Portraits on Page: Uta Hagen

From my book-in-progress on actress Geraldine Page:

I ran into an old friend yesterday and she wanted to know what I was up to.

Me: "Among other things, I'm doing a book on Geraldine Page."
Her: Oh, I loved her in that movie with Bette Davis."
Me: "She never made a movie with Bette Davis."
Her: "Yes she did. The one where she gets a brain tumor and walks up all those stairs to her bedroom and then dies."
Me: "That's Geraldine Fitzgerald."
Her: "Oh."
Me: "Geraldine Page died in 1987. I'm writing this so people won't forget her."
Her: "Oh, of course. Now I know who you mean. She did all those O'Neill plays with what's-his-name, Robards."
Me: "That's Colleen Dewhurst."
Her: "Oh. Then I have no idea who she was."

That was typical of conversations I had with people who wanted to know what I was up to. But I had the time of my life interviewing her colleagues.

Today's interview: legendary acting guru Uta Hagen.

DA:"You said she'd picked up a lot of bad habits in summer stock. What were they?"
UH:"Well, you tell me. 'Indicating.' Ready-made, preconceived, conventional habits. But she was always talented. Tons of emotion, that she had. And she learned to discover a role instead of settling for what she saw off the top of her head. I think she was unbelievably original, ultimately, in her selections. The selections are what make a great artist, which she certainly was. But also, the biggest mistake in her career was her inability to recognize a good play."
DA: "And she turned down "...Virginia Woolf."
UH: "She didn't turn it down! That's a total fiction! Did you ask Edward (Albee) about that? He'll laugh right in your face. I was always their first choice!"
DA: "Well, what about 'Sweet Bird of Youth'?"
UH: "GOD! I hated that play so, and I hated her in it. I think it's a soap opera. I think the whole play is on the moon!
She got me tickets. Afterward she said, 'Oh, Tennessee told me I was the greatest actress since Laurette Taylor.' I told her, 'He says that to everyone. He said it to Tallulah Bankhead for Christ's sake.'"

2005, all rights reserved