BWW Interviews: Stuart Hughes Talks Soulpepper's ENTERTAINING MR. SLOANE
By: Frances Fong-Lee Aug. 06, 2013
To kick off their Summer 2013 productions, Soulpepper is currently staging Joe Orton's "Entertaining Mr. Sloane".
"Entertaining Mr. Sloane" is a dark comedy about an interloper, Sloane (played by David Beazely), who moves in with a family, which consists of a sister (Fiona Reid), brother (Stuart Hughes) and their father (Michael Simpson). As Mr. Sloane hangs around the house, his undeniable sneaky charm works on everyone, but that can't help him escape his dark past.
Stuart took the time to speak with BWW over the phone about his character in "Entertaining Mr. Sloane", being an actor and a director, and working with his wife, Michelle Monteith.
BWW: Thank you for taking the time to do this interview with me, Mr. Hughes. How does it feel to be a part of Joe Orton's play "Entertaining Mr. Sloane"?
STUART: I feel very thrilled. I'm having a great time with it. It's a great play to learn. I've never worked with BrenDan Healy before - I've seen his work before - I held him in high esteem in terms of the work I've seen. I just love being in the rehearsal hall with him - he's very rigorous and very thorough and yet at the same time gives a great responsibility, but he's very rigorous about the work and that excites me. And Fiona Reid and I have worked together numerous times. We worked together at the Shaw Festival, oh god, I have to say almost thirty, thirty five years ago, and then we worked together intimately since then on shows - we did "Doubt" together and "Streetcar Named Desire", [which] we did years ago for Soulpepper in the first few years. So it's been a real pleasure - she's a good friend and I have great respect for her. And Michael Simpson as well - we too worked together about thirty five years ago. And the young boy David Beazely has just been a real charm to work with - he's a hard worker and I think he's been just a ball to be on stage with. So I'm very pleased with the company and very excited by it, and I think it's a perfect company to attack this piece, which is not an easy piece to go about. I think trying to get it right - it has its pitfalls, and I think this is the company - everybody is working very hard and we had a lot of laughs, but we also took the play very seriously and I think out of that, hopefully comes the humour that Orton had instilled in the piece, but also the heart of it which I think is the real steal in the piece as well.
BWW: Tell us a bit about "Entertaining Mr. Sloane" and about the character you play (Ed). And what's the most exciting and the most challenging part of playing Ed?
STUART: It obviously centres around a family and somebody who enters that family - an interloper, and we're not quite sure whether he's sinister or whether he's naive, and the family is dysfunctional. And I think they're dysfunctional because nobody actually gives license to their true feelings - who they are, and so they're continually putting on masks or faces instead of giving license to their true natures. And I think when people do that, then what ends up happening is you end up acting inappropriately - fear becomes part of the quotient, part of your cosmetic. And then what happens is that fear forces you to behave - like in my case: my character is a bit of a dictator within the household and treats his sister almost like a servant, and has an appalling relationship - actually almost no relationship - with the father for twenty years. And I think the character Ed doesn't really admit to himself what his true wants and desires are, so he's constantly sublimating them, excusing them, disguising them and putting a facade over what it is that he wants, and I think he wants love, as we all do, but he has tendencies that he doesn't want to admit to himself or to others that he has. And in terms of playing the piece and in terms of rehearsing it and constructing it, that was the joy and also the great challenge was to try to figure out who this fella Ed was and all the other characters, but who this fella Ed was. In one sense, he's denying what it is he wants - what kind of relationship that he wants; and in the next breath, he's revealing blatantly it seems for a moment where his appetite truly lives - and does he lust for the boy or does he just want to be a mentor and a teacher for the boy; and is he lascivious or does he truly have honourable intentions in terms of being an instructor, a father figure to this young boy. And it's a dance - it allows for a great deal of humour because when we see somebody pretending to be something else that they're not, that is an opportunity for a great deal of classic comic situation. It reminds me very much at times of Moliere and some of the figures - I think about part two for some of the older figures who are lusting after the young women, but then they also pretend to have this higher moral ground, and of course that's where the humour lies within that. But that also allows, as in Moliere, where the real heart of it is and the sadness and the pain - you know when somebody has been deceived. And I think Orton has - and I love Moliere - but Orton has a very specific set of fangs, I think, to his writing, at least particularly this piece - there's a vicious sneer to it - a dark sneer. And it's a great thing to play, to try and find that balance, as they say, between the light of the piece - at times it almost feels like vaudeville musical - and I think he was using that intentionally - it has a quality of a musical two-hander at times. And then at other times, it feels very much like the angst that one can find in a Chekhov piece, where peoples' hearts are being ripped open and they're being deceived and it means everything to them. And to find that balance has been a real joy, and it's a real joy to go out and play and to try to figure it out every night, and do that dance.
