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RICHARD CHAMBERLAIN © 2004. Okihei Enterprise, Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Tribute to Richard Chamberlain |
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Conversations: Theatre & Dance Dept.,
At the "Lab Theatre", a small theatre in the
Kennedy Theatre
Hawaii's first Conversations speaker is artist,
singer, stage,
Currently he lives at his Hawaiian island home
on Oahu,
Dozens of interviews have been completed to
date,
Richard Chamberlain's experience and knowledge
of the industry
"Conversations" was designed for high profile
guild
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| Talking Story
On June 22, local members of Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and guests gathered at the Earle Ernst Lab Theatre at UH-Manoa to listen to their colleague, Richard Chamberlain, speak on acting, on writing…on life. The occasion was the Hawai‘i premiere of “Conversations,” which, according to the SAG Foundation, “was designed for high-profile guild members to share their experience and knowledge to help educate and motivate guild members.” “Conversations” is akin to the popular Bravo network’s, “Inside the Actors Studio,” although project coordinator Bob Nuchow claims, “It’s better!” Nuchow, the cousin of Camryn Manheim (“The Practice”), created and runs the talk story series, which has given some 200 well-known actors the opportunity to get up close and personal with lesser-known compatriots across the country since the program’s inception in 2001. “I scout where films are going to be shooting,” Nuchow said, “and get in contact with the cast and film publicist to try and get them during non-production days. That’s how I got Sir Ben Kingsley out in New Mexico. I had Juliette Binoche out in San Francisco…I just look all over the country. Even if there’s not a branch, if there’s enough members in the area, an acting school…we’ll go to where the actors are.” Nuchow’s favorite “conversationalist” so far? “Sir Ian McKellan,” he said without hesitation. “Amazing. He’s done two of them. After the first one he goes to his publicist and says, ‘I rather enjoyed that, that was rather fun, I’d like to do that again.’” Richard Chamberlain – the mini-series king – has now broken the ice on O‘ahu. Speaking without a trace of arrogance or condescension, Chamberlain captivated his audience of approximately 100 actors for a good two hours. He displayed a knack for story telling, offering humorous behind-the-scenes anecdotes and philosophical musings, touching upon a variety of subjects. • On Directing: “I like a director who has an eye for truth…a director who knows where the focus is and how to get the focus in the right place, a director who creates an atmosphere of importance…and a director who’s not cruel.” • On Danielle Radcliffe in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: “He was so centered… he had found a place of such extraordinary knowledge of himself, such amazing honesty. As a person, I had lived outside myself for so long, trying to please everybody, trying to make nice friends and manipulate the world to love me…and [Daniel Radcliffe] had this real integrity…I’m sure he would have no idea what I’m talking about.” • On “Coming out” in his book Shattered Love: A Memoir: “It was within the process of writing about it that I suddenly realized that all the stuff I had been battling with, that I had tortured myself with all my life, was bullshit. Was absolutely bullshit. It simply didn’t exist. Being gay…says nothing. You say you’re straight. What does that tell me? Almost nothing about you. You could be smart, you could be dumb. You could be loving, you could be hateful. It doesn’t tell me anything about your heart, except the general category of the people you sleep with.” Although “Conversations” is funded to primarily to benefit SAG members, you don’t have to be an actor or a guest of one to attend. Log onto www.sagfoundation.org for more info and to get on the E-mail list. Next notable due to appear here? Lou Diamond Phillips in September. Becky Maltby
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