Martin Jarvis, 81, was in Twelfth Night at school, 70 years ago. Now, after four appearances in the play, he’s finally directing it
I was recently invited to direct Shakespeare’s bizarre comedy in America. ‘Oh no, not another Twelfth Night.’ I’ve acted in it four times already. Never got it right yet. First time, at school, in 1953, performing in the classroom. As an 11-year-old, I was already a fan of Richmal Crompton’s William: ‘When I’m in a play, I like to have a lot to say, an’ a lot to do.’ Too right. Like Master Brown, I was prepared to give the playwright a chance: ‘I wrote a play once,’ said William, ‘and people acted it. They all forgot their parts, but it was a jolly fine play all the same.’ I decided that both Williams were pretty wonderful. I’d been entrusted with the part of Viola (who masquerades for reasons of survival as a boy). My role model clearly couldn’t be young Brown. Better, Violet Elizabeth Bott (‘I like boyth gameth.’)...
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