Christopher LLEAR!

July 1, 2021 // By Dr. Joshua Sherman // Photographs by Katie McKellick, Courtesy of Shakespeare & Co.

SHAKESPEARE & COMPANY’S DEBUT PERFORMANCE OF THE SEASON

Photo by Betina la Plante

CHRISTOPHER LLOYD is a three-time Emmy® Award-winning actor (Taxi, Road to Avonlea) and has starred in blockbuster films such as the Back to the Future trilogy, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, and The Addams Family. This summer, Lloyd brings his talents to the Berkshires to star in a powerful production of King Lear at the New Spruce Theatre at Shakespeare & Company in Lenox from July 2 to August 28. Berkshire Magazine publisher Dr. Joshua Sherman spoke to Lloyd prior to his Berkshire arrival.

Sherman: Thanks so much for joining us, Christopher! We are incredibly excited to have you come to the Berkshires and do King Lear here this summer. Has Lear always been on your to-do list?

Lloyd: In the 1960s, I actually performed in three different productions of King Lear, in which I ended up playing different roles. It never crossed my mind that I would ever be doing the lead role as King Lear. It wasn’t ever something I aspired towards. Five years ago, it occurred to me that I actually would like to do the role of Lear, which eventually led to my involvement with this production in the Berkshires.

Sherman: Lear is known throughout the theater community as the “role of all roles,” particularly for actors of a certain age. Do you feel that there are any moments in the play that you wouldn’t have fully understood had you played the part 40 years ago, and do you feel that you’re now better equipped, because of your life experience to approach this role?

Lloyd: I certainly feel that being at the age I am now really makes a difference. Lear is facing his own mortality and his own finality, and he wants everything to be “right” before he passes away. He hopes that Cordelia will be there to nurse him through his waning years, and it all goes amok due to his own insecurities and needs. There are moments in the play where I feel I understand him intellectually, and I hope I have the wherewithal to bring him to life emotionally. The character of Lear just exudes high emotion all the way through.

Sherman: I think it’s fair to say that although you are better known for your television and film career, you have done a significant amount of stage work, as well. Reflecting on your career on the stage, do any significant highlights come to mind?

Lloyd: In 1973, I did a play called Kaspar for the Chelsea Theater Center at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. It was a real page-turner for me. It’s a truly brilliant play by Peter Handke. The role was just the right role for me at the time. It worked out very well, and it boosted my career to new heights.

Sherman: Just a few years later, you did One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. How did you make the transition from stage to film?

Lloyd: I was heading towards film for some time before One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. I was spending time in New York on a regular basis to be interviewed or audition for a film, but it just wasn’t happening. Somehow, I wasn’t projecting what they were looking for. Some actors don’t make the bridge from theater to film or TV, and I began to think that the same might be true for me. It was then that the casting director for One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest came to New York. I went in, I auditioned, I came back a second time, and I got the part. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was very significant for me in terms of getting more TV and film roles.

Sherman: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest had an amazing cast including, of course, Jack Nicholson. What was it like to be on the set of that film?

Lloyd: Jack Nicholson was an idol of mine even before One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest for all of the work that he had done on Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces, and The Last Detail. I just thought that he was “it.” To be able to be on a set with him on-location for One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and see him work and see how he worked with the cast was incredible. Most of the cast members were relatively young, inexperienced and wonderful to work with. Miloš Forman was a great director. It had a great script and great story, and the whole thing was very timely. I was a happy camper.

Sherman: After One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, you then famously went on to star in the television series Taxi as Reverend Jim. Were you concerned about crossing over from film into television?

Lloyd: I wasn’t too worried about it. I felt that my careers in film and television complemented one another. I did have a bit of an attitude about doing “sitcoms” when I was still in New York. I didn’t really want to do one. I felt—as a New York actor—that doing a sitcom was a bit like “selling out” in some fashion. I talked about it with my agent, Bob Gersh, and we worked through it. He got me auditions for various sitcoms and TV series, including Taxi, and it just worked out.

Sherman: Taxi had a cast that included Judd Hirsch, Andy Kaufman, Danny DeVito, Marilu Henner, and Tony Danza, among others. You’ve worked with some incredible actors and created some iconic television and film characters and unforgettable moments. Among the different characters you’ve played, the most well-known is arguably Doc Brown from Back to the Future. What is the line most frequently quoted back to you from that film?

