Susan Watson: Still Singing After Decades in Musicals

Susan Watson: Still Singing After Decades in Musicals

Ask many actors and they will tell you it is hard to get work when you are just starting out and also as you get older.

That has not been the case for American musical actress Susan Watson.

In 1958, Watson was offered a part in the musical, “West Side Story,” in London. At that time, she was still a student at New York City’s Julliard School for musicians, dancers and actors.

More than 50 years later, she was offered another part. Watson was to take an important role in a remake of the musical, “Follies,” at the Kennedy Center in Washington and the Marquis Theatre in New York City.

In both cases, the offers came from musical theater legend Stephen Sondheim. He wrote the lyrics¹ for “West Side Story” and the music and lyrics for “Follies.”

“It felt so good being on stage nightly with fellow ‘senior citizens,’ Bernadette Peters, Linda Lavin and Elaine Paige,” Watson said of “Follies.”

“Active, empowered senior women are a resource that I think Americans can be proud of.”

As a teenager, Watson developed her dancing, singing and acting² skills in her home town of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

She traveled to study at New York’s Julliard School before Sondheim interrupted her studies with the offer of a part in “West Side Story.” The award-winning musical, based on William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” tells a story of the struggles of immigrants³ in New York City.

Watson later had starring roles in such well-known musicals as “The Fantastics,” “Bye Bye Birdie,” “Carnival,” “Celebration” and “No, No, Nanette.” She has also appeared in many American television shows.

Musical Theater Created in America

Musical plays are an American invention. They tell stories through many art forms: spoken words, song, acting and dance. Music adds an important emotional⁴ element, making an interesting story even more powerful, Watson said.

Now, musical theater is regularly shown in such countries as Australia, China, Israel, Japan, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, and South Korea. American musicals have been popular for many years in Britain and Canada.

The end of a performance, when the stars of a show come out to a “curtain call,” to accept cheers from the people watching, never gets old, Watson said.

The Theatrical⁵ Slap⁶ that Hurt

In live theater, actors know the unexpected⁷ will happen -- it is just a question of when.

Watson remembers how her co-star in the musical, “Carnival,” the late Jerry Orbach, liked to give as realistic a performance as possible.

There was one scene, Watson recalled⁸, where Orbach was supposed to slap her. “I’m a small person, and he was slapping⁹ me a little too hard,” she said. Watson said she asked him to lighten¹⁰ up, but if he did, it was not nearly enough for Watson.

“So in one performance, I hit him back hard,” Watson said. After that, Watson’s co-star let up on their nightly hitting scene. That was important for her.

Actors in Broadway shows in New York City do eight performances a week.

Watson’s Strong Voice a Surprise to Some

Watson’s singing voice often surprised people.

John Wilson, writing for The New York Times in 1976, said a Susan Watson performance produced “shock value.” It surprised people that a small woman had such a “big full-bodied voice,” Wilson wrote.

At age 78, Watson now lives in California, but she is not finished performing. She just released¹¹ a new album of musical theater and other American music called, “The Music Never Ends.” She is excited that six of the 14 songs on her new album were written by “empowered women,” including Nancy Ford¹² and Gretchen Cryer.

“I’m 78 years old and still having a lovely time in show business,” Watson said.

Some people have the opinion that it is harder to get started in the entertainment business. But Watson said today’s computer technology makes it easier to tell people about new shows, recordings¹⁴ and movies.

Performers, musicians, television networks and theaters can tell the world “about their creative efforts” by placing messages on the internet and social media, Watson said.

She said her new musical recording¹³, “The Music Never Ends”, is selling “very well” partly because people do not have to go to a store to buy it. They can buy it online, like almost any other product.

Words in This Story

role – n. part in a play

legend - n. a famous or important person who is known for doing something extremely well

lyrics - n. the words of a song

stage - n. a raised platform in a theater, auditorium¹⁵, etc., where the performers stand

senior - adj. older people

interrupt - v. to cause someone to stop doing what they had been doing

curtain call - n. at the end of a show, when actors appear on stage to accept the cheers of the audience

slap - v. to hit someone

1 lyrics   

n.歌词

参考例句：

• music and lyrics by Rodgers and Hart 由罗杰斯和哈特作词作曲
• The book contains lyrics and guitar tablatures for over 100 songs. 这本书有100多首歌的歌词和吉他奏法谱。

2 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

3 immigrants   

n.移民( immigrant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Illegal immigrants were given the opportunity to regularize their position. 非法移民得到了使其身份合法化的机会。
• Immigrants from all over the world populate this city. 这个城市里生活着来自世界各地的移民。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 emotional   

adj.令人动情的；易动感情的；感情(上)的

参考例句：

• Emotional people don't stop to calculate.感情容易冲动的人做事往往不加考虑。
• This is an emotional scene in the play.这是剧中动人的一幕。

5 theatrical   

adj.剧场的，演戏的；做戏似的，做作的

参考例句：

• The final scene was dismayingly lacking in theatrical effect.最后一场缺乏戏剧效果，叫人失望。
• She always makes some theatrical gesture.她老在做些夸张的手势。

6 slap   

n.掴，侮辱，拍击声；vt.拍击，侮辱，惩罚，申斥；adv.正面地，直接地，突然地

参考例句：

• He sent the horse forward with a slap on its rump.他拍了一下马尾，马便向前跑去。
• He gave her a slap on the cheek.他打了她一耳光。

7 unexpected   

adj.想不到的，意外的

参考例句：

• I always keep some good wine in for unexpected guests.我总保存些好酒，用来招待不速之客。
• His promotion was unexpected.他的升迁出人意料。

8 recalled   

回忆起( recall的过去式和过去分词 )； 使想起； 使想到； 勾起

参考例句：

• I recalled that he had mentioned the problem once. 我回忆起他曾经有一次提到过这个问题。
• The sight recalled the days of childhood to me. 那情景使我回忆起童年。

9 slapping   

adj.非常快的，大而壮的，极好的v.掌击，拍打( slap的现在分词 )；制止；镇压；（尤指生气地）啪的一声放下

参考例句：

• His impudence provoked her into slapping his face. 他的粗暴让她气愤地给了他一耳光。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• "Oh, that's right,'said Hsin-mei, slapping his own thigh. 辛楣拍大腿道：“对，对，对！ 来自汉英文学 - 围城

10 lighten   

vt./vi.减轻，变轻；照亮，变亮

参考例句：

• The sky began to lighten after the storm.暴风雨后天空开始放晴。
• They decided to lighten taxes.他们决定减轻税收。

11 released   

v.释放( release的过去式和过去分词 )；放开；发布；发行

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• With hindsight it is easy to say they should not have released him. 事后才说他们本不应该释放他，这倒容易。

12 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

13 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

14 recordings   

n.记录( recording的名词复数 )；录音；录像；唱片

参考例句：

• a boxed set of original recordings 一套盒装原声录音带
• old jazz recordings reissued on CD 以激光唱片重新发行的老爵士乐

15 auditorium   

n.观众席，听众席；会堂，礼堂

参考例句：

• The teacher gathered all the pupils in the auditorium.老师把全体同学集合在礼堂内。
• The stage is thrust forward into the auditorium.舞台向前突出，伸入观众席。