Due to a quirk in Damon's schedule, the reading he was supposed to direct has come to me. And, now that we all think about it, a woman directing Shaw's "Mrs. Warren's Profession" makes a lot of sense.
It has been my pleasure to get a cast together of great talents and forage my way through this script. Every time I read it, I find another question, deeper than the last and, while I find fewer answers, it is more the fun of discovering the questions themselves than a definitive answer.
Why does Vivie choose the life she does?
Why can't Vivie and Mrs. Warren see the parallels between their lives?
Why can't Mrs. Warren acknowledge the new world order?
Why are there no villains in this play? How can each character make so much sense when they all have such radically different views?
It is weaving these questions around the plot that is more fun than filling in the dots. And, so I hope to bring that to this reading - a sense of who these people are and their agendas, rather than a bold, commanding statement on why one person's world view trumps another. The world isn't so clear as that and if Shaw has made anything clear in his script, it is that.
It has been a while since I've directed. And certainly directing such good actors at that. I am humbled and pleased by the experience and beg patience of them and any audience member that graces our goodly BSM home (tea and cookies being a certain draw).
Our mission at PAC is to bring the classical and rare to life. This does not come without the price of women's roles and dilemma of serving them well. Bringing Mrs. Warren and Vivie to the stage with a women at the helm is one step in the right direction and one I hope, we the PAC, continue to explore.
Join us. I will not have baked the cookies but will certainly help you enjoy them.
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