Standing Naked in the Wings

Pauline Carey is the author of Magic and What’s in a Name?

This book is full of the trials and tribulations, and the sheer
adventure, of being an actor.

Laughs abound in such chapters as “Miss Cues, Missed Lines,
Mistakes,” where the joke is usually based on disaster: Wayne Robson
tells of a performance of Rumpelstiltskin that was over in 15 minutes
because an actor gave the wrong cue and a stagehand responded by
triggering the end-of-play explosion. History is easily absorbed in
references to early companies, such as the Canadian Players and the
Straw Hat Players, and to such pioneers as Jane Mallett and Amelia Hall.
Many memories will be awakened in those who experienced Toronto theatre
in the 1970s or the beginning of Stratford.

Chapter headings include “Mentors,” “Auditions,” “Pranks,”
“Mayhem and Magic,” “Early Radio and TV,” “Audiences,”
“Animals,” and “Touring.” While the insider—theatre worker or
loyal audience—may indulge in rampant nostalgia, readers not familiar
with an actor’s life will share in the illumination and surprise that
are always part of an actor’s day.