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I Will Be Cleopatra: An Actress's Journey
To those whose only exposure to acting are the films of Hollywood, Zoe Caldwell remains a secret. To those of us, however, who have seen her on the stage—whether in London, Toronto, or New York—she is the essence of theater, her presence so transfixing that the memory of having seen her is emblazoned in the mind forever.
The daughter of a plumber and a taxi dancer born in Australia at the height of the Great Depression, Caldwell first demonstrated her talents at the age of nine when she appeared on the stage as Slightly Soiled in Peter Pan. Hampered by a mild dyslexia, she felt that acting was the only way she could communicate, and by the age of fourteen she was appearing professionally in national radio soap operas. Caldwell spent the next ten years honing her skills as an actress, before she was sent to Stratford-upon-Avon in 1958, where she began a Shakespearean acting career that would culminate in her stunning portrayal of Cleopatra, the Bard's greatest female role.
Caldwell's own uniquely charming and powerful voice—one that she brought to her roles in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and as Maria Callas in Master Class—shines throughout this intimate memoir. Rather than emphasizing the stories of her adult triumphs, however, Caldwell deliberately focuses on the early influences and experiences that molded her as an actress: her enchanting first visits to the theater, sandwiched in between her parents, where she sat in "the gods," way up in the cheap seats; her early teachers and coaches who taught her not only how to use her diaphragm but also how to keep people "awake and in their seats"; and her journey—steerage class—to England at the age of twenty-five to perform at Stratford with many of the greatest actors of the twentieth century. As Caldwell reveals in these pages, acting is not a craft practiced in isolation. With an experienced eye, she describes her fellow performers, writers, and directors who have shaped her career: from Charles Laughton and Albert Finney to Edith Evans, Paul Robeson, and Laurence Olivier. She has performed the works of major playwrights from Shakespeare and Chekhov to Harold Pinter and Tennessee Williams, many of whom she knew personally. Her insights into the actor's craft reveal the completely undiluted and remarkably fine voice of an artist still impassioned about her craft and dedicated to its perpetuation in its purest form.
I Will Be Cleopatra represents the literary culmination of a legendary theatrical career and a fascinating life.
The daughter of a plumber and a taxi dancer born in Australia at the height of the Great Depression, Caldwell first demonstrated her talents at the age of nine when she appeared on the stage as Slightly Soiled in Peter Pan. Hampered by a mild dyslexia, she felt that acting was the only way she could communicate, and by the age of fourteen she was appearing professionally in national radio soap operas. Caldwell spent the next ten years honing her skills as an actress, before she was sent to Stratford-upon-Avon in 1958, where she began a Shakespearean acting career that would culminate in her stunning portrayal of Cleopatra, the Bard's greatest female role.
Caldwell's own uniquely charming and powerful voice—one that she brought to her roles in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and as Maria Callas in Master Class—shines throughout this intimate memoir. Rather than emphasizing the stories of her adult triumphs, however, Caldwell deliberately focuses on the early influences and experiences that molded her as an actress: her enchanting first visits to the theater, sandwiched in between her parents, where she sat in "the gods," way up in the cheap seats; her early teachers and coaches who taught her not only how to use her diaphragm but also how to keep people "awake and in their seats"; and her journey—steerage class—to England at the age of twenty-five to perform at Stratford with many of the greatest actors of the twentieth century. As Caldwell reveals in these pages, acting is not a craft practiced in isolation. With an experienced eye, she describes her fellow performers, writers, and directors who have shaped her career: from Charles Laughton and Albert Finney to Edith Evans, Paul Robeson, and Laurence Olivier. She has performed the works of major playwrights from Shakespeare and Chekhov to Harold Pinter and Tennessee Williams, many of whom she knew personally. Her insights into the actor's craft reveal the completely undiluted and remarkably fine voice of an artist still impassioned about her craft and dedicated to its perpetuation in its purest form.
I Will Be Cleopatra represents the literary culmination of a legendary theatrical career and a fascinating life.
160 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2001
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 29, 2025
‘Please continue, Cleopatra.’ I think I died
January 7, 2024
I really enjoyed this book, loaned to me by one of my favorite directors I’ve had. Here are some quotes I hope stick with me for many years.
I've learned that if you cease to think about yourself and concentrate on obeying the punctuation, the pressure is removed, and you wil reveal yourself and be Hamlet; and because the body and soul are uniquely yours, you will be "your" Hamlet.
Then of course came the thrill of a player lifting his head high and looking at you. You, up there in the "gods"! I tend to do a lot of head-high acting-I guess in remem-brance, because today the top balcony has largely gone out of style, except for opera. But not for me never for me.
Honestly, if I didn't know what a glorious life I've had, I would weep for myself.
Audiences may not be so bright individually, but when they are together as a collective intelligence, they become very bright and are able to understand anything. The trick is to keep their intelligence engaged. If they know exactly what you're saying, they will follow you anywhere. Lose them for a minute and they may nod off and you will lose them for the entire time you are together. It is a rigorous mental business, acting.
To go to work every day and earn your living doing what you know how to do is very powerful.
If I have played a part and feel I have fully realized it, I don't need to do it again. However, if I don't feel that I have, it haunts me and I must sing it until I do get it right.
It's funny how the young feel that things must be done now, or time will run out. The older you get and the less time you have, the more prepared you are to wait and have patience.
