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19 October 2004
MUSICALS?
From: Starr
Q: Are you a fan of musicals? I have a great passion for them. My
favorite on screen musicals are The Wizard of Oz, and Maytime (Nelson Eddy
kicks butt). Do you have
one of your own on stage or screen?
A: West Side Story, A Little Night Music,
Company — alright, anything by Stephen Sondheim and most by Rodgers
and Hammerstein.
CRUSHES
Q: I discovered your talent when I saw Gods & Monsters and was
immediately swept away by not only your performance, but your stunning
beauty. I have since developed quite a crush on you and get a lot of grief
about it from my family. They
all say you're too old. I see this as a sort of repression, not to mention
age discrimination. I'm a 22 year old girl. What do you think?
A: Crushes, like true love, have nothing to do with age. Why, my last
boyfriend was 22 years old.
RATCLIFFE
From: Simone
Q: I am looking at your film Richard III and it is fantastic. I´ve
begun to read Richard III (in german because for me it is too difficult of
english). In the book is a person with the name Sir Richard Ratcliff. Is
it right that he is not in the film ?
A: Ratcliffe in the film is beautifully played by the Scottish actor
Bill Paterson as Richard's batman, a military servant.
THE BETTER THE PART
Q: I saw "Gods & Monsters" for the first time a few months ago and was
stunned by your performance. You once said "the better the part, the
better the actor". Did you mean a deeper character makes you strive to
surpass your best performance?
A: Something like that. For instance, actors win awards mainly because
the parts they are playing make demands on them that allow them to
outshine their colleagues or others with less fulfilling roles.
MISSED PERFORMANCES
Q: One of my great regrets is not seeing you onstage in
Dance of Death
in NY. I am also a huge David Strathairn fan and would have loved to see
the two of you work together. What was it like to work with him? Also, do
you have any plans to do theater in San Francisco?
A: Like you I have missed seeing stage performances that I know I
should have relished. Remember that plays, unlike films, are not around
forever. David Strathairn is a gentle, dedicated actor who tries only to
work on worthwhile projects. He was a delight on and off stage, always
ready with a smile and a good chat about politics. Alas, I have no plans
for an early return to the San Francisco stage. I suppose you missed my
last visit there with the National Theatre's
Richard III!
BASIL RATHBONE
From: Amanda Owens
Q: I am a great admirer of the late Basil Rathbone's works. Not just
the Sherlock Holmes films, but his other, not quite as remembered roles.
"The Adventures of Robin Hood", "Captain Blood", "The Court Jester", and
"If I Were King", just to name a few. Did you ever listen to him on radio
as a child, or see his movies?
A: His radio work was not I think ever broadcast in UK but I well
remember him from Robin Hood in the cinema. He was a very accomplished
villain with (like so many successful film actors) a distinctive voice.
SOUTH BANK SHOW
Q: Regarding "A Year in the Life of Ian McKellen", will it air in the
USA? I hope so.
A: I don't know, although I think
South Bank Shows have often been
broadcast on PBS. You might start petitioning! There are backstage scenes
from the Oscars as well my visit to Hobart School in Koreatown,
Los Angeles, to see a Hamlet classroom performance.
With Rafe Esquith and the Hobart Shakespeareans
PRESENT LAUGHTER
From: Adam Bertocci
Q: I note that you performed in Present Laughter, a show I was in in
high school (I played Morris). How did you approach Garry's revulsion at
the homosexual advances of Roland, and how do you feel about the play's
humor on that dynamic?
A: There is much that is autobiographical in Noël Coward's play, so the
gay element is ironic when written and performed by a closetted star
actor/writer. For my part I concentrated more on Gary's contempt for
Roland Maule's new-wave writing rather than on his puppy-like devotion.
CELEBRITY
From: John Darling
Q: Your web site answers more than most of should ever have expected to
know without meeting you. I've always felt awkward with the expectation so
many of us have that celebrities "belong" to the public in some way. Just
a fast note to say thanks for the great work & the integrity.
A: I had never expected that so many people (including thousands whose
e-mails don't make it to these E-Posts) would have questions for me. I was
brought up to answer letters and old habits die hard!
