美国国家公共电台 NPR--Scout from the 'To Kill A Mockingbird' film now plays the racist neighbor onstage

Scout¹ from the 'To Kill A Mockingbird' film now plays the racist² neighbor onstage

Transcript³

The latest Broadway incarnation of To Kill A Mockingbird is touring the country, and now the cast includes a familiar face from the old black-and-white movie.

"Isn't this stunning⁴?" marveled 69-year-old Mary Badham, pausing in the lobby of the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., as the show wrapped up its first leg. (As it happens, John F. Kennedy was president in 1962, when Badham was nominated for an Oscar at 10 for playing Scout, the daughter of Atticus Finch⁵, a white small-town Southern lawyer who defends a Black man accused of rape⁶.)

Mary Badham shot to fame as Scout in the 1962 film To Kill A Mockingbird. Now she plays the racist neighbor, Mrs. Henry Dubose, in the touring Broadway version.

Julieta Cervantes/The first national tour of 'To Kill a Mockingbird'

Child stardom was the last thing her family expected for Badham when Hollywood talent agents arrived in her hometown of Birmingham, Ala., searching for kids to play Scout and her older brother, Jem.

"They wanted children with real Southern accents. You can't teach that to a child in Los Angeles," Badham said. She said she got the role of a lifetime because she and Scout were so much alike.

"I was a tomboy, I was mouthy. I was an outdoors kid," she told NPR. "I'd rather be in my jeans and T-shirt than a dress, getting doodied up."

Following the movie's success, Badham appeared in a few small roles, but ended up living a relatively⁷ normal offscreen existence. She became a certified⁸ nursing assistant, sold makeup⁹ and learned to restore art. She married and had two children, one an adoptee from India. Now, she lives on a farm in Virginia and rocks a relaxed, coastal¹⁰ grandmother vibe with long flyaway hair. It was a surprise, she said, to get a call inviting¹¹ her to New York City to see Aaron Sorkin's adaptation of the play — and do a table read.

"I guess it was an audition," she said, with a smile and a Scout-like shrug¹².

This spring, Badham joined the national tour playing a minor¹³ character who's the exact opposite of Scout Finch. Mrs. Henry Dubose is a racist, morphine-addicted neighbor who's rumored¹⁴ to keep a Confederate pistol under her shawl and mercilessly torments¹⁵ the Finch youngsters.

"Don't you say hey to me, you ugly girl!" she screams in the show. "Jeremy and Jean Louise Finch, you are the sassiest, stupidest mutts that ever passed my way!"

Dorcas Sowunmi and Mary Badham on the national tour of To Kill A Mockingbird.

Julieta Cervantes/The first national tour of 'To Kill a Mockingbird'

"She's wicked, oh God," Badham sighed. The actor, who had never before performed onstage, said she never feels possessive of the role she originated on screen. After all, she's spent decades attending countless¹⁶ schools and local productions to promote the message of Harper Lee's novel.

"I've seen so many little Scouts¹⁷, and it's wonderful to see these characters come alive in another body," Badham said. "It's beautiful."

Badham said the character of Scout Finch has something to tell us about America today.

"I think Scout tells us not to give up," she said. "We have to keep after it. This is not a God-given right. We have to work at it if we want this country to survive."

That's been her job since she was little, Badham added. To keep To Kill A Mockingbird's story of progress, equality and democracy vibrantly¹⁸, exuberantly¹⁹ alive.

1 scout   

n.童子军，侦察员；v.侦察，搜索

参考例句：

• He was mistaken for an enemy scout and badly wounded.他被误认为是敌人的侦察兵，受了重伤。
• The scout made a stealthy approach to the enemy position.侦察兵偷偷地靠近敌军阵地。

2 racist   

n.种族主义者，种族主义分子

参考例句：

• a series of racist attacks 一连串的种族袭击行为
• His speech presented racist ideas under the guise of nationalism. 他的讲话以民族主义为幌子宣扬种族主义思想。

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 stunning   

adj.极好的；使人晕倒的

参考例句：

• His plays are distinguished only by their stunning mediocrity.他的戏剧与众不同之处就是平凡得出奇。
• The finished effect was absolutely stunning.完工后的效果非常美。

5 finch   

n.雀科鸣禽(如燕雀，金丝雀等)

参考例句：

• This behaviour is commonly observed among several species of finch.这种行为常常可以在几种雀科鸣禽中看到。
• In Australia,it is predominantly called the Gouldian Finch.在澳大利亚，它主要还是被称之为胡锦雀。

6 rape   

n.抢夺，掠夺，强奸；vt.掠夺，抢夺，强奸

参考例句：

• The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
• He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。

7 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

8 certified   

a.经证明合格的；具有证明文件的

参考例句：

• Doctors certified him as insane. 医生证明他精神失常。
• The planes were certified airworthy. 飞机被证明适于航行。

9 makeup   

n.组织；性格；化装品

参考例句：

• Those who failed the exam take a makeup exam.这次考试不及格的人必须参加补考。
• Do you think her beauty could makeup for her stupidity?你认为她的美丽能弥补她的愚蠢吗？

10 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

11 inviting   

adj.诱人的，引人注目的

参考例句：

• An inviting smell of coffee wafted into the room.一股诱人的咖啡香味飘进了房间。
• The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and blessedly familiar.这间厨房的味道温暖诱人，使人感到亲切温馨。

12 shrug   

v.耸肩(表示怀疑、冷漠、不知等)

参考例句：

• With a shrug,he went out of the room.他耸一下肩，走出了房间。
• I admire the way she is able to shrug off unfair criticism.我很佩服她能对错误的批评意见不予理会。

13 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

14 rumored   

adj.传说的，谣传的v.传闻( rumor的过去式和过去分词 )；[古]名誉；咕哝；[古]喧嚷

参考例句：

• It is rumored that he cheats on his wife. 据传他对他老婆不忠。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It was rumored that the white officer had been a Swede. 传说那个白人军官是个瑞典人。 来自辞典例句

15 torments   

（肉体或精神上的）折磨，痛苦( torment的名词复数 )； 造成痛苦的事物[人]

参考例句：

• He released me from my torments. 他解除了我的痛苦。
• He suffered torments from his aching teeth. 他牙痛得难受。

16 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。

17 scouts   

侦察员[机，舰]( scout的名词复数 )； 童子军； 搜索； 童子军成员

参考例句：

• to join the Scouts 参加童子军
• The scouts paired off and began to patrol the area. 巡逻人员两个一组，然后开始巡逻这个地区。

18 vibrantly   

参考例句：

• Notice that each center is vibrantly multi-colored with no shade predominating. 注意每个中心是多颜色振动毫无遮蔽控制。
• There are so many reptiles to discover in this vibrantly colored nature book of hide-and-seek. 这本书主要介绍了爬虫类动物如何利用保护色来保护自己。

19 exuberantly   

adv.兴高采烈地，活跃地，愉快地

参考例句：

• Pooch was clumsy as an ox and exuberantly affectionate. 普茨笨拙如一头公牛，可又极富于感情。 来自百科语句
• They exuberantly reclaimed a national indentity. 他们坚持不懈地要求恢复民族尊严。 来自辞典例句