For this week’s blog post, dramaturg Emily MacLeod got to chat with Rebecca Speas who plays Celia in our production of As You Like It.
(Fun fact: Emily and Rebecca met many moons ago when they were counselors at a Shakespeare camp together. That they got to work together again after almost a decade makes them both very happy.)
Rebecca Speas plays Celia in As You Like It
Emily MacLeod: What was your first impression of Celia, and how much has your perception of the character shifted during the rehearsal process?
Rebecca Speas: I have always loved Celia’s mix of humor, loyalty, passion, and straight-talking. She loves Rosalind more than anyone, to the point that she is willing to run away from her father’s court when he banishes her, but she is also not afraid to tell Rosalind what she really thinks. She’s funny and clever and empathetic, and I was so excited to play her. But it wasn’t until we got into rehearsals that I realized how complex she is. I distinctly remember when we were discussing the scene where Celia’s father Duke Frederick banishes Rosalind from the court, and Celia stands up to him to speak on her behalf. I said without thinking, “But Celia is Frederick’s daughter, she knows how to play the game of thrones!” And it was in that moment that I realized how political and strategic Celia can be. She grew up in this court as the daughter of a cold, calculating man who banishes his brother and usurps his throne, so maybe her cheerfulness and desire for everyone to be happy is less of a default setting and more of a deliberate choice.
EM: How is she similar or different than other roles you’ve played (maybe in other shows with BST)?
RS: I seem to be in a bit of a pattern at BST in playing straight-talking servants/best friends (Antiphila in The Maid’s Tragedy, Diaphanta in The Changeling) and/or straight-up murderers (Bosola in The Duchess of Malfi.) So while Celia doesn’t murder anyone (at least to my knowledge), she does sort of fall into that trend of supportive friends who can tell when you’re sad and wants to comfort you and make you laugh, which I fully 100% support. However, in the grand scheme of other roles that I’ve played in my life, Celia is a bit of an anomaly. I’m a tall, loud, low-voiced, fat female actor—so like it or not, I haven’t played a lot of women who fall in love, with all of the vulnerability that entails. So Celia—with all her passion, goofiness, laughter, loyalty, and her absolute certainty in her feelings until the moment the rug is pulled from under her—has been a gift. She’s tall, she’s loud, she’s low-voiced, she’s fat, and she’s a breath of fresh air.
Ian Blackwell Rogers and Rebecca Speas in The Duchess of Malfi
EM: What has the experience of being in the full season of rep at BST been like as an actor? How has it shaped your relationships with your fellow rep cast mates?
RS: One of my favorite things about being in the full season has been getting to work with those four fellas [Ben Peter, Ian Blackwell Rogers, Charlie Cook, and Jared Graham] all season long. We give each other a hard time…but they’re all so talented and funny. You always need to be on your toes when you’re in a scene with them because they are continually bringing something new to the table (ugh, don’t tell them I said that, I have a reputation to maintain).
EM: Celia spends a lot of time onstage where she is watching the action but not necessarily taking part in it. How do you approach that challenge as an actor?
RS: Let me tell y’all something: the hardest thing to do onstage is actively listen to scenes you’ve seen dozens of times before, and like you said, Celia does a LOT of it. For me it was a multi-layered process—I spent those first rehearsals of the Rosalind/Orlando wooing scenes just as Rebecca the Actor watching Farrell and Ben work their way through the text and make discoveries. I could just enjoy it as an audience member. Then, once I had keyed into Celia and her character arc a bit more, I’d watch those scenes and figure out how Celia would feel, react, or respond to what was happening. That way I became an active, if quiet or observing, presence in the scene, and my brain was less inclined to wander in the space between my lines. It also really helps that Farrell, Ben, Dan, Amber, and everyone else are all fabulously talented and hilarious actors who are a joy to watch.
EM: So jumping off of that idea of actor-as-audience, what is your favorite part of the show to watch right now? A moment for the audience to watch out for? And what is your favorite part to perform?
RS: Favorite part to watch: the wrestling match between Orlando and Charles, Charlie’s performance as Adam, Audrey’s song.
A moment to watch out for: Rosalind and Orlando’s second wooing scene. Ben and Farrell are doing lovely work, and if you look closely, you’ll see how Celia feels about the whole situation.
Favorite part to perform: the banishment scene with Ian and Farrell. Feelings for DAYS.
– Emily MacLeod, production dramaturg