'Bridgerton' Has a New Francesca — Meet Hannah Dodd

Hannah Dodd did not i mean to audition for Bridgerton. Then again, he didn't mean not to.

It was the spring of 2022 and Dodd was responding to a casting call. She had “no idea” what the play was about – the title and character name were kept tightly under wraps – only that she would be playing a Regency-era girl. And while most auditions require multiple scenes, here she was only asked to perform one: a scene where she played a guest at a ball. Normally, Dodd did a lot of preparation before an audition to flesh out the character. With little information to go on this time, the experience was liberating, he says, if a little “weird.”

Months later, Dodd had a Zoom call with her team and discovered that the mysterious audition was for a role on the Netflix blockbuster Bridgerton — and he had taken the part. This season on the frothy, bust-ripping drama, Dodd takes on the role of Francesca Bridgerton, the reclusive piano lover played in seasons 1 and 2 by Ruby Stokes, who left the show due to scheduling conflicts. And while the character has seen limited screen time in the past, Dodd joins just as Francesca's story blossoms. Season three (the first half is streaming now) sees the shy and reserved Bridgerton enter the marriage market with Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlin). As in previous seasons, one of them is definitely headed for a sultry engagement by the final episode.

Dodd says taking on a lead role is “nervous,” but also draws a comforting parallel between herself and her on-screen counterpart. “Francesca is a wonderful character [take on in joining] a show like this,” says Dodd. “It's like life imitating art, because it's new in this environment. I am new to this environment. He works it as he goes. Me too. She knows herself. I know everyone. There were many moments when I [could] just live in a while.”

UK native Dodd, who graduated from the London Studio Center in 2017, has a background in dance — from ballet and tap to contemporary. She applied that training to one of her first roles, as a ballet student on the Hulu sci-fi fantasy Find me in Paris. He also has roles in the Hulu period drama Whores, in an 18th century brothel. the limited series Anatomy of a scandal, a political thriller for Netflix. and, more recently, the teen mystery film Enola Holmes 2.

Despite her experience, the prospect of stepping onto the set of a series as big as Bridgerton it was making her nervous. This is a show that sparked tons of debate around colorblind casting and put cast members like Regé-Jean Page, Phoebe Dynevor, and Jonathan Bailey on the map. And that's to say nothing of the very steamy sex scenes.

Fortunately, Dodd has co-stars who can relate. Claudia Jessie, who plays Eloise Bridgerton, says she still gets nervous going back to filming each season. (“My natural setting is not, 'I deserve to be here, I'm unapologetically me, hear me roar,'” says Jessie. “My setup is, 'I'm sorry I'm here. I apologize. Hear me meow.”) So he put a small welcome gift in Dodd's trailer in solidarity: a key ring decorated with two pendants — an “H,” for Dodd's first name, and a bee, which is a recurring symbol on the show (alternatively said to represent the “buzz” created by Penelope's alter-ego, the gossipy Lady Whistledown, the strong nature of the series' “queen bee” women, and the patriarch of the Bridgerton clan, Edmund, who died of a sting bee).

“It's no small thing to get into a show like this,” says Jessie. “We're a very warm, welcoming bunch, but obviously, you want to give special attention to certain people at certain times. And Hannah is one of those people.” Jessie adds that Dodd doesn't have to worry about adjusting: “Honestly, after about six minutes I was like, 'Oh, it feels like he's been here forever.'

Within days of joining the series, Dodd began to prepare. She ordered When he was badJulia Quinn's novel that follows the story of Francesca, swathed in embroidered dresses, attended dialect training and, crucially for the character, studied piano.

Bridgerton Viewers first greet Francesca at the piano playing Mozart's foreboding 'Funeral March' before her scheduled debut on the wedding circuit. As the other Bridgerton siblings fight and show off new gifts later in Episode One, Francesca sits undisturbed and plays sheet music from Italy. More introverted than her exuberant sisters, she finds peace behind the keys.

Dodd — who says she's “a little more confident” than Francesca, “but not much” — spent a month practicing the Funeral March for that opening scene and a few weeks rehearsing other tunes. She admits she couldn't read the “shapes and patterns” in sheet music, so she memorized bits of songs so her playing would seem as natural as possible. The music that accompanies these scenes, however, is not by Dodd.

“I think there's a really beautiful version being played that's not me that you're probably hearing,” he says. “But I learned everything. I really, really wanted to know it all because it's such a big part of her character.”

However, the most important thing about the character is not her ivory prowess, but her interiority. As the production team searched for a new Francesca, showrunner Jess Brownell says they needed someone with an enigmatic presence and a royal spark. Dodd stood out among hundreds of audition tapes because of her ability to bring inner turmoil to the surface.

“It's intentional that when you meet Francesca in the first episode you're not sure about her,” Brownell explains. “We wanted the audience to get to know her as they get to know themselves.”

Brownell adds that fans familiar with Francesca's story from the book will know that “she's a character who meets very highs and very low lows.” And Season Three — the second half of which premieres June 13 — doesn't disappoint on that front. “There's a lot more development for her,” Brownell says, describing herself as equal parts excited and terrified for fans to watch what's to come.

But she knows Dodd is up to the task: “When we met her, we thought she would be able to portray a version of Francesca in the line that has real strength and is very self-aware. All of that is in Hannah Dodd's performance.” Brownell adds, “By the end of the season, I really think she's going to be one of them [fans’] favorite characters.”

As for Dodd herself, she asks viewers to be patient while Francesca finds her footing — just as Bridgerton colleagues were for her. “I had the best time on that set,” says Dodd. “The idea of ​​coming back is just an absolute gift. I would do anything to be on that set again.”