PLAYING the role of a tragic and romantic leading lady is not new for Calderdale-born actress Jessica Harris.

She was headstrong Catherine Earnshaw in Wuthering Heights at the Theatre Royal, York, 18 months ago, and is now throwing herself into the challenge of becoming Othello's wife Desdemona in the Shakespearean tragedy.

Starring in the much-anticipated Northern Broadsides version of Othello opposite a comedian-turned-actor best known for jokes and mimicry might be enough to turn some relatively unknown actresses' knees to jelly.

But Jess is made of sterner stuff and has been relishing her role in the Halifax-based touring theatre company's production, which opens tomorrow, at the West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds.

Brummie Lenny failed to get to grips with the words of William Shakespeare at school but has thrown himself into the task, having been given the confidence to do so by Northern Broadsides' artistic director Barrie Rutter.

Both Lenny and Jess are making their debuts with the theatre company and their on-stage chemistry and ability to command audiences at theatres nationwide will come under close scrutiny from the media.

Despite his star status, Lenny is just one of the gang, Jess says. "Lenny is a lovely, generous man and never loses his sense of humour," she says. "We have a laugh but when we are working we are working and you get immersed in the text.

"He's brilliant, a genuine person, very supportive, very generous and incredibly enthusiastic and hardworking. It is a real team and he is part of the team. There is no higher status or star quality, he is a really grounded person."

Jess, who says her age is "quite a trade secret", now lives in London but was born in Halifax and grew up in Hebden Bridge and Heptonstall, where her mother Jo Harris still lives.

Jess was a pupil at Calder High School, Mytholmroyd, where drama was her favourite subject, and took a number of stage and screen roles after studying for a National Diploma in Performing Arts at Calderdale College, Halifax.

She got her acting break in an unusual way, when Yorkshire TV came to Heptonstall to film the educational series How We Used to Live.

The TV station kept her details and came back to her a few times, calling her up to feature in TV dramas like Heartbeat.

"I did this on and off because I was at school and then decided it was something I wanted to do," she says.

Jess secured a small role in Fat Friends, the Kay Mellor drama series, and after selecting an agent gained a scholarship at the Arts Educational School in London.

The capital brought new opportunities in the shape of the National Theatre and the BBC. Jess played Liza Tarbuck's younger sister Katy Green in the hit BBC comedy-drama series Linda Green, featuring in nine episodes in 2001/2002.

As a little girl, Jess, with her elder brother Luke, had avidly watched Lenny Henry in his TV show, the Brixton Broadcasting Corporation, in the late 1980s.

Then, at the end of last year, she was faced with him at the West Yorkshire Playhouse for the auditions, also attended by Barrie Rutter, casting director Kay Magson and the Leeds theatre's artistic director Ian Brown.

She says: "They held quite a large, open audition on the stage and we were told to look at a few scenes. We just got up one by one and Barrie might say, 'try this' and 'try that' and then someone else would have a go.

"Then after lunch they kept some people back and others were allowed to go. It was a gruelling day, it reminded me of drama school, where you stood up and did your piece. I enjoyed it, although it was nerve-racking. I'm not sure if Lenny had a say in who was chosen but it was great having him there because he read Othello's lines rather than the casting director reading the part.

"I have never done Shake-speare before and it is a completely different style of acting. There are a lot of challenges and I do have my moments of nerves. It is a big step."

Of her character Desdemona she says: "She is considerably younger than Othello. She is a strong-willed woman and has spurned a few advances.

"It is heartbreaking, really. I remember seeing Othello about four years ago at drama school and I just fell in love with Desdemona.

"It was a Cheek by Jowl theatre company production and the actress – I can't remember her name - was delightful, beautiful. I fell in love with the part. It was awful watching it unfold, knowing she was going to be killed."

Her dad, Miles Harris, lives in Halifax with his second wife, Linda Brill, who works at Dean Clough, where the production – to be staged at the Viaduct Theatre in May – is a sell-out. Linda is manager of the Viaduct Cafe and The Design Shop, where works of art are displayed.

They, and Jess's mum, who has been helping her learn her lines, will watch her on stage in Leeds and again in Halifax.

Jess says: "They are very proud and very supportive. It is so nice to be back in Yorkshire, in Leeds and in Halifax, being back home and doing what I want."

Othello is staged at West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds, from tomorrow to Saturday, March 14. For more details, call the box office: 0113 213 7700.

See our review of the play in Wednesday's Courier.