Q&A: Sam Mendes
The next time you hear from this Academy Award-winning director, it might be in the form of the upcoming James Bond film. But at the moment, he’s tackling another British icon, Shakespeare, in a theatrical initiative titled the Bridge Project, now in its second round. Laura Dozier had a chat with the director before The Tempest hits the Hong Kong stage.
Did experiences from directing the first set of plays of the Bridge Project inform your approach to this second round?
Every project is different, every play is a surprise. And every actor and company of actors need different things.
Does directing a classical play like The Tempest ever seem like beating a dead horse?
You only ever attempt a play if you feel you can bring something new to it, and The Tempest is no different. If it ever felt like beating a dead horse, I wouldn’t do it.
You’ve been quoted as saying that theatre is your wife and film is your mistress. Do you still feel that way?
That was just me trying to say something smart. What I really meant was that they are quite different, and I love both equally.
You’ve said that the scene in American Beauty of the floating plastic bag is one of the things that you are most proud of accomplishing in any medium. Have there been scenes in your theatre career that gave you similar satisfaction?
Yes. Many more than I have on film, actually. But they are not permanent, and live on only in the memory – which in some strange way seems to make them more special. There’s one or two in The Tempest.
What can you tell us about the Bridge Project part three? Is Kevin Spacey still planning to perform? Will it definitely be the final instalment?
Yes – Kevin Spacey will perform, and no – I don’t think it will be the final instalment.
The Tempest is at APA’s Lyric Theatre from Thu 25 to Sun 28. Sold out.
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