Dame Maggie Smithhad a rebellious spirit, even at work—so much so that it oncegot her into troublewith theater director Sir John Gielgud, according to a man who claimed to have worked at the sametheateras the late actress.
HighlightsDame Maggie Smith’s rebellious spirit allegedly got her into trouble with theater director Sir John Gielgud in the 1970s.While working at the Royal Alexandra Theatre, Smith’s tendency to improvise led to a heated argument with Gielgud, according to a former usher at the theater.Bruce Bell recalled Smith’s dazzling and unorthodox performance in the comedy Private Lives.
“She passed away peacefully inhospitalearly this morning, Friday 27th September. An intensely private person, she was with friends and family at the end.
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Maggie Smith once got into a fight with director John Gielgud after he saw her going off-script in a play, saida man who allegedly worked at the sametheateras the late actress
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After theHarry Potteractress’ passing, a man named Bruce Belltook to Facebookto honor her memory with an anecdote that he said took place in the early 1970s when he was working as an usher at the historic Royal Alexandra Theatre in Toronto, Canada.
“Of all the performances I saw during my three years working there, Maggie Smith’s was the absolutely the best and the most devastatingly funny,” Bell began.
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“About a week into the run, she started to fool around on stage, unbeknown to the audience but for those of us who got to witness Maggie’s genius in action we knew when she was having fun.
“However, this kind of behavior was against Equity rules, so the management quietly called in director John Gielgud to secretly watch a matinee in which Maggie, not knowing he was there, was going over the top trying to get her costars and the rest of us to laugh.
“Well, as soon as Mr. Gielgud arrived, I immediately recognized him, and he said not to tell anyone he was there as he wanted to watch Maggie Smith’s unorthodox but absolutely dazzling performance.”
A man named Bruce Bell said he was working as a theater usher at the time and that Smith would often “fool around” on stage, making both him and the audience laugh
So sad to hear of the passing of the brilliant Maggie Smith.When I was still a teenager back in the early 1970s, I…
Image credits:Samuel L. Leiter / Theatre’s Leiter Side
Smith’s improv genius allegedly led to a heated argument with the prestigioustheaterdirector.
“After the matinee, I escorted Gielgud backstage where a huge fight between star and director ensued and I as a wide eyed 18 year old freshly arrived from Sudbury witnessed it all. It was very ‘All About Eve’ to come to life.
“But as all things showbiz, the fight ended with hugs and kisses and things went back to normal.”
Bell concluded: “After 50 years, Maggie Smith’s performance in ‘Private Lives’ still ranks as the greatest comicperformanceI have ever witnessed.”
Director Sir John Gielgud reportedly did not approve of Smith’s improvisations, leading to a “huge fight” between them backstage, Bell shared
Dame Maggie Smith was best known for her role as the beloved Professor Minerva McGonagall in all eight films of theHarry Potterfranchise. The two-time Oscar winner also played Violet Crawley, the Dowager Countess of Grantham, in the historical drama seriesDownton Abbey.Larysa Perih
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