When leaving the theatre after seeing “The Tempest”, I
thought how marvellous it would be to interview the man behind the production.
I was lucky to find myself at the Plato restaurant, conversing with John
Martlew only days after arranging the interview through the phone, not by email.
Though I had a line of questions prepared, it developed spontaneously in an
hour-long conversation.
Miscellaneous
Firstly, what is your connection to Charles University?
I taught here from 1992-1999 and that is when I
started doing the plays. I think it was in 1997 I just decided I’d like to do a
drama workshop. Eventually students from the Philosophy and Law faculties were
brought in and the general philosophy is that the actors must be students and
non-native speakers. The purpose was to get students to do Shakespeare also
outside the classroom... and yes, that’s how it all started. I always come in Autumn
for a Thanksgiving party and then got 5-6 weeks to produce it and I come in
again during Easter, so we produce about 2 plays per year.
When did your relationship with Shakespeare start?
At university, where I directed “Measure for Measure”.
I always had a passion for Shakespeare. I studied English literature and Greek
and Latin. English universities are different than here, because there are so
many societies that also have funding. I always preferred directing than acting.
Did you ever act?
Yes, of course. For example I played Ferdinand once.
But I still prefer to direct than to perform.
Why so?
I always make a distinction between actors and performers.
A performer is always himself during acting while the actor loses himself. Lisa
Minnelli, for example, is a performer – she’s always herself, doing something. I
always find it hard to lose myself – so that’s one reason. Also I suppose
directing is like conducting, the way one puts everything together. It is
always a matter of interaction with the people, seeing what you can get out of
them and this is what interests me.. However, I don’t meticulously plan a
production before I starts; “The Tempest” was one of those.
About “The Tempest“
Do you like the play itself?
I am not actually that fond of “The Tempest”. I prefer
“Measure for Measure”, it was very rewarding and so was “Twelfth Night”.
Why are you not fond of “The Tempest”?
Because to me, the characters are shallow, they are
impersonal! Prospero is vicious, yet he is still a victim. What I can’t see in
the play is a general theme, a moral – it moves towards forgiveness, but you
don’t feel it to be the main idea. Neither is Revenge strong enough to be the
main theme. There are hundreds of interpretations that see Prospero as God, but
you cannot push any of these theories forward. There was even a production that
saw him as a myth of colonisation, a superior spirit, but you can’t work out a
consistent idea. This happens often in other Shakesperian plays and characters
– even the villains suddenly have moments when they have another side! Caliban
in a single moment turns from a negative character to gaining sympathy and
being believable. The human condition is superior.. That is what makes it
interesting, there are always 1, 2 lines that change everything. Romeo says: “O, she
doth teach the torches to burn bright” and after that he is completely
lost and eventually dies.
Where did you rehearse?
In my flat! There is a big room and during the
weekends we rehearsed at the Faculty. During the week it is virtually
impossible to find a free room.
Which was the most difficult part of producing “The Tempest”?
The lighting, timing for rehearsals, sound... And
moving it from my flat where we rehearsed into the theatre.
There were evident influences of Japanese theatre in “The Tempest”. Why
so?
I worked in Japan for first 2, then 3 years - I taught
at a university there.
About Prospero, I noticed that while in the original text he is
portrayed to carry his staff around the stage, in the play he throws it away at
the very beginning!
Yes, the props get onto the stage, but also must go off the stage! Generally the audience
notices the big things, not the small things.
Have you seen any theatre adaptations of it before?
No, I have only seen one production. I don’t see
theatre much, for I am abroad a lot. In England you have to be near London to
see productions and I’m not. And I’m quite fussy I suppose – if I’m not happy
with the production, I leave during the interval.
Do you consider yourself to be critical?
Where Shakespeare is concerned, yes.
Are you self-critical?
I have to be. Sometimes the actors cannot do what you
want them to do and you have to accept that – but I try to bring out of them
what I want.
Did that happen during “The Tempest”?
No, actually. That was the first time that did not
happen. Mikuláš Mařík, for example, who played Caliban, whenever I was to tell
him what I want from him, he was already doing it. It is quite noticeable that
the “old” people have a consistency of performance. From experience, I know
that if the body is somehow connected to the text, you know they can act.
Like a connection?
Yes, a connection. You can read the text beautifully,
but if the body is not somehow involved, the performance is generally not so
good.
Was there someone who surprised you at “The Tempest”?
