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Though she will never jeer her genetic makeup, Angela Smith revels in theatrical explorations of androgyny, deeming them helpers in honing her craft. Beginning tonight, the actress will couple femininity and masculinity as Viola, the protagonist in William Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night.”
“All performers should have a chance to do so,” the resident of Broad and Morris streets said of sampling the opposite sex’s strengths and struggles. “For me, this is offering a chance to call on tools I hadn’t been using, so that’s enriching and enlightening.”
Having portrayed King Henry IV for The Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre five years ago, the East Passyunk Crossing-situated 20-something is ending her genderbending hiatus as one of the Bard’s wittiest women. After surviving a shipwreck that separates her from her twin, Sebastian, her character becomes involved in a love triangle that ultimately revolves around her decision to don male attire. When her relative surfaces, matters become even more comedic and compelling, though Smith is deriving delight regardless of the context.
“I’m thrilled to find ways to give even more life to her words,” the thespian said of the creation, whose lines had been familiar to her for so long that she initially refrained from relying on the text once rehearsals began. “I’m trying to play to what she lacks just as much as to what she has because weaknesses can be funny. The physicality of playing a woman in disguise is very interesting, too.”
In fulfilling her first assignment for the Media-based Commonwealth Classic Theatre Co., Smith is acting upon an urge that a 2009 Philly Shakespeare academic reading of the eros-versus-philios elements in “Twelfth Night” instigated. Gaining “an invaluable experience” through playing a masculine royal for the Center City-situated entity, the eager hire, who also auditioned for the part of Olivia, another member of the amorous trio, loves tasking her talent to prove that gender limits only those who let it.
“This is a milestone role,” Smith said of helming heroine duties. “It’s great to play Viola not only for who she is but also for who she tries to be in becoming Cesario. It’s kind of like living in two worlds.”
The play, whose first recorded performance came in early 17th-century London, is receiving Pennsylvania- and New Jersey-based adoration through July 26, with today’s 7 p.m. opening occurring at the Free Library of Philadelphia Parkway Central Branch’s Shakespeare Park. As her premiere outdoor theater experience, the work will find Smith fraternizing with four fellow South Philadelphians, including Jamison Foreman as Orsino, the early wooer of Olivia’s affection and eventual winner of Viola’s. Having such a bond with her peers as representatives of the city’s thriving performance identity, she sees the 13-date endeavor as another occasion to energize her craft, which, no matter the job, relies upon restraints.
“Viola’s a great study and it would be easy to try to be bombastic in playing her, but that’s not what suits me,” Smith said. “It’s fun to be bold, but not everyone wears their hearts on their sleeves all the time.”
Through her “Twelfth Night” involvement, the acute actress is proving art can counter life as much as it imitates it with respect to being outgoing. Incredibly shy as a child, Smith is executing individuals who eschew cloaking emotions, thus offering a fine contrast between the anxiety of youth and the confidence of maturity.
“Acting became huge in helping me to overcome my initial shyness,” the Point Pleasant, N.J. native said of her girlhood. “I found myself really hooked and wanted to explore how my world could fit in with fictitious ones.”
Smith deemed high school pivotal, as it fostered a penchant for classical voice, which she preliminarily pursued as a Rowan University registrant before becoming a theater major, and made the Bard a behemoth in her comprehension of characterization.
“There’s so much work that has to be done to be true to Shakespeare,” Smith, who fell for his canon during her college days, which included a turn in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” said of the scribe. “It’s always a labor of love because of the sheer beauty of the text.”
Blessed with dramatic and comedic gifts, undeniable boons for a Shakespeare practitioner or any performer for that matter, she moved to South Philly a year after graduation and has resided in South of South, Newbold, Dickinson Square West and East Passyunk Crossing. Well aware that many thespians esteem Philadelphia as a great place to start their journeys, she lauds it as a superior spot in which to settle. Smith has banked on that philosophy to land jobs with InVersion Theatre; Lantern and Luna theater companies, the latter 620 S. Eighth St.; Plays & Players Theatre; and Revolution Shakespeare through Queen Village’s Griffin Stanton-Ameisen. “Twelfth Night” marks her second time handling both genders for a Shakespeare production, as her “King Henry IV” efforts also included a stint as Lady Percy, with Philly Shakespeare also tapping her to play the willful wife Lady Macbeth in its “Macbeth” tour.
“It’s great to figure out how I fit in with the Philadelphia theater scene,” Smith said of her local alignment, of which she can boast a connection with Transmissions Theatre, which resulted in last year’s tour of “Rails.” “Philadelphia can be a rough and tumble location but also a rewarding one.”
Roles as Sister James in “Doubt” for the Connecticut-based TriArts Sharon Playhouse and Katherina in “The Taming of the Screw” for Italy’s Teatro delle Due accentuate her depth, with Smith especially eager to keep courting the sureties of Shakespeare’s output.
“There are so many women I want to play from his works, but I can’t hide that I want to play Hamlet, too,” Smith said. “Time will tell.”
When summer wanes, she will continue to cover Shakespeare for the FringeArts Festival-slated “Till Birnam Wood” and will reunite with Lantern come autumn as Chloe in “Arcadia.” Winter will yield another job with Transmissions, thus helping to classify Smith as a woman, or man, for all seasons.
“I’m at a stage where I’m very grateful for the past and present and mindful of the future,” Smith said. “I hope to explore so much more.”
For tickets, visit commonwealthclassictheatre.org.
Contact Managing Editor Joseph Myers at jmyers@southphillyreview.com or ext. 124.
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