How do actors transform themselves from lovely, friendly people you’d like to meet for coffee, into the dark and menacing, quite unfriendly-looking villains of the stage?
Lucky for us, we have someone to illustrate!
The Duchess of Malfi is the MFA thesis production for 3rd year actor Jason Craig West, who will play the scheming Bosolo. Join West for a behind the scenes peek at how he becomes Bosolo every night:
Unless the makeup requirement is beyond my ability, I always prefer to apply my own. It is a great way to forget about the many responsibilities of the day and focus on the task at hand. Namely, to bring a character to life. The first night we did make up was like meeting a pen pal, face to face. I knew the character intimately, knew his fears and desires, but i had never seen his face before.
The character is not brought to full life by simply painting your face. It starts with studying the play and researching the world in which it takes place. It continues with exploration of that character through the rehearsal process. Little by little the character will start to come to life in you.
This is my favorite part of the process. Every article of clothing or prop added fuels my imagination and makes easier and easier to breath life into the character. It engages the imagination in a different, more complete way. I am proud of the “Duchess” cast. This is not an easy show but we’ve all worked hard to get to opening night. Let’s break a leg!
THE DUCHESS OF MALFI, on stage in the Wells-Metz Theatre February 3-11, 2017!
See more images from the production on our Facebook page and Instagram.
We’ll see you at the Theatre!