MACBETH IN GAELIC
From: robert thomas armand
Q: Saw your movie production of "Richard III" it was A-1! I dug it! I
am working on a screenplay of Macbeth set in more modern times, jeeps,
cannon, napalm, mercs, slashings/hackings/burnings. robber/barron dupont
type home castles. More modern dress, clash against the old mediaeval
style costumes- witches. The new world (sans spirits) pragmatic, tough,
military/wall street speaks in modern english. The witches live in a world
of spirits, speaking in gaelic. What do you think?
A: My own "updating" of Shakespeare is always concerned with making
the text (Shakespeare's main glory) more accessible. I've written about
this in the foreword to
Richard III which is available on this site.
Your own approach differs although my only quarrel is with the translation
of the witches' lines though I suppose a gaelic-speaking audience might be
grateful. Good luck.
SHAKESPEARE ON BBC
Q: i recently decided to check out ambrose video's release of
the bbc's production of the complete dramatic works of william shakespeare.
the first two plays i watched were richard III and the merchant of venice.
to my surprise, both productions featured a lotr cast member: bernard hill
as one of clarence's murderers in rIII, and john rhys-davies in tmov.
Disappointingly, i didn't see your name attached to the project at all.
how is it that the man whom harold bloom called the greatest richard III
ever did not play the title role in the bbc version of that play, or any
role in any of those productions?
A: I didn't approve of the basic thinking behind these BBC productions
which was to set them either contemporary with Shakespeare or with the
period of the play's action. The claim was it would avoid a modernity that
would date the productions but I thought it a lost opportunity to link
them to the vitality of television which is always at its best when it
seems to be broadcasting live. On those grounds (which I touch on in my
foreword to
Richard III) I turned down a couple of offers to take part.
Shakespeare works well on television, where direct address is more
convincing than in the cinema and where elaborate settings are less
effective than close-ups on the actors' faces.
GAY MARRIAGE
From: Stephanie Kagehiro
Q: I happen to be a straight female who opposes the idea of gay
marriage. Please believe me when
I say that I have absolutely nothing against gays or lesbians. I believe
that if two persons love each other, they have every right to pursue their
happiness and are entitled to the same basic freedoms enjoyed by everyone
else. I am simply opposed to the usage of the term "marriage" in these
instances. I feel that the definition of "marriage" is the union of a man
and a women and should not be used to define any other relationship. If another term were used to describe the union between two
homosexuals, I personally feel that much of the opposition would
disappear. I can certainly understand your opposition to this suggestion. Using a
different term to describe a gay couple might make that union seem that
much less "holy" and therefore less of a commitment to certain straight
individuals. My only answer to that is, given the astronomical rate of
divorces these days, there doesn't appear to be that much "holiness" or
deep commitment in the straight world. Another argument against my
suggestion is that using another term could lead to all sorts of
discrimination when applying for a job, getting into college, purchasing
insurance, etc. Besides being wrong and totally unethical, this sort of
discrimination is entirely unhelpful to society. Laws can go into place to
prevent, or at least deter, such occurances, although one could argue that
such laws would fail, judging by the amount of discrimination going on
right now. I am an Irish-Japanese
(%100 American) nineteen-year-old kid and already I've been discriminated
against for my Asian heritage. I also hope this letter did not offend you or anyone else—that was
certainly not my intention.
A: Underlying your clear argument, which many agree with, is perhaps a
concern that gay marriage might reduce the validity of straight marriage.
It would not, any more than your heritage reduces the status of Americans
from other origins.
Religions have traditionally associated marriage with reproduction,
although as they happily bless childless unions, why not gay ones? But
the state should have no bar to society's recognition of a publically
declared parnership of any two people of whatever gender or sexuality.
"Marriage" is only a word but if gays and lesbians wish to use it, they
should for equality's sake be allowed to use it.
IN NORWAY
Q: I'm just writing to you because I think you are a great actor, great
person and handsome too ! In Norway it's allowed for men to get married,
and my partner and I did this two years ago. He was 62 and I 35. I got
only two years with him, he died of lung cancer 2 months ago. I'm trying
to cope with my loss, but it's difficult. One thing I have decided to do
is to write to those that really mean something to me. And do it while I
can. I don't know what I really want to gain by doing this. Guess I'm just
yet another gay fan that would want to meet you.
A: Thank you for writing. My commiserations. I am glad your country
recognised your relationship in time.
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