January, 2012

Centaur Stage features Morris Panych

Suzanne Shugar chats with Morris Panych, recipient of two Governor General’s Literary Awards for Drama. Described as the ‘man for all seasons in Canadian theatre’, the prolific playwright, actor and director has attained legendary status for his creativity and extraordinary artistic output.

Morris Panych

Suzanne ShugarWhat is a typical week in the busy life of Morris Panych?

Morris PanychThere is no real typical week. I could have a very busy schedule or an open schedule, depending on the time of year; but I am always doing something - I can only sit around for so long. In fact, the reason I started writing plays was because I couldn’t bear the wait between acting gigs. The reason I started directing was because I couldn’t bear the wait between good play ideas and acting gigs. Now I have very little time to sit around but when I do, I usually read newspapers online. It has become an addiction of mine to Google-riff on a news item. It’s an interesting way for me to pass the time, finding out something I didn’t know. You don’t really know where your next idea is going to come from. I like to look up words and their derivation. I like maps. I like weird murder stories. I almost never read novels. It’s rare that I am engaged by fiction. The advantage of being an artist is that nobody is ever really telling you what to do; the disadvantage is exactly the same. But every week typically begins with this thought: Holy shit – I have to make some money.

SSIn Absentia breaks from the black comedy genre that characterizes most of your work. Is the play considered a mystery? What motivated the shift?

MPI have no idea but I could guess it has to do with the passing of time. I wouldn’t refer to this piece as a mystery; to me, it’s a reflection, a contemplation of the passing of one season to another.

In Absentia production poster

DESIGN : STEVE ROSS

SSDoes the play coincide with a significant event in your life?

MPAs I say, as one gets older, certain feelings crowd out others. My parents are now gone, as are many of my friends. Time is moving forward, and nothing is standing still. The seasons are changing in relentless and predictable sequence and it’s frightening.

SSYou typically direct world-premiere productions of your plays. Handing over the reins to Roy Surette demonstrates trust and respect. What unique qualities does he bring to In Absentia?

MPAside from being a very sensitive and caring artist, the most unique quality, of course, is that he has his own particular eye on this story; and it’s intelligent, engaged, and mature. Also, Roy and I have known each other for nearly thirty years, so we have a way of communicating that is effective and simple; we just say what we’re thinking.

SSYou directed Jillian Fargey in the past. What strengths does she bring to the play and her character?

MPHer greatest strength, amazing agility and skill aside, is her commitment to the play; we have read it several times, in Montreal as well as Vancouver, always with Jillian, and Jillian has added so much to the development of the piece, simply by her love of it and joy in working on it. Sometimes, the most important thing that a person can bring to a part (given that at Jillian’s level, all actresses are good actresses) is the desire to do it. In the end, an actor has to put in the work, the writer and director are only the beginning of the acting process; the initiators. Jillian carries the character in her heart. She is deeply connected to the piece; that’s what a great actress does.

Morris Panych and Olympia Dukakis at the Mark Taper Forum in L.A.

Photo by Ryan Miller/Capture Imaging

SSSpeaking of talented actresses, you recently directed Academy Award winner Olympia Dukakis in L.A. She starred in your play Vigil. Tell us about that.

MPOlympia is the real deal; a consummate artist with a whole lot of experience to go with her unstoppable energy. At first she frightened me; or perhaps intimidated me. She is very in-your-face; and you have to be prepared to meet her head on. If you have the answers, she will listen, but if you have nothing, she will roll right over you. The best thing about the experience, though, was that we found ourselves becoming friends. It happens, often, when you meet someone genuinely talented, that you fall a little in love with them, because you know that the talent didn’t come out of nowhere, that there was a lot of pain and hard work along the way, and you feel connected to that person because of your shared history as theatre artists, especially if you care as much about theatre as Olympia does. She is a study in passion.

SSWhat’s next for Morris Panych?

MPI want to address, more and more, social and moral responsibility; what it is, where it lies. I have a spiritual side that has been corrupted by religion and self-centredness. I would like to explore that. I would like to leave behind some sense of my personal struggle to find, in a corrupt world, some human decency and completeness; how I’ve succeeded and how I’ve failed.

SSThank you for this memorable interview, Morris.

Suzanne Shugar is a Montreal journalist, broadcaster and Centaur Theatre's PR and Web Writer