Stefano (played
by Milan Růžička, ed. note) was a massive surprise. Playing drunk is very
difficult; you over-play, waving your arms, stumbling... But I did not expect
that kind of performance to come out of him! He read very well at the casting,
but the quality of his performance amazed me. You can never tell this, how very
good they are going to be, all you know is that it won’t be dreadful.
Are you content with “The Tempest”?
Yes, especially having the shortage of time in mind.
Generally it was the way I wanted it to be, I suppose it was okay.
“Okay”?
[Laughs] I don’t see it, it was just okay. I try not
to interfere during the plays, like during the pause walk up and say “It’s so
very slow today, liven it up a bit”. And sometimes it happens that the audience
is not responding as you expect... I have given negative feedback once or twice
when the people did not take it seriously, but otherwise I am amazed at how
well the actors generally are, especially in this production.
On the Charles University Workshop Production and its future
Do you consider there to be a difference between English and Czech
students?
Czech students still read books! But then, I never
taught English students. I can say however that I find my experience here very
enriching; the interest, the way they enlighten me with their knowledge,
enlighten me with their youth. I am an old man, you see and I am amazed when
they treat me like one of them.
Do you have a favourite production?
The ones that become favourites are the ones that do
what you wanted them to do. The “Twelfth Night” did exactly that. The “Merry
Wives of Windsor” was very successful with the audience though it wasn’t my
favourite. I was pleased with “Measure for Measure” and especially pleased with
“The Winter’s Tale”. The people in it wanted
to be in it and also because of this it had a level and so I consider it to be
the best.
What play are you planning on producing next?
No idea really. But when choosing a play, I keep three
things in mind. Firstly, I have to like the play myself. Then, I have to have
the cast, the people to do it. I have to be able to imagine them in the play.
And thirdly, the play has to be accessible to the audience – it should not be
full of words.
How does the casting work?
I do it personally. We do have a website, but I prefer
to keep it within the university. We perhaps miss people, good actors, but we
have to restrict ourselves. It happened though that I have lost contacts to two
great actors who I have never found since... It is basically a matter of
personal connection. I usually go speak to the first years, mainly in the
Translatology department, especially because the head is very supportive of the
project.
What about the Anglophone department?
We get a few people from there as well – a few, because
again, there are very little men. Shy or not interested... Many good actors are
shy, not the show-off types. Interestingly, there have been great actors from
the Translatology department. However, we never had anyone from the Faculty of
Education! The main problem is finding men, male actors in the English
department; there are many women. We always had more men interested in acting
women, maybe because women know that there are 4 female parts in Shakespeare?
But no, I always try to recruit actors from especially the first years.
Isn’t it easier to work with male actors?
No, I don’t find it so! Men can be equally
hot-blooded, as well as more sensitive. I don’t find a difference really, but
there are more men coming to audition. Perhaps the girls are more shy... In
England, I think, there would be more women interested in acting than men, but
that is just my personal speculation.
It’s been 20 years since the first production of the Charles University
Workshop. Given Prospero’s final line, ‘farewell to the stage’, does it in your
view have a connection to the Workshop’s continuance?
I did not think of that. But I do hope that the
production will go forward. If I stopped, I think I would be the one who could
carry it on, for he has the support of the faculty. One does not know! But the
main thing is trying to get new people in it, for doing it is what is
important. So okay, one wants the production to be as good as it can, but the
actors and audience are important factors, together with the ones I have listed
before.
Final questions on Shakespeare and drama
Do you produce also plays other than Shakespeare’s? If not, whose and
what work would you choose?
The main reason why we do Shakespeare is because of
the connection to the Faculty. I did co-produce Wilde’s Importance of Being Earnest, but that was just an attempt to get
people to produce something themselves. If I were here all the time I would do
some modern plays.
Have you read any Czech drama?
Some, like Čapek, but a long time ago. There is really
no point in doing a Czech play in English in Prague, same goes with doing a
Greek play in English in Prague.
In the Literature on the British Isles seminar we studied “Merchant of
Venice”. Any chance of you producing that?
No – for we haven’t got a Shylock! There was this one
man who was in “Measure for Measure” and another play, but left soon. He might
have been the role, but I don’t see anyone at the moment. Plus, it is a
difficult play to stage, with the caskets, the frequent change of setting...
If you could ask Shakespeare a question, what would it be?
“Where did you come from? How did you manage to do it?
How did it happen?” He has this incredible insight.
- Prepared by Anna Hupcejová
