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| Jacqueline Williams plays Calpurnia in 'To Kill A Mockingbird' |
By Darlene Donloe
Jacqueline Williams knows her way around a stage.
She’s been performing theatrically ever since she was a kid.
Her latest show is the classic, ‘To Kill A Mockingbird,’ currently playing at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre through November 27, 2022. The show then moves to the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa from December 27 to January 8, 2023.
This production of ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ holds
the record as the highest-grossing American play in Broadway history.
A seasoned veteran actress with impressive television, film, and radio credits, Williams, who attended the Goodman School of Drama – renamed The Theatre School at DePaul University, is taking on the role of Calpurnia opposite Richard Thomas’ Atticus Finch.
She’s excited about the opportunity to present Calpurnia to audiences and relishes being able to play the role alongside the “extraordinary” Thomas.
‘To Kill A Mockingbird,’ Harper Lee’s enduring story of racial injustice and childhood innocence is set in Alabama in 1934 and centers on some of the most venerated characters in American literature. It’s regarded as a masterpiece of American literature.
The book, published in 1960, tells the story of attorney Finch, a widower raising two young children, Scout and Jem. Finch is asked to defend a poor Black man accused of rape by a white woman and her abusive father. Aware that his family will be subjected to a lot of repercussions, Finch half-heartedly takes the case.
Academy Award® winner Aaron Sorkin’s new play, directed by Tony® winner Bartlett Sher, is inspired by the timeless novel of the same name by Lee.
The residents of Maycomb, Alabama include small-town lawyer Atticus Finch (played by Richard Thomas), Atticus’s daughter Scout, her brother Jem, their housekeeper and caretaker, Calpurnia, their visiting friend Dill, Tom Robinson, and a mysterious neighbor, the reclusive Arthur “Boo” Radley.
Williams, a multi-award winner, has Broadway credits that include Horton Foote’s Pulitzer winner and Tony-nominated The Young Man From Atlanta (Clara) starring Rip Torn and Shirley Knight. Off-Broadway credits include the internationally acclaimed production of From the Mississippi Delta (Phelia/Woman Two, co-produced by Oprah Winfrey), The Talented Tenth (Tanya), and Mill Fire (Widow Three). Film and recurring TV credits include season two of “The Chi” (realtor Mrs. Harriet Brown), “Chicago Fire”/“Chicago PD”/“Chicago Med” (Sergeant Becerra), “Empire” (Warden Meyers), Heartlock (Captain Rosalyn), The Break-Up (Shondra), and The Lake House (Madvi Patel).
Up next for the Evanston, Illinois native is AMC’s “61st Street” (Nurse Florence), and Amazon’s “Paper Girls” (Dr. Donna Metcalf).
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| Jacqueline Williams |
I recently caught up with Williams, a single mother of one, to talk about her career and her latest role. She’s guarded in some of her responses, keeping close to the vest the trade secrets that have made her a powerhouse actress. Her conversation is, as it says in Colossians 4:6, gracious and seasoned with salt.
DD: How long have you been an actress?
JW: Most of my life. I started as a child. The first thing I did professionally was probably a musical called, The Runaways. In school I did ‘The Sound of Music,’ ‘Don't Bother Me I Can’t Cope,’ ‘Flowers for Algernon,’ and some others.
DD: When did you know you wanted to be an actress?
JW: My family is from Mississippi. They were sharecroppers and cotton pickers. I always knew it was a passion but did not have the light bulb go off until high school where it finally registered that it could be a career for me too and not just me watching others. There was no big event to that epiphany. It just finally clicked by the third year of high school.
DD: What does acting do for you?
JW: It fulfills me on so many levels. On one level it depends on what the piece is and the subject matter. Often I am fulfilled that way. In some way helping the cause - enlightening folks about something they didn't know about maybe a piece of history. It’s about bringing joy and laughter while teaching and informing.
DD: Were you familiar with ‘To Kill A Mockingbird' before taking on the role?
JW: Very familiar with it for most of my life. It’s one of my favorite books and favorite film. I’ve read the book multiple times.
DD: How do you bring your character to life?
JW: Dealing with a script by Aaron Sorkin, he is absolutely masterful. He has honored Harper Lee’s book and story. It’s fleshing out some of the characters and the arc of the characters. It makes this thing ring more powerful today. My character, Calpurnia’s relationship with Atticus is the central relationship in this live event, this live play – unlike the book and film. You get a sense of their relationship and her relationship with the kids. They trust and sense confidence in each other. The honesty of their relationship. They are able to disagree. Being free enough to disagree. They are close enough for Calpurnia to school him on a number of things. She has to let him know that in 1930s Alabama, even though he is aware of some things, there are other things he couldn't possibly know.
DD: What do you like about the story?
JW: It’s truthful to the time and there’s honesty in that truth of the time and that there is joy and pain and the promise, or the possibility, of something better.
DD: Describe your character - Calpurnia?
JW: She is the maid in the Finch household. She has been part of the family for many years. She and Atticus Finch are more like brother and sister in their closeness. She is, in some ways, a surrogate mother to his kids. She is wise, witty, frank, honest, and present.
DD: What do you like/dislike about her?
JW: There’s nothing I don’t like. I appreciate that she exists.
DD: How did you go about developing Calpurnia?
JW: I don’t talk about my process too much. My process doesn't necessarily work for someone else. I didn’t have to dig in any deep places. My family is from the south. I’m very familiar with the story.
DD: Talk about working with Richard Thomas.
JW: He is an extraordinary actor. People that don't follow theater may not be aware. You just couldn’t hope for a better - more giving scene partner. He is a joy to work with. We hit off right from the start.
DD: You are in a classic show. When you are acting in a classic – is the approach to the material different?
JW: It’s the same. I don’t know each of the 2700 people there that night. And the preconceived anything they are bringing with them. I’m not their mind reader. My job is to tell the story as truthfully and honestly as I can.
DD: Other than Calpurnia, what has been your favorite role – and why?
JW: That is hard to answer. I’ve had wonderful blessings. Many roles are special to me for different reasons.
DD: Why should people see this show?
JW: We still need this show and this message. We have a lot of work we need to do. When they come, they will be reminded again about what little progress we have made. They will be surprised to see that there is a lot of laughter and joy in this piece. And there is some pain. When you leave, you should ask yourself, What can I do to make things better?
DD: You have done TV, film, radio, and theater. What is your preference and why?
JW: Theater but I love working in all mediums. It helps keep things fresh for me. I don't get jaded in any of the mediums when I’m fluctuating between them.
DD: Anything you want people to know?
JW: Yes, those who know the film, should know that we have Mary Badham traveling with us. She played Scout in the original film. She’s one of the sweetest people. She is playing the despicable neighbor, Miss Dubose.
‘To Kill A Mockingbird,’ The Hollywood Pantages Theatre, 6233 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, 8 p.m. Fridays, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays, 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sundays, through November 27, 2022, $39, 800 982-2787.
Running time: 2 hours, 50 minutes, including intermission.
The show then moves to the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, 600 Town Center Drive from December 27 to January 8, 2023.
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