March 14, 2013

3rd Year Actors Discuss ‘Tis Pity She’s A Whore

Tis Pity Poster Poster for Tis Pity She's A Whore

The Third Year Acting Conservatory has been busy preparing for their final unmounted piece of the  year entitled 'Tis Pity She's A Whore by John Ford which goes up TONIGHT in CFT studio 139. We asked two of the actors, Leighton Williams and Emilio Vieira, about their experience on the show and what we can expect when the lights come up tonight in the studio. Here is what they had to say!

What character(s) are you playing?

Leighton: I am playing Florio in this play, he is the father of the main characters: Annabella and Giovanni.
Emilio: I share the role of Giovanni alongside Jonathon and Andrei. Giovanni is a young man going through what all young men must, the twists and turns of lust and love.

Can you tell me about the process of rehearsing this piece/your character and your experience with Tim Askew as your director?

Leighton Williams Leighton Williams

Leighton: The process of preparing for this role was a bit tricky, because in this condensed version of the play, Florio isn't really the cause behind much action, but his presence or lack-of is definitely integral to the story. Tim has helped pushed me to find this Alpha Male father figure, and use my presence as my number one tool.

Emilio: It has been such a pleasure to work with Tim on this truly challenging piece of work. The language of this play is not the language of our world today, which was a challenge, but with Tim's guidance and trust in us, I think we have accomplished our goal of telling such a juicy story, in a way which is totally relatable to audiences today. The man is a genius, and a joy to work with. He gives the actor exactly what they need to get a fire going, and through excellent use of each person's strengths and personal challenges, combines the actor's discoveries with the emotional landscape of the play. In short, to work with Tim is to be inspired to strive for more out of yourself, to elevate yourself beyond anything you ever thought you could do….and have fun doing it!

What has been the most challenging aspect of this piece for you?

Emilio Viera Emilio Viera

Leighton: My main challenge for this role was to keep Florio relevant towards the story, and allow his body and voice to command the room. When playing assertive dominant characters, it's easy to fall into the trap of playing them as one note; however, the first and last scene I am in, display such dichotomies of emotions. Finding the scale of emotion of someone who is very image conscious and powerful was the tricky/fun part.

What can an audience expect coming to see the show?

Leighton: The audience better brace themselves! Expect to see some steamy scenes, hot confrontations, scandals, and it wouldn't be a play without someone dying right? Incest, murder, and scandal, what more can you ask for?

Emilio: What should audiences expect? They should expect to enter a dangerous world, where people speak and do controversial things, from the truest places in their soul, and then must answer for their actions. They should expect to have doubts about their own personal views on the subject matter and be willing to switch allegiances with characters from moment to moment.