BWW: This production of "Entertaining Mr. Sloane" is done in a theatre-in-the-round setting. Could you talk a bit about the challenges and the advantages of working in a theatre-in-the-round setting, as opposed to a proscenium stage (as pertaining to this show)?
STUART: In one respect, at first, I think we all had a little question mark about whether it was going to work or not. This play, 99% of the time, would have been done with a proscenium arch - a traditional set. Putting it in the round certainly bust everything apart and it almost feels like being in a boxing ring now, at least from an actor's standpoint. And we played it certainly for a while just with the set remains situated as it is constantly for the entire three acts. At a certain point, Brendan the director realized that he needed to find a way to create a sense of time passing, and he changed it so it became a mirror version of itself - the sparse set pieces got changed around so they were a mirror of themselves. And that happened at a certain point in rehearsal and it was absolutely the perfect choice for it. It shakes it up - it shakes it up for the viewers and it also shakes it up for the actors. But it just took us a little bit of time to adjust to that as actors because you rehearse and you put things into your body physically and it just took us a couple days to kind of get used to it and then we were swinging it again. It gives a fresh look hopefully - it forces us, as actors and as a director, to take a fresh look at the piece - and not be confined by the traditional setting. And I think it really does for me - it feels like you're going into a cockfight or something, or the old traditional dog fight - going out there on the deck and scrapping with your partner.
BWW: You've directed many plays for Soulpepper and theatres across Canada. What is your favourite part about being a director? And what would you say is the most challenging?
STUART: I love working with actors obviously. I love actors and I love being able to recognize when an actor is tied up or hung up, and hopefully being able to go and relieve them or help them out - only because I've experienced it myself. So that's what I find very joyful and really done with an act of love because I've experienced it so intimately myself, where I've been tight or I haven't been able to reach something because I've had a certain block or I've been stymied by habits. And that's what I love doing: is being with an actor and recognizing again because I know it in myself - recognizing some of these habits and going "you know what? We don't need to do that this time around... That's great for some other show or for another production but you don't need it for this particular production. So let's try and stretch a little bit." And that's what I love: is when a director does it to me. So that's what gives me joy, when I can do that with an actor and do it with affection and compassion and respect, and all that - that gives me a real buzz. I've been blessed with working with some great people. The toughest part, I guess, is just knowing when to - and what I've learned and what I'm learning - is when to let the actors figure it out for themselves and then step in, as opposed to being - I think when I started out, I was a little more rigid. I worked with people who were very rigid, some very great directors but they were very exacting - they knew exactly what they wanted - they didn't really allow any exploration from the actors. But I think there is a happy marriage - I think both things are required and you see what an actor brings to the table and then you fashion it towards him or her, you also help to stretch them. I think that's what for me would be - it's not a problem or a downside - it's just something I look forward to becoming more and more mature with as I go on. As a director, more and more savvy with in terms of recognizing "oh that actor just needs to be left alone for a little while" and just let him go and play, and then know when to go in. I witnessed a maturation in my handling of things, I think even in the relatively short period of time that I've been directing, which is about four or five years I guess. But it's like anything, there's a growing curve to it and certainly in the last show that I directed, I saw a great improvement and actually quite frankly, more ease than I did with the first show I ever directed. And just trusting my actors and saying "you know what? They are very capable and I just need to know when to step in" as opposed to maybe muscling in or getting in there a little too quickly off the get-go. And it's a delicate thing! Sometimes an actor needs to be pushed a little bit, otherwise they won't grow - otherwise they'll just fall into habitualness. Other times you need to let them figure it out. It's a very sensitive and very delicate dance to get the best out of an actor. It's like working with a horse or working with an animal - you have to have certain guidelines, certain boundaries, but you also have to allow a certain flexibility, malleability - you have to know when to ask an actor to move or to try something, and when to not ask them because they won't hear or they won't listen because they're frustrated or they're scared or whatever - it's just the same as working with an animal or a horse - same thing.
