WORKSHOPS, SHOWS AND PZAZZ
by
Lynn Ruth Miller
I regard the theatre as the greatest of all art forms,
the most immediate way in which a human being can share
with another the sense of what it is to be a human being.
Oscar Wilde
The Brighton Festival Fringe continues and each day brings more bon-bons to enjoy. The Marlboro has featured some unforgettable shows this year. Julia Asling and Ian Angus Wilkie starred in TALKING HEADS, two exquisite Alan Bennett one acts, A CHIP IN THE SUGAR and A LADY OF LETTERS. Most of the presentations I see on the fringe are mediocre at best, always enthusiastically presented and always of some value but never great theatre. However, this production had everything for me. It was presented by the Britt Forsberg Theatre 21. A LADY OF LETTERS was about a lonely older woman who had nothing to look forward to in life but to observe the life of others . Her only communication with the world was through the letters she wrote. Watching Julia Asling’s sensitive and moving portrayal of a lonely woman searching for something to look forward to in day after empty day reminded me of too many older women I know today who have nothing but their favourite TV programs and their grievances to keep them going. The other one act, A CHIP IN THE SUGAR is a magnificent piece of writing because it pinpoints the walls that older people crash into when they try to live their lives and chase their dreams. An old woman wants to pursue a vivid and exciting romance with a man her son knows is a philanderer. The son cannot understand that when you are in your eighties or nineties, any fling is a glorious one and it need not last forever because, indeed, you will not last forever. Ian Angus Willkie played the outraged son relating the story and he hit just the perfect note. The production was one of the finest I have seen in a very long time because it was truth shown instead of told; truth as powerful and important today as it was when it was first written.
Last Monday, I attended Julian Caddy’s phenomenal workshop ACTING AND CREATING A CHARACTER. On the surface this evening seems to be one dedicated to aspiring actors, but it is so much more than that. Julian Caddy is a talented and innovative actor, thrilling to see on stage in an amazingly wide variety of roles from David Mamet to Tennessee Williams. In his workshop, he discussed the secret to creating a believable character and as he spoke, I could not help but think, “This man is talking about how we view ourselves. He is giving me tools to live a better life.”
“All of your life experience makes you who you are,” he told us. “In life you should always be finding out. We all are products of all we have been.”
Caddy explained the secret to becoming the character you are portraying on stage: “You need to dissect all the unsaid purposes of the person you are being,” he said. “Acting is thinking the thoughts of the character.”
It was then I understood why so many plays I see don’t quite make the grade for me. The actor hasn’t really figured out who he is portraying. Instead, I am seeing the actor himself on the stage and that is why he does not convince me that what I am seeing is real.
The workshop was a beautiful experience in learning to understand myself and in understanding the motivations of others. No one is either horrible or wonderful to himself. He is just who he is. Once you get that, you can analyse what you are watching on stage and can understand why it seems false to you. Julian Caddy is presenting another acting workshop Monday May 21 and if you can get to The Marlboro at 8:30, you will learn a bit more about the plays you are seeing and a lot more about who you are.
I loved THE RIGHT PAIR, Bette Bourne and Peal Shaw’s story, also at the Marlboro Theatre. These two have lived together for over 40 years and although they never thought of it as a marriage, it certainly was a partnership that made their lives whole. The hour contained music, dance and a bit of nostalgia laced together with delightful humour. For me, the show gave me a rare glimpse into what love really means.
If you want to get an overview of the exciting things that are happening every day in May in Brighton, tune into Jeff Hemmings show on Reverb Radio, 5-6pm on Thursdays, 8-10 am on Wednesday mornings. You will get some chat, some reports and a bit of opinions from a guy who swears he knows what he is talking about. But then, isn’t that what all guys say?
The drama is not dead, but liveth,
and contains the gems of better things.
William Archer