Lloyd: “Great Scott!” is probably the most frequently-quoted line. Also, “Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need roads.” Those are definitely fan favorites.

Sherman: Did you find that being so well-known as Doc Brown from Back to the Future worked against you in terms of certain roles that you were hoping to pursue?

Lloyd: I really haven’t found that. I’ve done quite a number of roles since Back to the Future. Some are independent films which maybe didn’t get that much visibility, but also other roles and other productions that turned out very well. I like doing character work and making each character distinctive and unique on its own. If I’m doing a role and I suddenly hear my voice turn into “Doc Brown” or “Reverend Jim” or any other character that I’ve done before, an alarm will go off in my mind, and I have to find a different way to do the same character. I don’t want to interpret a character in a way that reminds people of what I did before. I want to be completely different.

Sherman: What is your actual process as an actor for developing a character?

Lloyd: I just try to find who the character is, as I’m reading. I go through the scenes to identify what the circumstances are that the character is living through. I then have to decide how I feel about those circumstances and how to express those feelings as an actor. I also start imagining how I should appear as the character. I think about what kind of makeup I’ll wear and how I’ll wear my hair. I think about whether or not I’ll have facial hair, a beard or mustache, and what kind of costuming is going to enhance the character that I’m working towards. As I’m working through all of that, I continue to work with the script until I feel that I understand every moment and how each moment is connected. That’s what I’m doing now with King Lear; I just keep going over the script and working through it. Every time I go over it, I find another connection or additional value in the words that I haven’t seen before.

Sherman: I know that you have also been working on quite a few other projects, including a recent film with George Clooney and Ben Affleck. Can you tell us about that?

Lloyd: I play the role of a grandpa, who is Ben Affleck’s dad. It’s based on a novel called The Tender Bar. It’s about a family in the 1950s and their interactions at the bar and all of the things that go on there. It’s a wonderful story. It was a pleasure to work with George Clooney, who is such a master at his craft. He does it with great aplomb. Working with Ben Affleck was great, and the film has a fantastic cast. I’m hopeful that people are going to enjoy it.

Sherman: I had the chance to see you at Weston Playhouse a few years back. Could you tell us a bit about your experiences in the Berkshires and Southern Vermont region?

Lloyd: I’ve spent a considerable amount of time in nearby Weston, Vermont. An older brother of mine, who has now passed away, was about 12 years older than myself. After the Second World War, he went to New York to work as an actor. He was a theater guy. One summer, he went to work at the Weston Playhouse, and he ended up returning for seven consecutive seasons. After seven years, he moved to Weston and had a family there. Weston is such a special place. I first started going up there in 1953. I actually did a few plays there myself, and I think my brother helped to arrange that. I did an entire season there and got my feet wet. It helped me to understand what it was like to really be a working actor. My late brother’s wife, Barbara, still lives in Weston, and I travel there to see her from time to time. I’m sure they’re going to come down to see me at Shakespeare & Company in the Berkshires, and I’m excited to do King Lear in the Berkshires this summer!

On the Berkshire Stage

Shakespeare & Company, shakespeare.org
King Lear, July 2 to August 28
Becoming Othello: A Black Girl’s Journey, July 16 to 25
Art, July 30 to August 22
Measure for Measure: A Workshop Production, September 1 to 5
Hang, September 10 to October 3
The Chairs, October 8 to 31

Barrington Stage Company, barringstonstageco.org
Who Could Ask for Anything More? The Songs of George
Gershwin, through July 3
Chester Bailey, through July 3
Eleanor, July 16 to August 1
Boca, July 30 to August 22
Sister Sorry, August 13 to 29
A Crossing, September 23 to October 17

Berkshire Theatre Group, berkshiretheatregroup.org
The Importance of Being Earnest, through July 10
The Wizard of Oz, July 23 to August 15
Nina Simone: Four Women, August 13 to September 5

Williamstown Theatre Festival, wtfestival.org
Celebrating the Black Radical Imagination: Nine Solo Plays, July 6 to 25
Row, July 13 to August 8
Alien/Nation, July 20 to August 8

Chester Theatre, chestertheatre.org
The Niceties, July 14 to 25
Tiny Beautiful Things, August 18 to 29