BWW: You directed your wife, Michelle Monteith, in "The Odd Couple" for Soulpepper. What was it like working with your wife on the same show?
STUART: It was great! She's a fantastic actor! I was talking to somebody and I said "she teaches me". She's a great actor and I have such great respect for her. And it was really effortless quite frankly. We got in and we had some laughs with the company, and the company was a good group of people. I've done this show before with the majority of the [same] cast, and Michelle and another actress stepped in to play the two sisters, the Pigeon sisters, and they were perfect, quite frankly almost from day one. We made a few adjustments here and there, but she [Michelle] showed up, she was ready to go and she was firing with all pins from the get-go. And quite frankly, I just had to sort of make an adjustment here or there, but it was really effortless I think because of the respect. And we had a great time, and quite frankly I can't wait - I've never acted with her, but I can't wait to do that and hope the opportunity arises soon because I think she's just fabulous.
BWW: That'll be a fantastic show! Whatever show you both do together it'll be fantastic! I can guarantee that!
STUART: Thank you very much. I think we're going to have some fun. We keep our eyes open and hopefully something will materialize in the next couple of years.
BWW: Since rehearsing and performing in "Entertaining Mr. Sloane", have you learned anything new about yourself that you didn't know before?
STUART: I think always - my take on acting and creating a character is looking at a certain aspect of yourself. And each character asks you to look at a part of yourself that maybe you're unfamiliar with. I think with this guy [Ed], it's how does he live out his denials and wear out his posturing. I examine oneself and see the way you do that and even if it's subtle, how do you keep people at bay or how do you keep people from knowing maybe your most intimate heart and how do you posture - so that's an examination, I look at that sort of thing in myself. Quite frankly, it was a great deal of joy I found in playing this part and there's a certain broadness to the character, and yet at the same time hopefully it's grounded so it doesn't just seem like a layer, a pasted on caricature. There is a real heart to this guy and so to mime that, you look at your own - I think at times Ed feels as if he's been betrayed by the boy and he feels the boy is jilting him, and so I try to attach my understanding of that - I've felt those feelings of jealousy and those feelings of being passed over for somebody else, and then those feelings where you forgive your partner because you try to be idealistic or you try to be noble and allow them their faults and then push on, which I think Ed tries to do. And it's really his blind side that he doesn't really see the boy for who he is. So I look at those and if they're not new to me they are certainly revisited things, and certainly examined differently then maybe I would've five years ago or ten years ago because of where I am today. I have a beautiful partner who I have great respect for as an artist and we have a beautiful daughter who's full of life and joy, and so I just find going into work - there's a great deal of ease that I maybe didn't have some years ago. Or let's just say that it becomes more relaxed in rehearsal - the joy in rehearsing. I allow myself to fail hopefully a little more easily then I would have maybe a number of years ago, so then within that failure I can find what's right. I can go and be like "that wasn't right, but I don't have to get it perfect the first day." Whereas maybe when I was a younger actor, you try hard to be the best and all that crap. And that's really all self-imposed most of the time. You have expectations of yourself and as time goes on that becomes less and less important to me, and what does become important to me is playing and finding what's unique about each character and finding the heart of them and listening to your scene partners, and as time goes on, that becomes easier, and that's a joy. That in itself is great revelatory stuff with each trip into a new production or a new show. And BrenDan Healy was certainly in great consort in terms of pushing from that very thing as well, so he was a great teacher.
