother or a friend. The nice thing is that I can eat anything now, because I dance it off anyway. Pancakes with bacon and syrup, it’s all possible. Or I go to Jamin and scoop up 10 euros worth of candy. Then I eat that bag completely empty while watching Netflix and then I go to the theater around three o’clock.”

Yes, just about your figure. Your tagline on WhatsApp is: ‘I’m working my ass off, literally’. But that’s really true.

“Yes, my corset has already been taken in twice for the show. Because of all that dancing, I’ve lost a lot of weight. And if I know I’m going to sing at RTL Late Night, I’m really not going to indulge in cake.”

And Sunday, how does that look?

“Then we have two shows, so we have lunch together in the theater. They always make pancakes, very cozy. After the first performance, we eat something nice together (often Thai) and then I take a nap in my dressing room. I’ve made my couch really cozy with cushions and fleece blankets so I can have a comfy moment. Well, it’s not really comfy because my corset stays on so that’s not very chill, but I still manage to sleep. After the show, our Friday afternoon drinks start and there are bitterballen and drinks. And for me, a glass of Fanta.”

Romy Monteiro stars in The Bodyguard at the Beatrix Theater in Utrecht.