10 Points on a Star: Plummer Shines

Christopher Plummer.  His evolution from captain to father made an avid fan of my eight-year-old self when I first saw "The Sound of Music" in 1965.  But my slightly older self gained the proper respect and admiration as well.  So the opportunity to be in the audience for a conversation about his life and career this past June was a can't-miss for me.

Michael Kahn, Artistic Director of DC's Shakespeare Theatre Company, conducted the chat~and it really did feel like a delightful "chat," not a formal presentation.   Mr. Plummer was endearingly soft-spoken and unassuming, with an infectious laugh. In fact, the best parts of the evening for me were the times that he was chuckling so hard that the audience just couldn't help but start laughing along, without even having heard the "punch line."  

There's no way I could truly capture the life journey he took us on for that 90 minutes, but here are ten of my favorite "points" of this true star:

1. He got started in acting in his hometown of Quebec because he was painfully shy, and found that by hiding behind the character of someone else, he could overcome his fear.
2. He really wanted to imitate the voices of actors he admired, and went on to become a very good mimic.
3. He is grateful for his early experiences working on radio in French and English, and for the influence the French culture of art and films had on him growing up.  He came to New York City in the era when radio was still a prominent medium for actors, so his prior experience helped.
4. When he was fourteen years old, thanks to his mother, who took him to "everything," he saw Rachmaninoff play.  
5. He learned from some great teachers, such as Sidney Lumet, who helped him mix the technical and emotional aspects of acting; but he feels that the best teacher is the audience, because "you can't fool the audience; they'll let you know" [what's working and what's not].
6. When asked how he maintains his performance during the run of a show, he credited the nature of having a different audience every night.  He can't wait to see what will happen, and sees the audience as his "partner" during the show.
7. He felt he'd "matured" as an actor when he stopped referencing other actors' work, and gained the confidence in his own choices on stage.  But he doesn't feel as he has "mastered the craft."
8. A part he'd like to do again is Lear.
9. He's seriously proud of having done Star Trek.  And he was "considered" for "Lord of the Rings" but was not offered the role (he sometimes reads accounts that he "turned them down," but that isn't true).  He's also very grateful for "that picture with the nuns."
10. He "wouldn't dare teach," because he'd never "presume" to know better.  But his advice to young actors, including his daughter Amanda Plummer (currently starring in the Off Broadway play "The Two-Character Play," and of whom he is clearly extremely proud) is to "prepare for constant rejection"  and know that you will constantly have to "walk around naked in front of people" (in the figurative sense).

Every story Christopher Plummer told had the audience riveted, and the time flew.  I know I wasn't alone in being captivated by this legendary actor; the multitude of stories alone was an embarrassment of riches.  But it was his genuineness, humor, self awareness and willingness to be open and vulnerable with respect to his struggles with ego and alcohol, that really drew me in.  This was one instantaneous standing ovation that I felt honored to be on my feet for!

Thanks to Michael Kahn and The Shakespeare Theatre Company for the wonderful evening!