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Killer Instincts
Anna Paquin steps on stage for
the first time--right into Rebecca Gilman's
The Glory of Living.
Dan Bacalzo
Eight years ago, first-time film actress Anna Paquin
netted the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
for her role in Jane Campion's The Piano.
She was 11 years old at the time. Since then, Paquin
has played a wide range of parts, from the young
Jane Eyre in Franco Zeffirelli's 1996 adaptation
of Charlotte Bronte's novel to the mutant superhero
Rogue in X-Men.
Now, Paquin is making her stage debut in Rebecca
Gilman's The Glory of Living under the
direction of Philip Seymour Hoffman. The young
actress plays Lisa, an abused teenager whose older,
ex-con husband initiates her into a world of sex and
murder, and her performance has earned a great deal
of praise. I spoke with Paquin during the first week
of previews of the production, which officially
opened on November 15 and has already had its run
extended through December 22.
********************
THEATERMANIA: What inspired you to make the changeover from film to stage?
ANNA PAQUIN: I've always wanted to do theater and had sort of
been on the lookout for the right opportunity. This was it--a great
director, incredible material, and a small theater. So it's not so scary.
TM: What specifically was it about the script that you liked?
AP: It's so rare to see roles for young women that are strong or
complex, more than just surface. There's so much going on with
my character that makes her who she is, which I probably haven't
even begun to get to the bottom of.
TM: Lisa is both victim and villain. How do you reconcile those
aspects in your portrayal?
AP: I don¡¯t think that the character sees herself as free from
responsibility for what she's done. By the end of the play,
she knows it's wrong; she knows she did have a choice.
But that doesn't mean she necessarily knew that at the
time she was in the abusive relationship. Throughout the
play, you really see my character grow up. She starts to
need and want to take responsibility for what¡¯s going on
in her life and not just be a bystander.
TM: Before rehearsals began, had you read any of Rebecca
Gilman's other works?
AP: No, but I'm now very intrigued to do so.
TM: I spoke with Gilman last year during the New York run
of her play Spinning into Butter and she pointed out
that, although everyone focuses on the dark aspects of her
writing, there's much humor in it as well. Do you agree with that?
AP: Definitely. I think sometimes it takes a few reads in order
to get¡¦not more comfortable, but perhaps less shocked by some
of the unpleasant things that go on in the play. Then you can
appreciate some of the really humorous moments.
TM: You and Philip Seymour Hoffman were both in Almost Famous,
although you didn't have any scenes together. Did you meet him on the set?
AP: No, I never did. None of our workdays coincided. I met him in the
auditions for this play.
TM: Have you enjoyed working together?
AP: I could not feel more lucky. I never took acting classes. Basically,
what I've gotten here is an intensive acting lesson from an incredible
director who is also an amazing actor.
TM: Do you regret not having formal training?
AP: I don¡¯t think I've ever really (a) had the time to do it, or
(b) necessarily wanted to. I've been able to work with talented
people in all different fields of movie making. I feel that I
learn so much more by throwing myself in and saying, "Okay, I'm
going to do the best I can do and realize that I'm only 19."
I don't expect too, too much of myself. I say this...but I'm an
utter perfectionist, so that's a big lie.
TM: You've already had an impressive career, beginning
with the Oscar win. Did you feel pressure to top yourself?
AP: That happened, that was amazing, that gave me a career. I
am eternally grateful. But when you¡¯re 11 and you live in New
Zealand and you haven't watched a lot of movies or been
exposed to that whole aspect of pop culture, you don't
really know exactly what [an Oscar] means. That kind of
took a lot of the pressure off. I think, if it happened
now, I'd be completely freaked out and say, "Gosh, I have
to do something amazing or everyone will think I'm a
great big loser." I'm learning. Everything I'm doing is
just a work in process.
TM: In addition to your acting career, you're also a
student at Columbia. What are you studying?
AP: Right now I'm deferring. I'm still working through
Columbia's very rigorous core curriculum--all the standard
liberal arts classes that everyone has to take. So I haven't
had much of an opportunity to focus on anything specifically.
I will probably end up an English major. Or maybe French. I don't know.
TM: But not theater?
AP: No, probably not.
TM: How hard is it to coordinate your schedule with work and school?
AP: Last year, I worked twice during the year and I had to take
a little bit of time off, be really nice to my teachers, and beg
for forgiveness. Quite frankly, that is not something I want to
do again. I'm going to either be at school or working; I'm not
going to try and do both. You can do that in high school, but
college is a whole other thing. You've got to be there.
TM: When do you go back?
AP: I'm hoping to go back next semester but I may have to go
do the sequel to X-Men. I don't know--that's what they keep saying.
TM: Is there anything you can tell me about that film?
AP: I wish I could even tell you that I knew it was definitely
going to start filming in the spring! That would make planning
my life a little bit easier. But I know absolutely nothing.
TM: There's a bonus feature on the X-Men DVD featuring
Hugh Jackman's audition. In it, you already seem to have your
character completely down. How quickly do you develop a sense
of each of your roles?
AP: For better or worse, I think you make some immediate assumptions
about a character as soon as you read a script. At least, superficial
things--which, in the case of some movies, you may or may not
develop at all, depending on how much time is given to that aspect
of the process. But in theater, you get to spend three weeks
completely dissecting and then reconstructing the entire script
and all the characters to get a firm understanding of who those people are.
TM: Then your process in The Glory of Living was much
different than your film work?
AP: Absolutely and utterly different. Sometimes, you don't
even get any rehearsal for film. You just show up and they're
like: "Okay, go!" You just hope that you've got enough of a
sense of who your character is that the work you do on day
one is going to match up with the work you do in the last
week. It comes down to trusting your director, to trust
that you're going to be steered in the right direction.
TM: Is there more stage work in your future?
AP: I hope someone wants to hire me again, because I'm
having a whole lot of fun.
TM: Do you have any backstage stories you'd like to share?
AP: I'm not really backstage a lot. I think I have all
of four and a half minutes where I'm not on the stage,
which I spend sitting right behind the set, waiting to
go on. So I can't fill you in on any juicy gossip.
TM: What's it like to act in a front of a live audience for the first time?
AP: It's a huge challenge and a huge responsibility,
but it's also kind of exciting. I get to do my thing
all night, every night. It's great to be on stage and to hear
every single gasp and laugh from the audience. I've never
felt anything like that before in my life. It's amazing.
Theater Mania.com, November 19, 2001
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