They (the actors playing Romeo and Juliet) made the fatal mistake of really falling in love, so they had a grand time and the audience was left out in the cold.
It is possible to chart a path so that always you know where you are and how much energy will be needed for the next part of the journey.
I did, however, break one of my rules during that season. I had an explosive affair with an actor in the company, causing a lot of havoc and pain, for which I apologize.
I have always felt that a skin begins to grow around your spirit if you are not challenged. If that skin become to thick, you're old. I was not going to allow this to become my fate.
I suddenly realized there was no stair under my knees and down, down, down, I went, flat out like a lizard drinking. I thought, well, I’ve taken this spectacular fall without killing myself. I best remain here and pretend I blacked out in a religious ecstasy. You cannot believe the credit I got for such an inventive piece of stagecraft. Never before had any Joan done that. And I hope no Joan ever will again.
If you are a good player, you want to pit yourself against someone better than you.
(On Robert Pastene) He is dangerous, intelligent, articulate, and beautiful, and has a well of sadness o draw from. Wit is his easy companion. He keeps himself away from the big cities of the world and so he will never have a Tony, an Oscar, an agent, or a big bank account, but he will forever have my admiration and respect because I have never seen him play any role that he did not totally define. Young actors should be seeing him.
I've learned that if you cease to think about yourself and concentrate on obeying the punctuation, the pressure is removed, and you wil reveal yourself and be Hamlet; and because the body and soul are uniquely yours, you will be "your" Hamlet.
Then of course came the thrill of a player lifting his head high and looking at you. You, up there in the "gods"! I tend to do a lot of head-high acting-I guess in remem-brance, because today the top balcony has largely gone out of style, except for opera. But not for me never for me.
Honestly, if I didn't know what a glorious life I've had, I would weep for myself.
Audiences may not be so bright individually, but when they are together as a collective intelligence, they become very bright and are able to understand anything. The trick is to keep their intelligence engaged. If they know exactly what you're saying, they will follow you anywhere. Lose them for a minute and they may nod off and you will lose them for the entire time you are together. It is a rigorous mental business, acting.
To go to work every day and earn your living doing what you know how to do is very powerful.
If I have played a part and feel I have fully realized it, I don't need to do it again. However, if I don't feel that I have, it haunts me and I must sing it until I do get it right.
It's funny how the young feel that things must be done now, or time will run out. The older you get and the less time you have, the more prepared you are to wait and have patience.
They (the actors playing Romeo and Juliet) made the fatal mistake of really falling in love, so they had a grand time and the audience was left out in the cold.
It is possible to chart a path so that always you know where you are and how much energy will be needed for the next part of the journey.
I did, however, break one of my rules during that season. I had an explosive affair with an actor in the company, causing a lot of havoc and pain, for which I apologize.
I have always felt that a skin begins to grow around your spirit if you are not challenged. If that skin become to thick, you're old. I was not going to allow this to become my fate.
I suddenly realized there was no stair under my knees and down, down, down, I went, flat out like a lizard drinking. I thought, well, I’ve taken this spectacular fall without killing myself. I best remain here and pretend I blacked out in a religious ecstasy. You cannot believe the credit I got for such an inventive piece of stagecraft. Never before had any Joan done that. And I hope no Joan ever will again.
If you are a good player, you want to pit yourself against someone better than you.
(On Robert Pastene) He is dangerous, intelligent, articulate, and beautiful, and has a well of sadness o draw from. Wit is his easy companion. He keeps himself away from the big cities of the world and so he will never have a Tony, an Oscar, an agent, or a big bank account, but he will forever have my admiration and respect because I have never seen him play any role that he did not totally define. Young actors should be seeing him.
March 4, 2011
Acclaimed actress Caldwell recounts events in her life from her Australian Childhood to her portrayal of Cleopatra (with Christopher Plummer as her Antony) in 1967. Pithy, wry and down-to-earth, this memoir lets you mingle with the likes of Gielgud, Olivier, Ralh Richardson, Hume Cronyn, Jessica Tany and Tyrone Guthrie in the golden age of 20th century theatre. It's hard to resist tidbits like John Gielgud's comment about Dame Edith Evans' overwhelming energy: "Edith's energy is not too much trouble as long as someone throws a ball for her to retrieve for an hour before rehearsal." Did you know that Sean Connery played Macbeth? Indeed he did, in Stratford, Ontario with Zoe Caldwell as Lady Macbeth. Sean was a fine Macbeth, declares Zoe, "Why shouldn't he be? He is a man, a Scot and a Shakespearean actor." Soon afterward he went on to make a film about some man called Bond. This memoir was the best slice of acting life I've read since William Redfield's Letters from an Actor about the plain dress production of Hamlet that starred Richard Burton and was directed by John Gielgud. It's a great privilege, and a heck of a lot of fun, to be able to sit briefly at the feet of this grande dame of the stage.
July 30, 2013
This book was very engrossing, a super fast read. It was filled with little bouts of wit and wisdom that transcends being about merely Zoe Caldwell's journey as an actress. The way in which she unravels the story allows the reader to easily place themselves in her shoes, imagining themselves in the various points of time and place. It's an excellent personal story with a lot of relevant wisdom for any human being.
February 21, 2011
Terrific memoir from one of the great actresses of all time. Fun an funny, not one of those "and then I met" - although she did meet alot of people.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews