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Despite the name, it's not about Mozart
By Gary Smith
The Hamilton spectator
13 January, 2007

"If something scares me, I think it's time to do it."
Geordie Johnson is talking about his life in the theatre. More specifically perhaps, he is speaking of Amadeus, the epic Peter Shaffer play he is currently tackling for Theatre Aquarius. Like a hungry linebacker, this six-foot hunk of male is sublimating his personal strength and will to suggest the bitter spirit of an angry, disappointed man who decides to tackle God.
Court composer Antonio Salieri is a role Johnson has longed to play for a great many years. The challenge of creating such a complex and troubled being has lured the Alberta-born actor from his country retreat near Blyth, Ont. Even though he is quite frankly petrified by the challenge of a short Aquarius rehearsal schedule, he feels he can deliver the goods.
"Of course I'm scared," Johnson grins, stretching his lanky frame in a too-small lobby chair. "Once we're ready to go, it's going to be a magnificent ride, you can count on that. But right now, I'm still feeling the pressure to make this thing work.
"Frankly, though, I've got to a stage in my life where it's all about the role I'll be playing and who else is up there on stage. I never expected to get rich in this profession and that's just as well. Theatre is about doing it for the love of the game, not making big bucks. Save that for the movies.
"Part of the wonderful thing about a life in the theatre is coming to terms with that. You face the ups and downs and you consider the journey. Even when I haven't been earning a hell of a lot of scratch I've had fun."
Johnson has no idea what made him want to act, unless it was a need to escape hard labour.
"My family had a sawmill and I worked there as a kid. It was really tough slogging. It was like being in jail."
Not in love with school either, Johnson looked for some course after high school that might offer a bit of fun.
"The drama department in Calgary was really it for me. I just seemed to understand that kind of creative communication."
Something of a loner, Johnson admits to having good friends, "but no serious domestic partner. It's just me and my dog," he shrugs, calling his black Lab, Buddy, to his side.
"Buddy's at rehearsal with me every day. He sits quietly under a chair and only looks up when we get terribly noisy onstage."
Living in the country suits Johnson's solitary life style. "I spent so much time in hotels and airports I really needed a place to put down some roots. Until recently, I also had a home in Cabbagetown in Toronto but I finally let that go.
"My land is all rolling hills. There are wonderful sunsets and at night the stars light your way. What's not to love?.
"It's not really about escape," Johnson says. "It's just about finding a place where I can breathe and relax. It's about chilling out close to friends. I mean Stratford isn't that far down the road."
Johnson spent 11 seasons off and on acting for the prestigious festival company, his most recent role being Nathan Detroit in the musical Guys and Dolls a couple of seasons ago.
"I may not have been the best Nathan ever, but I had a hell of a good time playing that part. There's something special about being part of a terrific cast where everyone gets along and works hard."
Johnson likes the role of Salieri even though the composer is not necessarily a likable guy.
"He's not sympathetic," Johnson says. "He asks for our understanding and forgiveness. His fight with God is a big one. When he sees such genius and talent in the hands of Amadeus Mozart, he is driven to a kind of rage. After all, he's made a bargain with God and he feels betrayed. Strange what religion can do to a man, isn't it?
"The play may be called Amadeus but it's all about Salieri. He's such a complex and disturbing character," Johnson continues.
"It all becomes so petty and that's an awful thing -- pettiness, I mean. It's not one of the best traits in a human being."
Johnson admits playwright Shaffer took great liberties with the truth of the Mozart-Salieri story.
"He certainly defines things in his own particular way to meet the requirements of his dramatic intentions. But then playwrights usually do."
Johnson finds Amadeus "a ripping yarn, a grand scale piece of theatre.
"To tackle God in this way, to make such a stand against the diety is something extraordinary.
"For me this is about playing somebody who spent his entire life trying to succeed, trying to find greatness and always coming up just a little short," Johnson contends.
Johnson gets ready to return to rehearsal, and suddenly he has a final and important thought about Shaffer's play.
"Mozart could make art out of his life and Salieri couldn't. There was no great passion in his music. It was pleasant and entertaining, but for him that wasn't really enough.
"It didn't have the sort of spirit he envisioned. Salieri couldn't stand that. He wanted to express genius. He couldn't understand there was nothing wrong with being an ordinary human being. That didn't fit his image for his own life.
"Do I ever have my own doubts? You bet. I once watched Jessica Tandy rehearsing Long Day's Journey into Night at London, Ontario's Grand Theatre. She suddenly put her head in her hands and moaned. 'Whatever made me think I could play this role?' she whispered. 'I have no idea who this woman is.'
"Now if Jessica Tandy could think that partway through rehearsal, maybe it's not surprising I can too.
"That's the thing about theatre," Johnson says as he turns to go. "Nothing is sure. You only have your talent and your instincts."
Amadeus is at the Dofasco Centre for the Arts, 190 King William St. Jan. 17 through Feb. 3. Call 905-522-7529.

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