JESSICA SIMPSON – SIMPSON SETS SIGHT ON SHAKESPEARE
Not really sure what joke to make here. I find it none too surprising that such an announcement from Jessica Simpson comes hot on the heels of revelation that Marilyn Monroe had wanted to get into more Shakespeare as well. Once again the standard question, what role would she play? What evidence has there been in anything that she’s ever done to give a hint that she can play something with depth?
It’s a good thing to have a currently popular actress extolling the virtues of Shakespeare and the Globe. Calling The Globe the home of acting and theatre is a great thing for young people to read. If she’s willing to use her voice to urge such things, then give her a shot. I’m not a fan of pop culture, but I looked her up after reading your post. Apparently she started out as a Christian music singer, but was informed that she was too attractive and her breasts were too large for the Christian audience. So she ends up in bombshell rolls only to be told that she can’t carry serious roles. An actress that didn’t care at all would maintain pursuit of the bombshell roles until she had enough money to own several small countries and a fleet of planes to fly between them. So for that reason, she get’s a pass from me. I’d go see her as Helena, Hero, Doll Tearsheet, Marina or Perdita. If she reignites interest among the young, so much the better.
I guess I read the article a little differently. She did more than just talk. She went to the Globe, extolled the virtues of Shakespeare, claimed a long fascination and will undoubtedly pursue a role. And while doing so, she has probably disenchanted screenwriters, directors and producers carrying piles of money who still want her to pay her to vamp. If she had just made a press release from Hollywood without taking risks and without making a pilgrimage to the Globe, I wouldn’t be able to take her seriously. Jennifer Connelly (my personal favorite) has acted in intellectual roles. She can move into one role without having to defeat her previous roles. But if she’d ever played a Charlie’s Angel or a Wonder Woman she’d certainly have to do so. You’d be right about Ms Simpson if all she was doing was talk, but I think she’s done a little more than that. I’m sure that there are bimbo scripts arriving at her door every day. But she’s not getting them if she’s in England camped out at The Globe.
I’m with you on the “popular actors/actresses doing Shakespeare is a good thing” vibe. Heck, I recommend the Leonardo DiCaprio Romeo and Juliet all the time, although I think some purists would kill me. I guess I’m taking more issue with the presentation. She’s going right from playing Daisy Duke into a press release saying that she wants to do Shakespeare. When did the press release come out saying that Jennifer Connelly was interested in Shakespeare? It didn’t. She just went out and got a part in a movie version of Macbeth. Money where her mouth is, in other words. She’ll prove whether or not she can do it. Jessica Simpson here is just trying to get herself taken seriously by throwing out Shakespeare’s name as if it is the generic term for “serious actress”.
Funny that you mention Helena, I too was thinking Midsummer Night’s Dream as a possible contender for her.
I am guilty of having overstated her case. The article doesn’t refer to a pilgrimage of her having camped out. But tell me what current buxom, blond, Daisy Duke playing singer type could locate the Globe, or know of it’s historical place, or locate England on a map. You have to place her above the common expectations of her market. I have to confess to never having seen her act, or heard her sing for that matter. If she does get a Shakespeare screen role it will be my first exposure to her, other than promos for her recent movie. If she was not so much a clone of pop blond beauty, would you have reason to suspect her Shakespearean qualifications or her Thespian fitness?
Who said “camp out” or “pilgrimage”? All she said was that she went there. She could have been there for a bunch of other reasons and somebody suggested a visit to the Globe. I can’t find any reports that said “I went there specifically to see Shakespeare performed at the Globe.”
I guess we’ll just have to keep an eye out and see what sort of roles she gets. Some of the reports claim that she’ll “accept nothing less” than a Shakespeare part next, so that would be a good test. One report does say that she loved Romeo and Juliet in high school (I’d be curious if she could name another Shakespeare play).
Of course the other logical question is whether she is capable of doing it. Loving Shakespeare is not enough to get a job performing it. She may honestly love Shakespeare, now and always, as have many of us. But if I was running around saying that I’ve always wanted a job at the Globe, and you wanted to give me the benefit of the doubt that I can do it, you’d be poorly mistaken :). Admire my determination, sure, but don’t discount ability or lack thereof.
Do you have a name, by any chance? Not that you have to register in order to post, but at least if you sign your posts I’ll have something to call you :). Besides I’ll be able to tell when we’ve taken the conversation over to another topic and when I’m talking to an entirely different anonymous person :).
“If she was not so much a clone of pop blond beauty, would you have reason to suspect her Shakespearean qualifications or her Thespian fitness?” Well, this gets us back to my original position of “those who can, do.” I don’t care about a press release saying that she loves Shakespeare. If I saw a Coming Soon that said she’d be playing Helena in Midsummer’s, I’d be all over it and totally give her the benefit of the doubt. But if all she’s got to tell me is that she digs Shakespeare because she got to read Romeo and Juliet in high school like we all did, then I really have no interest in it other than to make fun of her acting ability :).
This is a woman who is primarily famous for a television reality show where she confessed to thinking that “Chicken of the Sea” was, in fact, chicken instead of tuna.
Perhaps I have read too much into her statement. I know if I was going to hop the pond I’d go straight to The Globe. I saw a JSimp video earlier this evening. It is hard to reconcile
Shakespearean roles with her swinging hips. But I’m still going to give her the benefit of the doubt. I just wonder if a screenwriter will be inclined to do so. I hope she gets her shot.