Interview: Just Whistle: Charles Shaughnessy Returns to Ogunquit in SPAMALOT

"Arthur [in CAMELOT] is a man with strong hopes and plans that blow up in his face. SPAMALOT has a much happier ending because Arthur learns that life is too important to be taken seriously. Just whistle -that's the thing. In CAMELOT Arthur doesn't quite get there."

Award-winning actor Charles Shaughnessy is talking about his experience playing Arthur, King of the Britains, in two different musicals. Shaughnessy is poised to reprise his role as the monarch in the Ogunquit Playhouse's SPAMALOT, which opens at the theatre's new Leary Pavilion on June 16 and runs through July 10, 2021. He first appeared there in the Monty Python musical comedy in 2011 and also played Arthur in Lerner and Loewe's CAMELOT at North Shore Music Theatre in 2005.

Shaughnessy relishes the opportunity to reprise the role and to return to Maine, where he looks forward to "lobster rolls that don't break the bank!" He notes that "obviously two different directors [ B. T. McNicholl now and Scott Taylor then] have different 'takes', but they are subtly different. There are certain 'rules' in musical theatre and they are there because they work. Even something as innovative as "Hamilton" followed the blueprint. I guess I now bring ten more years in experience and age and creaky knees and failing memory.......but other than that, I don't think THIS Arthur is THAT much different."

Shaughnessy admires the Monty Python humor. The important thing in this play, because it can be seen as 'mad-cap, Python humor' is to take it seriously - that's why Python works. The man is genuinely angry and upset that his parrot is dead. It is NOT just a rehash of " the best of Python," but a seamless "homage" to their humor, framed in a funny, heartfelt and inspiring musical play...with a wonderful score that manages to be both witty and charming at the same time. It has the same irreverent and referential satire that URINETOWN brought to the stage while carrying an important message that windmills are there to be jousted."

For Charles Shaughnessy there are parallels between playing Arthur and one of his iconic career roles in the television series, THE NANNY. "Believe it or not, Arthur in SPAMALOT, has a lot in common with Max Sheffield. They are both men with very set ideas on how things should be, but live in worlds where none of their staff, friends, or family take them seriously. For six years, I was playing a character who got increasingly frustrated by smart-ass people around him... and here I am, playing him again!"

The British-born Shaughnessy comes from a show business family. His father Alfred Shaughnessy was a television writer best known for UPSTAIRS DOWNSTAIRS and his mother was actress Jean Lodge. He recalls how his vocation came to him: "In first grade, I was the only one in class who enjoyed reading out loud. When my friend was cast as Peter Rabbit in our class play, I had two simultaneous reactions -- One, I hated my best friend; and Two, WOW! This MUST be important to me! An actor was born!"

After being educated at Eton and Cambridge and studying at drama school in London, Charles Shaughnessy moved to Los Angeles where he built a stellar career in television and film. He credits three mentors: "Frank Bayer, Amy Lieberman, and Marvin Page. It's a number of long stories, but those people started my career."

His work on series such as DAYS OF OUR LIVES, THE NANNY, MAD MEN, LIVING WITH FRAN, and LAW AND ORDER have made him a well-known celebrity. In addition to CAMELOT and SPAMALOT, His stage work has included portrayals of Henry Higgins in MY FAIR LADY and Georges in LA CAGE AUX FOLLES. "I loved working on DAYS OF OUR LIVES! We had so much fun! THE NANNY made me an international TV star (which was both gratifying and weird) and MAD MEN (St. John Powell) put me in the room with some spectacular talent.

Shaughnessy is careful in the way he describes himself as a musical theatre performer: "Let's get this straight... I am an actor who squeaks by in musical comedy, thanks to the patience and indulgence of a lot of very talented singers, dancers, and musical directors. I LOVE it and am constantly in their debt for allowing me to do it. Straight drama/comedy is my wheelhouse. Musical Comedy is my passion."

But he is also enthusiastic what about the stage experience gives him as an actor and gives the audience. "Nothing can replace the immediacy and intimacy of the relationship between a performer and an audience. THAT is where the real magic happens, as far as I'm concerned. That said, in film and TV there is a gratification that your work reaches so many people at once."

Like so many of his colleagues, Shaughnessy is happy to return to work after the pandemic. He says he used the lockdown time to write a novel, do a great deal of reading, and watch plays on Zoom. But he is thrilled to be returning to Maine and especially to Ogunquit. "Who wouldn't want to spend time in Ogunquit? And to do so in such a fun show, with such great people, after eighteen months of misery and tragedy, not knowing if theatre was going to be a thing of the past; the joy of being here now is unmeasurable!"

Asked what he foresees for the future of live theatre as it emerges from the Covid crisis, he replies: "I am hoping we make a concerted effort to make live theatre more accessible to a greater number of people. The economics, right now, put many Broadway shows out of reach for most, so they miss out on artistic statements that move our culture and human conversation forward. I don't really know how, but THAT HAS to change."

But for the moment, Charles Shaughnessy is simply looking forward to connecting with a live audience in what he calls "the whole experience." And, to be sure, like Arthur and his band of noble knights, he hopes audiences will leave SPAMALOT looking on the bright side!

Photos courtesy Ogunquit Playhouse

SPAMALOT runs at Ogunquit Playhouse, 10 Main Street, Ogunquit, ME from June 16- July 10. www.ogunquitplayhouse.com 207-646-5511

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