Kevin Spacey plans to return to the UAE to host further acting workshops.
“I will absolutely go back,” he says. “I had an extraordinary experience in Sharjah [in 2015] with a group of 23 emerging actors from 12 different regions, many of whom had never been on an airplane before and who had never had that experience.”
For Spacey, starting out, “there were a number of individuals who were in very high positions in this industry who took me under their wing, who believed in me way before I showed any promise, who gave me confidence, and in many cases, who gave me a job”.
“Now when I’m doing workshops, I’m always looking for the shy kid in the corner who wants to be there but is terrified, and who wants to get up but isn’t sure of themselves. I was that kid.
“When an adult or mentor or teacher can say just the right words to a young person at just the right moment, it can be life-changing. It’s a gift to be given to be able to, as Jack Lemmon said, send the elevator back down.”
artslife@thenational.ae
