AI
Sunday, March 11, 2012 7:22:38 PM
William Shatner stays so busy, it's simply illogical
By Amy Carlson Gustafson
agustafson@pioneerpress.com
Posted: 03/11/2012 12:01:00 AM CST
Updated: 03/11/2012 01:06:28 AM CST
Capt. Kirk. Denny Crane. Priceline Negotiator. William Shatner has adapted many personas in an acting career spanning more than a half-century. But in his new one-man show, "Shatner's World: We Just Live in It," the Canadian turns the attention inward, reflecting on his work, including his iconic "Star Trek" role, mortality and life in general. He describes this latest endeavor as the "most gratifying" thing he has ever done. "Shatner's World," which made its Broadway debut last month, arrives at the Orpheum Theatre on Thursday.
We caught up with the 80-year-old over the phone recently and chatted with him about his loyal fan base, the possibility of retirement and his Minnesota connection. Here's what he had to say:
Q. When you were putting "Shatner's World" together, what was the mindset behind it?
A. Well, it started in Australia. They asked me to do a one-man show. I started off telling anecdotes and stories about my life. That went well. Then, Canada asked me to do it, so I did it in Canada. Then, after I finished Canada, Broadway said they'd like to do it. Thinking I'd be held to a higher standard in New York, I decided to change the show and reshape it and revamp it and sharpen it in every way. I did that, and I made it more about my life, about the funny things that have happened to me, lessons I've learned.
Q. How did you decide what to include in the play? Were there things you left out that you wish could have been in there?
A. That's a good question. The question was what to keep in. I had a show that ran longer than two hours. They wanted it to be about an hour and 45 minutes. I started cutting things out. Not only was it a choice of what to put in, it was also a choice of what to take out. You could make a dramatic and funny story about anything in your life, but there are certain incidences in everybody's life and certainly in mine that stand out enough that you can dramatize and it's good material.
Q. What is it like going through all these moments in your life and trying to put them together for show?
A. I reflected on what it was I wanted to say. What was the meaning of what I was about to say? How can I make that story entertaining enough for you to understand what it was I was reflecting on and revealing? It became a complex interplay of things to write about. I just had to use selectivity. Things I wished I could keep in I had to cut out.
Q. What were your emotions like as you were writing and going through all these memories?
A. In the play, I talk about death and life and humor and what humor and death can be like - two sides of the same coin. I talk about music and failure and success. I talk about early life and horses and the joy of being with horses and the sorrow of horses that expired. I try to follow the panoply of my life and all those things that you mentioned are there. I had to start off reflecting on it and then get some artistic removal from it in order to write about it.
Q. So, what do you think of your life so far?
A. [Laughs.] I think I made a lot of mistakes, but I did some things right.
Q. Your work - "Star Trek," "Boston Legal," Priceline commercials - has spanned generations of fans. How have you managed to stay relevant?
A. I'm very much alive. I'm surrounded by young people. I make a point of trying to stay with the latest tastes. In many cases, I don't understand them, but I get there. That's what I am - current. I try to be. I don't necessarily like it.
Q. Are your fans getting older, or are younger ones still popping up?
A. A 7-year-old last night wanted my autograph. His father was 40, and in the background was the boy's grandfather. And they were all there at the theater.
Q. How does that make you feel?
A. I don't quite understand it. I seek to try and understand it. But joyful is a good word.
Q. Who's more rabid - Capt. Kirk or Denny Crane fans?
A. Probably die-hard "Star Trek" fans. But I think if we wait around long enough, maybe they'll be the same rabid Denny Crane fans.
Q. Are you and James Spader still friends? You had such great chemistry on "Boston Legal."
A. Yes we are. He's a lovely guy.
Q. Do you have any ties to Minnesota?
A. My son-in-law's name is Joel Gretsch. He could have been a great golfer except he wanted to become an actor. But he learned to play golf in your part of the country just outside of Minneapolis. How somebody learns to play golf in that wintry country I don't know. But his family is there and I expect they'll all come to the show.
Q. Any plans to slow down after this? Retiring, perhaps?
A. I do. I plan to retire after this conversation, at least for a 40-minute nap. I never understood the word retire.
Q. Any projects you're dying to do?
A. I don't like to use the word dying. It cuts close to the bone. I've got so many things that I'm doing that it's silly. But what I'm focused on now is getting to your city, making sure your audience has the same reaction as this New York audience, and that is, at the end of the evening, they explode out of their seats with excitement and applause.
