THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, November 17, 1994 TAG: 9411160175
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 20 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY FRANK ROBERTS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: MURFREESBORO LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines
``I know I have the body of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach of a king - and of a king of England, too.''
- Elizabeth I
``IF ELIZABETH I were alive today, she'd be a forceful, independent, intelligent woman, even by today's standards,'' says Barbara Hird, who is quite familiar with the monarch she admires.
She has portrayed her for nine seasons in ``The Lost Colony'' in Manteo and, for the past two years, in her own one-woman show.
``Elizabeth R'' plays Sunday in the Turner Auditorium of Chowan College, a benefit for the school's Fine Arts Foundation.
Hird did not have to work on the accent. She was born in Yorkshire, and moved to the United States about 20 years ago.
``I began acting when I was 12 years old. I will continue acting till the day I die,'' she said, during a phone interview from her Charlotte home. ``I've never found anything I enjoy doing quite so much.''
Hird, who won't reveal her age, specializes in historical characters for an obvious reason: ``I like recreating real people.''
In Charlotte she has portrayed Eleanor of Aquitaine in ``Lion in Winter'' and Joan of Arc in ``The Lark.''
Hird also portrayed the mother of Elizabeth I, Anne Boleyn, who was beheaded by her husband, the gluttonous Henry VIII.
Portraying Elizabeth I in Dare County's outdoor drama differs from the one-woman portrayal.
``Her character in `The Lost Colony' is not really well developed because it is not the queen's story, it's the story of the Colony,'' Hird said. ``But Paul Greene's script still presents her as a strong woman. You can't mess around with that fact.''
The show is factual, offering an authentic replication of the Elizabethan world of the 1580s, its language, props, costumes and scenery all aimed in the direction of accuracy.
The set is an alcove in the Royal Palace where Elizabeth retreated from the pressures of her royal duties to sing, laugh, cry, hone her public image and share with the audience the pains and joys of living.
``I wrote this play specifically for Miss Hird. She has recreated a similar if not identical charisma of Queen Elizabeth herself,'' said Lebame Houston, the author/director.
The 45-minute production first ran in May 1993, part of an international symposium focused on Roanoke Island.
``Scholars and experts were gathered from all over the world,'' Hird said. ``At that time, Lebame approached me about doing a one-woman show dealing with Elizabeth I.''
The initial presentation was offered the toughest audience Hird would have to face: the historians and educators gathered for the symposium.
A standing ovation let her know all was well.
Hird will continue touring North Carolina through Dec. 31. Her first out-of-state engagement will be in Annapolis.
Later in 1995 she will return to the mother country. MEMO: Barbara Hird's one-woman show, ``Elizabeth R,'' will be presented at 3
p.m. Sunday in Turner Auditorium, Chowan College. Admission is $7.50 for
adults, $5 for students. Proceeds will benefit the Chowan College Fine
Arts Foundation. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Barbara Hird is ``Elizabeth R'' in a one-person show to be presented
Sunday at Chowan College as a benefit for the school's Fine Arts
Foundation.
by CNB