Judi Dench with Brendan O’Hea
Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent by Judi Dench with Brendan O’Hea consists of a series of interviews which O’Hea conducted with Dame Judi Dench in which she speaks of her seven-decade acting career. Her recollections encompass a history of British theatre during the post-war years. Interspersed throughout the chapters on individual plays are short chapters on aspects of performance, such as rehearsals, audience, critics, etc.
Each chapter focuses on a different Shakespearean play. Dench delves deeply into the characters she played, probing into their motives and psychology. She has unwavering trust in Shakespeare and views her role as adhering faithfully to his words and to his ability to make his characters believable to an audience. She tries to understand not only the character she plays but also the rest of the cast and the nature of their interactions with one another. She speaks of the characters as if they are real people she knows intimately and with a knowledge of their strengths and weaknesses, their foibles and quirks. Her remarkable memory enables her to cite words from the plays as if it were second nature. Her passion for Shakespeare’s language is contagious.
Dench’s no-nonsense attitude shines through in her distinctive and familiar voice. She can be critical of her previous performances and claims she would have played some of her roles differently if she had it to do, again. She is quick to praise the performance of other actors and credits them and various directors with teaching her how to improve her performances. She peppers her discussion with thoughts on acting and on interpreting each Shakespeare play, describing in detail the language, her elaborate costumes, the set, the specific theatre where the performance took place, her renowned fellow actors, and the different directors and what she learned from each.
The tone throughout is delightfully conversational with O’Hea prompting Dench and, at times, goading her into contradicting him. Dench is witty, generous in praise of others, and unpretentious. She gives practical advice on acting and on how to read a Shakespeare line. She perceives a production as a collaborative effort where all work together as a cohesive unit. She is uncompromising in her dismissal of the idea that success can be attributed to a single individual with “star” quality. She insists that if a production succeeds, the credit belongs to everyone. Her speech is dotted with interesting and humorous anecdotes about herself and other actors. She offers a glimpse into some of the playful antics that go on during rehearsals and before and after performances. Her joyful spirit, unabashed honesty, dedication to acting, and unequivocal passion for Shakespeare light up her words just as she lit up the stage with her memorable performances.
An engaging and delightful read for lovers of Shakespeare, the theatre, and, of course, for fans of Judi Dench.