Amy Carlson Gustafson can be reached at 651-228-5561. Follow her at twitter.com/amygustafson.
http://www.twincities.com/ci_20132003/at-80-william-shatner-stays-so-busy-its
By Amy Carlson Gustafson
agustafson@pioneerpress.com
Posted: 03/11/2012 12:01:00 AM CST
Updated: 03/11/2012 01:06:28 AM CST
Capt. Kirk. Denny Crane. Priceline Negotiator. William Shatner has adapted many personas in an acting career spanning more than a half-century. But in his new one-man show, "Shatner's World: We Just Live in It," the Canadian turns the attention inward, reflecting on his work, including his iconic "Star Trek" role, mortality and life in general. He describes this latest endeavor as the "most gratifying" thing he has ever done. "Shatner's World," which made its Broadway debut last month, arrives at the Orpheum Theatre on Thursday.
We caught up with the 80-year-old over the phone recently and chatted with him about his loyal fan base, the possibility of retirement and his Minnesota connection. Here's what he had to say:
Q. When you were putting "Shatner's World" together, what was the mindset behind it?
A. Well, it started in Australia. They asked me to do a one-man show. I started off telling anecdotes and stories about my life. That went well. Then, Canada asked me to do it, so I did it in Canada. Then, after I finished Canada, Broadway said they'd like to do it. Thinking I'd be held to a higher standard in New York, I decided to change the show and reshape it and revamp it and sharpen it in every way. I did that, and I made it more about my life, about the funny things that have happened to me, lessons I've learned.
Q. How did you decide what to include in the play? Were there things you left out that you wish could have been in there?
A. That's a good question. The question was what to keep in. I had a show that ran longer than two hours. They wanted it to be about an hour and 45 minutes. I started cutting things out. Not only was it a choice of what to put in, it was also a choice of what to take out. You could make a dramatic and funny story about anything in your life, but there are certain incidences in everybody's life and certainly in mine that stand out enough that you can dramatize and it's good material.
Q. What is it like going through all these moments in your life and trying to put them together for show?
A. I reflected on what it was I wanted to say. What was the meaning of what I was about to say? How can I make that story entertaining enough for you to understand what it was I was reflecting on and revealing? It became a complex interplay of things to write about. I just had to use selectivity. Things I wished I could keep in I had to cut out.
Q. What were your emotions like as you were writing and going through all these memories?
A. In the play, I talk about death and life and humor and what humor and death can be like - two sides of the same coin. I talk about music and failure and success. I talk about early life and horses and the joy of being with horses and the sorrow of horses that expired. I try to follow the panoply of my life and all those things that you mentioned are there. I had to start off reflecting on it and then get some artistic removal from it in order to write about it.
Q. So, what do you think of your life so far?
A. [Laughs.] I think I made a lot of mistakes, but I did some things right.
Q. Your work - "Star Trek," "Boston Legal," Priceline commercials - has spanned generations of fans. How have you managed to stay relevant?
A. I'm very much alive. I'm surrounded by young people. I make a point of trying to stay with the latest tastes. In many cases, I don't understand them, but I get there. That's what I am - current. I try to be. I don't necessarily like it.
Q. Are your fans getting older, or are younger ones still popping up?
A. A 7-year-old last night wanted my autograph. His father was 40, and in the background was the boy's grandfather. And they were all there at the theater.
Q. How does that make you feel?
A. I don't quite understand it. I seek to try and understand it. But joyful is a good word.
Q. Who's more rabid - Capt. Kirk or Denny Crane fans?
A. Probably die-hard "Star Trek" fans. But I think if we wait around long enough, maybe they'll be the same rabid Denny Crane fans.
Q. Are you and James Spader still friends? You had such great chemistry on "Boston Legal."
A. Yes we are. He's a lovely guy.
Q. Do you have any ties to Minnesota?
A. My son-in-law's name is Joel Gretsch. He could have been a great golfer except he wanted to become an actor. But he learned to play golf in your part of the country just outside of Minneapolis. How somebody learns to play golf in that wintry country I don't know. But his family is there and I expect they'll all come to the show.
Q. Any plans to slow down after this? Retiring, perhaps?
A. I do. I plan to retire after this conversation, at least for a 40-minute nap. I never understood the word retire.
Q. Any projects you're dying to do?
A. I don't like to use the word dying. It cuts close to the bone. I've got so many things that I'm doing that it's silly. But what I'm focused on now is getting to your city, making sure your audience has the same reaction as this New York audience, and that is, at the end of the evening, they explode out of their seats with excitement and applause.
Amy Carlson Gustafson can be reached at 651-228-5561. Follow her at twitter.com/amygustafson.
http://www.twincities.com/ci_20132003/at-80-william-shatner-stays-so-busy-its
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