WhatsOnStage.com: Playing Cleopatra for the Royal Shakespeare Company in 2006, I had learnt new lessons and reached new heights – or plateaux – from which I could see a further range above me that I hadn't known was there, but those lessons looked like they would never be put into practice and those further peaks would remain on the horizon never to be scaled.
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Though I am not actually sure what “vanity exercise” entails in this context, I am very glad that Walter chose to embrace the idea of playing male Shakespeare roles, and I’m actually intrigued with her reactions and response to her first thought regarding the fact that she hesitated because of the reception she may receive as a result of her crossing the boundaries of gender norms. She began by saying she had nothing to prove to the public by playing a male role – additionally, she did not know what would elements she as a female performer could bring to a masculine role. But, her conclusion of wanting to play a role because she wants to seize an opportunity is a revelation that I wholeheartedly support and feel should have been emphasized more – people should not feel like they are boxed in by the definitions that society places. Rather, we should do what is true to our own interests. Honestly, I feel as though a female playing a male lead would add so many nuances to a play. In another class, a student was talking about how she watched a play in which a main male role had been turned into a female one (even the character was altered in the script to be a woman) and its effect was unmatchable as it added so many levels of profound thought and message that the original play would not have touched on. Though Walter never turned a male role into a female one, just having her there would alter an audience’s perception and reception of her words and actions, giving the audience an added layer of recognition regarding the stereotypical differences between males and females. I am so pleased that Walter took the leap and played the roles she wanted to regardless of gender boundaries. I hope that more people in the future follow in her footsteps.
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