Interview/Michael Pennington/Sweet
William
Rogues and
Vagabonds web site,
Michael
Pennington is bringing his superb one-man show, Sweet William to the Little
Angel Theatre, Islington this August. In it, Pennington explores his
relationship with the writer with whom he has had a very personal relationship
since the age of eleven. “It all started when I went and saw Paul Rogers and
Ann Todd in ‘Macbeth’ at the Old Vic. That was in 1955.” Pennington chuckles at
having given away his age so easily. “Since then Shakespeare has been a major
part of my life. ‘Sweet William’ is Pennington’s personal homage to ‘William’,
although the actor is at pains to point out this is “no routine anthology show.”
Gone are the days when John Gielgud could make a TV series dedicated to the
Ages of Man, taking the opportunity to play his greatest hits: “Gielgud was
just displaying his own splendour – my show is something completely different.”
Of
course, Pennington is no stranger to appearing in glorious isolation on stage. “I
have a history of solo plays. I presented one about Chekhov – full of elaborate costumes
and lighting. With ‘Sweet William’, I wanted to get back to something much
simpler – just the actor and some light and a wonderful space.” Pennington has
worked with the best. Sir Peter Hall and Michael Bodganov are two directors he
respects and admires. Now it is time to tell Shakespeare’s story on his own,
though. “We know quite a lot about Shakespeare’s life, it’s just that we can
never know enough!” Pennington adds that “life was so different in
This
is not to suggest that ‘Sweet William’ is a straightforward biography or a
simple monologue of various Shakespearean excerpts. Far from it. Shakespeare,
so Pennington tells me, is the “bindweed – I often digress about my own
theatrical experiences.” Fascinating as these digressions are sure to be, Pennington
is adamant that he doesn’t want it to be a “luvvy show!” What we are introduced
to are occasionally obscure and enlightening passages from plays like ‘Henry V’,
‘Pericles’ and ‘A Winter’s Tale’: “I have almost wilfully chosen speeches which
are unfamiliar, but the root is the narrative – the narrative is me and Shakespeare
and the business of Shakespeare.”
Early
on in the creative process, Pennington asked his agent how best to describe ‘Sweet
William.’ With surprising insight and poetic flair (sorry to all you erudite
agents reading this), Pennington’s suggested, “It is like your love letter to
your best friend.” Now that’s what I call an agent worth the percentage.
“It’s
a play of two halves, about 45 minutes each way – and just me,” adds Pennington,
talking about the logistics of performance. It is surprising to hear the ‘just’
word when describing Pennington’s presence at the Little Angel. He has already
made his mark at the venue when the RSC brought their original production of
Greg Doran’s ‘Venus and Adonis.’ “Peter Glanville [the artistic director at the
Little Angel] has been thinking of branching out from puppet work, and he
invited me to return to this wonderful little theatre with ‘Sweet William.’ It is
so exciting and intimate working in a space that only seats 100 people. It’s
like doing the show as if it was in my own sitting room.” The play itself has
been honed over several months, with acclaimed one-off performances at
festivals and theatres around the country.
When
asked about the creative process, Pennington confirms that he directed himself,
“although I showed it to a half a dozen trusty friends – mostly playwrights and
other actors – just to expose it and get a grilling.” You can be sure, with Pennington’s
pedigree there was little ‘grilling’ and much support and encouragement. “Well,
it sums up all that I have been up to in my acting career so far.”
The
most gratifying aspect of the show, apart from being invited back to the Little
Angel? “Definitely the number of kids who see it and are enthralled. This is a
production that speaks to all ages – it’s great for college students and
graduates as well – but everyone will, I hope, get great pleasure from my
personal ‘Love Letter’ to Shakespeare.” ‘Sweet William’ is a love letter I’m
sure the Bard would have been delighted to receive. It’s sender the inimitable Michael
Pennington.