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Performing Arts General

Standing Naked in the Wings

edited by Lynda Mason Green

Publisher
Oxford University Press
Initial publish date
Apr 1999
Category
General
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9780195414714
    Publish Date
    Apr 1999
    List Price
    $19.95
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9780195411959
    Publish Date
    Sep 1997
    List Price
    $29.95

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Out of print

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Description

This delightful collection is the only work to bring together first-hand stories from Canada's acting community. Funny, shocking, embarrassing and poignant, these are the stories that actors tell each other, providing an intimate glance into the world behind the camera and beyond thefootlights. Arranged thematically, it starts with "The Audition", a chapter that focuses on one of the more humiliating experiences that all actors must face. Among the many stories is one by Patrick McKenna called "Dead Man Dancing" that relates a disastrous audition and amply shows why one of thetwo Gemini awards he won this year was for comedy. Othe chapters look at mentors, directors and producers, working with kids and animals, missed cues and lines, touring, audiences and fans, pranks and escapades, and live radio and TV performances. "Big Wigs and Legends" contains anecdotes starringnames like Paul Newman, Henry Fonda, Sir John Gielgud, Julie Andrews, Vanessa Redgrave, Steven Speilberg, Richard Burton, Barbra Striesand, Laurence Olivier, and Katherine Hepburn.Included are many stories from the Stratford Festival: Scott Wentworth cracking up during Richard III, an actor on stage catching fire during a production of Othello and William Hutt's dying in an unconventional manner when Christopher Plummer's Hamlet could not get his sword out of the scabbard(Polonius' death did not look accidental). Along the way you'll find "Bare Bods and Bodily Functions", which includes an anecdote by Bruce Greenwood that begins intriguingly "Standing naked in the wings before an entrance...," as well as "Stunts and SFX", which includes Timothy Findley's story fromthe first season of Stratford in 1953, when he had to make a "ten-foot leap [from the balustrade] through the dark...and not land on Alec Guiness, whose single spotlight was the only light there was."Brought together by two veteran Canadian actors, Standing Naked in the Wings features a star-studded cast giving the performance of their lives.

About the author

Contributor Notes

Lynda Mason Green has made a successful living as an actor in Canada for 20 years, best known for her work in series such as "War of the Worlds" and "Night Heat", as well as movies and mini-series, including "Amerika", "If You Could Hear What I See", "Improper Channels", and "North of ChangMai". In the past few years, she has been writing, directing, and producing corporate video under the auspices of her own company LMG Productions. Tedde Moore is the granddaughter of Mavor Moore, and granddaughter of Dora Mavor Moore (after whom 'the Dora: theatre award was named). She has beenpartof the theatre/television/film/radio scene in Canada since 1950. Most recently she has appeared in "The PSI Factor" and is remembered for her role as 'Miss Shields' in the film "A Christmas Story". She has also worked as Story Editor or Creative Consultant for three feature films.

Editorial Reviews

"I screamed helplessly with laughter during a good part of this wonderfully entertaining collection of actors' anecdotes." Calgary Herald

"This very engaging book, a perfect givt for the theatre buff. Or yourself." U of T Bookstore Review

"The strength of the collections is its warmth and intimacy. Many of the stories really give the impression of eavesdropping on a couple of actors chating in a bar." Toronto Star

"Standing Naked in the Wings is a treasury of theatre lore over the past 50 years...[it] captures the flights--and falls--in fascinating detail, dialogue and punch line. The book is a natural for anyone in love with Canadian show business." Hamilton Spectator

"...[a] funny and revealing book about the truth of that business of which there's no business like it." Vancouver Sun

"If you want to be moved to tears and laughter by the backstage stories of our theatre artists, get yourself a copy of Standing Naked in the Wings...Reading these stories is like settling down for a delicious, gossipy chat with your favorite actor." Mira Friedlander, Performanc Magazine