Interview with Barbara Gaines - Artistic Director, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre

Barbara Gaines has been Artistic Director of Chicago Shakespeare Theatre (formerly Shakespeare Repertory) since 1986 when she founded the company.

Rachael: What do you love most about directing?

Barbara: Discovering Shakespeare and working with the actors. But mostly it is unearthing the riches in the text with fabulous actors. I love being in the rehearsal room. It's my favorite activity.

When did you know you wanted to be a director?

I really didn't know until I was hit over the head with it. I had no dreams of being a director; I just kept asking for all these people to direct when I started the company, and everyone kept saying no. So, I was sort of left doing it. I asked a number of people.

You started off as an actress?

I started off as an actress. While I was acting, I was also teaching Shakespeare. I asked well known people to come direct for me and they would say, "Well, who are you?" and "No." So I thought I had better do something about this. Nobody else was around and nobody knew really how to direct Shakespeare. Since I was teaching so much, it was an easy transition to go from directing the scenes to directing the plays, but it hadn't been a dream of mine. Starting the theater was a dream of mine but directing just sort of bit me in the back.

Who were your roles models when you started acting?

Richard Kneeland and Rue McLanahan were working when I was a teenager. I got to see them do summer stock. Richard did our King Lear in 1993, but when I was 19 I worked with him in New Hampshire. Richard has since died. He died in 1996 but he was a brilliant King Lear and a great friend. And Rue McLanahan did the whole summer out in this playhouse in New Hampshire. I remember just sitting backstage, watching acting the way it was meant to be. Every moment was alive; every moment changed from one night to the other. They were charismatic, thrilling actors - it was an honor to watch them every night. So I was interested in working with people of that caliber. I was not interested in working with people who were less than that caliber. The good news is that I ended up in Chicago and that caliber is here.

What is the best quote you have heard either about acting or about directing?

I think that the most important thing to me is that acting is all about listening. It's about the other person on stage and what you need from that person.

What are your three all time favorite productions and why?

All's Well That Ends Well is one of my favorites, because it was our last one. I thought it was perfectly cast and it worked. The whole show worked in a very surprising way and almost everyone who saw it was moved by it. I think it was a surprise because All's Well That Ends Well is rarely done, and when it is done, people don't like it very much and I think the audiences fell in love with this production, as did I. But I love each and every production that we have done for very different reasons.

What about other productions you have seen at other theatres?

I rarely see Shakespeare at other theaters, to tell you the truth, because it's bad for me. It's best if I don't have any history with a play. So I try not to see other Shakespeare because I want always to start with a clear page. I don't want to be influenced.

What about other contemporary plays that you have seen that you really enjoyed.

Blue Orange at the National Theater I thought was magnificent. And I saw a brilliant Richard II at The Royal Shakespeare Company this year. A friend of mine directed it and it was superb. But I hate to talk about favorite productions because I don't want to hurt anyone by not mentioning them.

When were you the happiest?

My happiest moment is the birth of this theatre. Meaning from 1986 to now is my happiest moment because it is the culmination of a dream come true. I have the best job in the world.

What are three do's and three don'ts that actors should be aware of regarding auditioning or actually about being in the process. What is something you don't like actors to do.

When they are in the process of auditioning? Just do your work, just do it. Don't say I'm sorry. That's my only pet peeve, because actors are so vulnerable and there is nothing ever to apologize for. Always do your best. Every actor who has ever auditioned for me was trying 100% and it hurts me when they say they are sorry, because they are the bravest people in the world and they have nothing to apologize for.

Does it bother you if in an audition someone brings in a monologue that is done all the time?

No, that doesn't bother me. What bothers me is if you bring in a non-Shakespearean monologue! It happens. So I would say that would be a no-no. If you're good, you make it fresh for me. So I don't care what you bring in, as long as you infuse it with some originality. Monologues are a lousy way to audition but we have to do it because it is the most economical. But we don't take that a sign of acting because acting is listening. So we will ask you in to see your monologue, and if it goes well, we will bring you in for a real audition and then you get to act with someone in a real scene.

With regards to theatre, what is the most influential book that you have read?

Henry Goddard's two-volume set called The Meaning of Shakespeare has been wonderful. Even if I don't agree with him, I love his thought process. He is a real humanist in terms of the text. And A.C. Bradley's Shakespearean Tragedy book is also quite wonderful. These are all very old books. My favorite new books are the Harry Potter books. I haven't had time to start the last one. Those are absolutely my new favorite books. They are so original and so funny. There is everything in them. They are just delicious. But then I also loved Gary Zukav's Seat of the Soul.

If you could chose to come back as an animal, which animal would you choose?

Oh, a golden retriever. Or a bird because I love flying.

What was your most embarrassing moment?

When I introduced Chicago Shakespeare's new theatre with 300 people in the room and I fell on my rear end. I tripped over a wire and fell on my rear end and the only thing that I wished I had said but I didn't was, "Live from Chicago, it's Saturday Night!." If only I had that wit about me.

What was your favorite subject in school?

History, English and Psychology. My least favorites were math and science.

What are three words that best describe you?

Happy, challenged, grateful.

What do you consider your greatest achievement?

Being a good daughter and a good sister.

If an actor were interested in auditioning for you, what would they need to do?

They need to listen to the hot line or contact our casting department.