Interviews

An Interview with John Lithgow about Carnival of the Animals

Carnival of the Animals is a magical tale that you wrote to accompany Camille Saint-Saëns's musical composition for a New York City Ballet production. How were you approached to work on this project?

JL: I had worked with Christopher Wheeldon when he choreographed Sweet Smell of Success, my first Broadway musical. Shortly after it closed, he called with the notion of my helping him devise a story for Carnival of the Animals, write a rhymed narration, and perform as its narrator. Between my affection for Chris, my love of ballet, and the excitement of actually working with the company, I couldn't say yes fast enough.

You played the part of Mabel Buntz, the school nurse who waltzes at the Elephant Ball, in a performance of the ballet in New York City in 2003. What was your favorite part of performing the ballet in front of a live audience?

JL: At a certain point in my performance as Mabel Buntz, I am lifted in the air by four male ballet dancers and carried across the entire width of the stage. The audience roars with laughter, but I consider it a moment of pure ecstasy.

How did you prepare for your role as Mabel? Had you ever danced or performed in a ballet before?

JL: I had NEVER performed in a ballet or ever thought I would. Chris asked me to play Mabel after the narration was completed and again, I couldn't refuse. I took daily ballet classes for three months prior to rehearsals. I was a little overtrained for the choreography Chris had in mind for me, but I had a good time doing it.

Why did you decide to create a book with the text that you wrote for the New York City Ballet?

JL: The notion of a book came fairly early, as soon as I realized that the ballet would have such a wonderful beginning/middle/end story, with a lively kid as its hero. Those are key elements on a good children's book.

How did you choose Boris Kulikov to illustrate this book?

JL: I had spotted Boris' wonderful work in The New York Times. The Times is a great sourcebook for illustrators since they use such superb ones, especially for their Sunday Book Review (although as I recall, the Boris picture that caught my eye was on the first page of the Travel section).

How did you and Boris work together?

JL: Boris and I sat together and talked, and he came to see the ballet at its premiere. He was very responsive to my ideas although, as always, illustrators bring hundreds of brand-new visual elements to my books which I never dreamed of.

The CD that comes packaged with Carnival of the Animals features members of the Chamber Music Los Angeles, under the direction of Bill Elliott, playing Camille Saint-Saëns's musical composition of Carnival of the Animals. Why do you feel it's important for children to hear the musical composition as well as the story that you created?

JL: The verses are calculated to precisely reflect the tone of the musical passages in Saint-Saëns's suite. I couldn't imagine a book that did not include the music. It enhances the experience of the book, it serves a distinct educational function, and it allows kids, teachers, and parents the chance to think of the story as a performance piece. Initially, I was told that it would be too expensive to license an orchestra recording of the piece. I was crushed. I responded by financing our wonderful eleven-piece version myself, performed by my friends from Chamber Music Los Angeles and conducted by Bill Elliott, who has been music director for all my kids' concerts.

Your picture books -- The Remarkable Farkle McBride, Marsupial Sue, Micawber, and I'm a Manatee -- and A Lithgow Palooza!, your first book for parents, are aimed at introducing children to the arts. Why do you feel this is important?

JL: I have always felt that the arts were a vital and essential part of a child's education, as they were for my own. I want my books, songs, and concerts to primarily entertain and delight children, but their hidden agenda is to get them curious and excited by all the performing and visual arts.

What was the first ballet that you saw performed onstage?

JL: I remember seeing the American Ballet Theatre on tour. Their big closing piece was a kind of introduction to the ballet, set in a ballet class, with the dancers basically showing off everything they can do. I walked home leaping around all over the sidewalk.

Do you have any suggestions for teachers and librarians on how to incorporate the arts into their curriculum even when many schools do not have a specific class period devoted to music and/or art?

JL: I don't underestimate the uphill struggle most teachers face fitting the arts into a demanding school curriculum. But if they can think of the arts as an incentive to learning, a way to stir the enthusiasm of their students for exploring, for self-expression, for experiencing joy inside a classroom, they may find that a lot of the stress and strain of teaching is eased.

What's next in your acting career?

JL: I am currently rehearsing a big new Broadway musical comedy based on the film Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. It will open on Broadway in March of 2005.

What will your next children's book be about?

JL: My next book will be a sequel to my second, Marsupial Sue. This time, Sue and her friends will put on a play. I intend it as a love letter to theatre. You see? I'm up to my old tricks!