BWW: What do you want the audience to come away with after seeing "Entertaining Mr. Sloane"?
STUART: Well 1) That they had a good time and that they had some good laughs, and 2) That they can look at themselves honestly and ask themselves what is it they truly want out of life, and are they giving themselves the license to have that in their existence, or are they denying themselves and therefore as a result putting an undue pressure on themselves and then on the community around them - not admitting who they are or what they are or what they want, and so they live in fear. You just hope people maybe live a little less fearfully - be true to themselves and less restricted by the confines of society maybe sometimes.
BWW: Do you have any advice for young directors who want to get into professional theatre?
STUART: Be rigorous. Know your material. Keep challenging yourself. Be thorough in your preparation but also be prepared to play - have that sense of play and exploration in the room where you're with your actors and you can only do that in the time that you have while you're in the room with the actors. Because you'll be startled or you might learn something about the play and also learn something about yourself by what your actors bring, so that it has a collaboration. But you are also at the helm of the ship so you have to take control, so there's a balance there. You don't necessarily need to be chums with your actors but you need to respect them and you need to be willing to play with them - a good sense of humour goes a long way, and rigorous thinking, and preparation, and then play. And get a good team around you. And cast well if you can! That goes a long way. And that doesn't necessarily mean that the character is a definite exact fit for the role, but just know that the person that you've hired is someone who wants to be stretched as well, who has a malleability to them, who has a sense of play themselves and isn't just set on doing what they do all the time - that they're interested in exploring the human condition and the human stuff that these plays are made out of. Yeah, that's what I would say.
BWW: Do you have any advice for actors who want to get into professional theatre?
STUART: Know your material. Be prepared before you get to the rehearsal hall and then throw it out the window - then get in and play with who it is you are acting with. And if they throw you something then be prepared and loose enough and malleable enough to throw it back, and to receive and give back because you might come in and be startled - the scene might not end up the way you envisioned it in your bedroom that you worked on at night. I have problems reading so I've always made it a rule to try and come with as much of the text under my belt as possible. Certainly in the last many many years, I try to learn as much of the play before I get to rehearsal. What that allows me to do is to listen to my partner a whole lot more easily, so I can actually hear what it is they're saying - I'm not just listening to the cues but I'm actually receiving what they're saying a whole lot earlier in the rehearsal process then if I don't have my lines marked and then I'm just listening to a cue and trying to get on top of my own line. I've had to do that because for me to read is difficult and my eyes are down on the page and I can't - and then it becomes a very tense filled experience for me because like I said, I have problems reading. I love to read, it just takes me a long time and I can't distinguish the stuff on the page without a lot of effort. I think politeness goes a long way. I think graciousness goes a long way. Don't also shackle yourself with trying to please. Trust your instincts. Be willing to stand up for your instincts but also be willing to hear the other side. Be willing to hear the director's point of view and be willing to shift - be plastic, have plasticity and malleability. I think as time goes on too - I think when I was a younger actor, you try to throw it all on stage and throw every trick in the book out for fear that they'll miss it - they won't think you've got it all. And as time goes on, that becomes less important and you become simpler and you're more interested - I am, and I think most good actors witness as they grow up - they become more intrigued by simplicity. It has more strength somewhere. And love language - that's what we have to communicate with and our bodies. Respect your body and respect your language. When I was a young man too I tore it up and I wasted a lot of time - carried on like a mad man - and I don't regret that but I might have wasted a little bit of time. Value the time - it passes quickly.
"Entertaining Mr. Sloane" is playing at the Young Centre for the Performing Arts now through August 24th.
Tickets can be purchased in person at the box office, by phone at 416 866 8666, or online at www.soulpepper.ca.
Photo Credit: Sandy Nicholson and Cylla von Tiedemann
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