Elaine Paige - Views On Theatre

Views On Theatre

Though Paige has enjoyed a long career in musical theatre, she rarely goes to watch musicals, much preferring to watch films or plays. Furthermore, she considers herself primarily an actress before a singer, stating, "I really prefer to be in character". Comparing the work of Rodgers and Hammerstein to that of Lloyd Webber, Paige has said that she finds Rodgers and Hammerstein songs more difficult to sing, and described them as challenging. She concluded, "it's a quieter kind of singing, more controlled, not belting it out".

In light of the physical demands of performing in theatre Paige has said "Musical theatre is the hardest thing any actor will ever do. You become obsessive about sleeping, eating the right food, not speaking and giving yourself vocal rest and keeping exercised". Regarding the pressure of having to be in a fit condition to perform in theatre each night, she remarked "you wouldn't want to read the letters people write when you're off and they're disappointed — it's so awful, the guilt one feels for not being there". As part of a rigorous routine before musical roles to look after her voice, Paige stops eating dairy products and drinking alcohol and also focuses on keeping fit. After about three months into the production when her voice is tiring from performing, she even gives up her social life, sometimes only communicating by notepad and fax. The rehearsal process is when Paige is most contented, using the valuable time to "delve and discover" without the need to feel embarrassed. She also never reads her reviews from critics, finding that it is not helpful to have too many opinions.

Paige has named reality television series such as Any Dream Will Do, which aim to find an unknown actor to play the lead role in a musical, as the greatest threat to theatre today, believing that "actors already striving in the theatre wouldn't dream of putting themselves on these shows". In a later interview, she questioned the seriousness of the actors auditioning for these types of shows: "you wouldn't put yourself up for one of those shows in case you got bumped off the first week and all your colleagues saw it". She has also expressed a wish for more new musicals to be put into production, instead of frequent revivals.