Introduction
In William Shakespeare's immortal As You Like It, he noted, "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players..."
The Unwilling Actress places the spotlight on a stage where the players reveal the many roles in life they aspire to. It is a setting that finds a young ingenue who comes to realize that the world of greasepaint, scenery, and make-believe is more to her liking than reality.
Beautiful, talented, and misunderstood by those nearest to her, Celia lives only to play the dramatic parts on stage that will free her from the drab and dull life in the real world. The other inhabitants of this fantasy land share her enthusiasm for this means of escape.
The theatre, as some form of dramatic expression, can be found in every historical period and in every part of the world. In nearly all cultures, what happens on the stage reflects what has or is happening in the society of the area or era represented. The ancient Greek plays described the communal life of that time. During the Puritan influence on history, theatres were officially closed. Ibsen, Tolstoy, George Bernard Shaw and others used the stage to deal with the social problems of their times via their works.
And now, Bella Dietrich, with her unusual penetrating perception of the motives behind the facade and inner workings of today's men and women, has written a scathing in-depth story dealing with role-playing in the Twentieth Century. The author, a lifetime student of the interpersonal relations between those who love and those who hate each other, leads the reader into the intricate patterns of human emotion.
As the curtain is raised on this drama, the foibles of the characters come into focus-the small town hard-working accountant who is trying to save his money in order to start his own business, the little rich girl whose only talent is identifiable by a dollar sign, the political performer fighting for power with his only negotiable asset, the disillusioned Vietnam veteran, and the dedicated thespian.
In this richly tapestried setting filled with contemporary theatrical fledglings, The Unwilling Actress tells the real story of those who strive for a life in the theatre and of those who fail to understand the drives and needs that motivate these gifted and fragile human beings.
Celia lives only when she has donned the mask of the theatre-whether it be the tragedian or the comedienne. How many of us do this in our daily lives without the trappings of the theatre? And how many of us wish that we could don the disguise of another person to achieve our goals in life?
These questions can only be answered by our readers.
This marks the third Dietrich novel to be published by Dansk Blue Books. We believe it also marks the first time that the drama of today- the frustration, search, and quest for identity that is sweeping the world-has been so forcefully told via the ageless vehicle of the theatre.
The Publishers