BE NATURAL!

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Issue 1416, 14 June 1917, Page 31

BE NATURAL!

KATHLENE MACDONELL’S CREED.

THE POWER OF A VOICE.

Titian-coloured hair, grey eyes expressive of humour and sincerity, a voice soft and low, was the impression formed of Miss Kathlene MacDonell by a “Review” representative. “I’ve been lucky in my stage life,” she starts off with. “Graduated in Canada, and allured by the footlights, I got my first engagement without the slightest trouble. It was a very small part, that anyone could have taken, but after five weeks I was playing lead.” Since then she has forged ahead, reaching the Mecca of all players—New York. “ ‘Daddy Long Legs’ is certainly a lovely little play. There was a tremendous vogue for a time in America for this type. First of all there was Peg o’ My Heart,’ then ‘Daddy Long Legs,’ ‘Marjorie Daw,’ and ‘Polyanna.’ Have you noticed how plays run in cycles?” she asked. “One season there’ll be the crook, the next the triangle, then the sweet appealing play, then something else. You’ll notice, too, the sameness in books. I suppose it is really a big thought wave.”

“Judy is a delicious young personage, sweet but obvious. Mark the contrast in the character of Miriam in ‘The Outcast.’ The play is one of the best I have ever seen in my life. It is a great study. It is not a pleasant play, like ‘Daddy Long Legs,’ for instance, but it is just wonderful. The psychology of it interests me tremendously. The character of Miriam is more of an achievement than that of Judy. It gives scope for more emotional play. You couldn’t possibly find two parts more removed than those. It is in the contrast that one gets a chance to become flexible. The problem of Miriam, the girl of the streets who becomes regenerated by her love for a man, is handled more delicately and wonderfully than in any other play I have done. The girl develops astoundingly, and it is this development that makes the characterisation such a study. It is something to do. Yes, I’m very, very keen on this play.”

“It’s a subtle thing playing comedy,” chatted the young actress, reverting to “Daddy Long Legs.” “The great secret in keeping comedy fresh and spontaneous is never to look for the laughs in the same place. You lose the ease of the performance when you strive for response. You get a laugh one night, and unconsciously look for it in the same place next time. That is fatal. Be natural. If the laugh doesn’t come in one particular place, you’ll get it in another. Different audiences see different jokes and have different viewpoints of humour.

“In emotional work, too, one should never let the audience be conscious of hard work. I think it is just frightful to give the last ounce of strength to a dramatic impersonation. One should always have some strength in reserve.”

Miss MacDonell is a great believer in work. “Acting is a great, great art, and most subtle,” she added, “and one for which there is no set standard. You can’t get a diploma for it.” The voice she considers is the principal medium for success. “I am a crank for voice production. It should be part of the equipment of every actress. You’ll notice in the ‘Outcast’ that one has to call on every quality of the voice. It is a drama of words, and without great colour in the voice much of the intensity would be lost. Get your voice properly placed and you can do anything with it.” There is no time for easing-up in Miss MacDonell’s creed. She is a firm believer in an actress being conversant with languages, as it makes for distinct enunciation and clearness of diction. Naturalness is the watchword of this clever young actress. “The fundamental principle of art,” she says, “is getting as near to nature as possible.” And, being the essence of both, that is why Miss MacDonell is a great artist.