The “I-can-do-it-too” moment got sparked during one of those wintery weekend days when I was watching the 2014 Winter Olympics interviews.
A guest at that time was 55-year old German Prince Hubertus von Hohenlohe, Mexico’s lone Winter Olympian (he was born in Mexico). When asked what kept him going as an alpine skier at his age, he said something to the effect, “I am still following my dreams”. Well, not that that was profound epiphany to me, but it struck me as an inspiration. I, too, have dreams and should follow them as well.
I immediately did some introspection and realizing that acting was on that list, I was immediately motivated to check the internet for any auditions in our area. Well, much to my surprise, there was this call for actors to be in the annual production of “The Gathering”, a modern take on “The Last Supper”. I filled out the on-line application, submitted my resume, and waited with bated breath for a response. A day or two later I was notified to come and deliver the “Judas” monologue along with another monologue of a funny character I have portrayed in a different play. To prepare for the former, I checked Leonardo da Vinci’s “Last Supper” on the internet to locate where the disciples sat so I could accordingly choreograph my blocking. Audition night came and there I was alone on stage performing both monologues to my heart’s content, all the while seeing and hearing both director and assistant director’s reactions. I was glad to know that both were pleased. I went home not expecting anything since actors usually hate jinxing themselves. Notwithstanding, I was really hoping to be cast as “Judas” and as fate would have it, I was cast as he. Gosh – was I so thrilled that I immediately notified everyone I knew. I jokingly added that I might go to hell for betraying Jesus. Har, de, har, har!
Having the characterization somewhat already developed in my mind, I was more than ready to deliver my lines with emotions at first reading when the newly cast actors, director, assistant director met together for the first time. However, my heart sank, when after the first reading the director told us to just read the lines sans inflections/emotions the next round. Hmmm…does he have a different take on the character, I asked myself, especially when we were made to watch a video of a previous performance with Judas being played by another actor, a Caucasian. I wasn’t sure whether my discomfort was noticeable to him during the video presentation, but I tried my best not to “hear” or “watch” this actor’s take on the character since I wanted my interpretation to be my own and not influenced by others. Thank goodness, the actor didn’t turn out to be Laurence Olivier, Al Pacino, or Daniel Day-Lewis. That assessment along with the fact that the director wanted us to come up with our own interpretation and to really “own” it helped to cement my take on the character. The rest is history.
I must say that I still consider myself very lucky to have “stumbled” into the audition notice which eventually led me into portraying a very misunderstood and hated character. “Judas” has now become one of my favorite and unforgettable roles which I have now portrayed for 5 years, missing 2017 annual production since I made my eventful visit to the Philippines. I am grateful that the director continued to cast me and trust me to portray him, especially since I am Asian with English as the second language (ESL), besting Caucasian actors in the process. By the way, the actor who has played “Jesus” in this production for many years intimated to me the first night we rehearsed together that he appreciated how I internalized the character. Well, my portrayal of a character (any for that matter) will only be as good as the energy I am getting directly from actors I have lines with and indirectly from the cast, the set, the environment and, of course, the director. I must not forget the audience reaction. And I continued to get a lot of that in this play. I am hoping to portray “Judas” again in 2020. Am I hearing a chorus of, “Break a leg”?
Oh, and thanks to Prince Hubertus for the inspiration.
