Cheryl Livingstone speaks to Claire Bleasdale about stepping into Elizabeth Taylor’s shoes in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF? IS ABOUT?
At face value, the play is about an intense evening of drinking with George and Martha and their young guests – Nick and Honey. George and Martha start playing silly games and, the more that’s drunk, the more is revealed about each of the couples’ lives until we realise they are all living a life of one fiction or another. At its heart, the play is about the pressure on individuals to conform to the expectations of society, at the expense of being the person you truly want to be.
WHY DID THEVINYLTHEATRE CHOOSE THIS PLAY?
The play is so beautifully written and the characters are so alive and well observed. It’s a great opportunity for all of the cast members to act out huge swings of emotion – which is tremendous fun. And the themes of the play still ring as true today as they would have done when it was first performed in 1962.
IT IS ALSO A 1966 FILM FEATURING ELIZABETH TAYLOR AND RICHARD BURTON. HAVE YOU SEEN THE FILM? ARE YOU A FAN?
I love the film: it’s a wonderful adaptation of the stage play and brilliantly captures the volatile dynamic between Martha and George. I don’t usually watch films of plays I’m in, but I was already a huge fan of this one.
YOU ACTUALLY PLAY THE SAME PART ELIZABETH TAYLOR
DID IN THE FILM, MARTHA. CAN YOU TELL ME A
BIT ABOUT THAT CHARACTER?
I’ve developed a real fondness for Martha. She’s smart, bossy, she’s full of energy, enjoys a gin and, as she says, she “wears the pants” in her relationship. But she’s not a monster – she has had a hard life and her behaviour is heavily influenced by events that were largely outside of her control, as we find out during the play.
WHAT’S IT LIKE STEPPING INTO ELIZABETH TAYLOR’S SHOES?
Elizabeth Taylor was magnificent as Martha and thoroughly deserved her Oscar – it’s an epic and iconic performance. But there is a difference playing Martha on screen and in close-up (as Taylor often was) compared to playing out the character on stage. In the theatre, there is a much bigger space to fill, so I feel like I’ve got the scope to find my own way of projecting Martha to a live audience.
WHAT DO YOU LIKE ABOUT THIS ROLE?
Playing Martha has been deeply moving for me. I identify with a lot of what she’s suffered and I sympathise with her situation. And even though I don’t always agree with all of her behaviour, I do enjoy playing those nastier Martha moments, too.
HOW HAVE YOU PREPARED FOR IT?
I’ve actually researched some of the older Broadway cast recordings of the show, and that’s helped to get a sense of what it takes to carry off this role vocally in a theatre production. We’ve also spent time working out the detail of Martha’s behaviour, for example how she tries to seduce her young guest and how she battles against her husband. These aspects of the performance weren’t really dwelt on in the movie but are very important to the stage version.
HOW HAVE REHEARSALS AS A WHOLE BEEN GOING?
They’ve been intense. There is so much going on throughout the script – it’s so intricate – so we’ve had to go through a long rehearsal schedule to be able to get comfortable with the depth of the play and to address its various layers. But I think we’re in good shape for opening night.
ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO THE PERFORMANCES?
I can hardly wait. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? has a raw energy to it and we’re all very excited about unleashing it onstage.
Don’t miss Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? at the Aberdeen Arts Centre from September 30 to October 2.