Description
Ignacio López Tarso is interviewed by Michael Ramos-Araizaga at Tarso’s home in Mexico City on August 2, 2016. López Tarso begins the interview with tales of his upbringing. He details his school years and talks about the importance of family. He shares his love of literature, describing himself as an avid reader from a very young age. He remembers his days studying at the seminary in Temascalcingo as a teenager and his time spent at theater school in his early twenties. He has fond memories of starring in plays, such as Euripides’ Hippolytus, Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Arthur Miller’s The Crucible. He shares anecdotes of his time living and working in Spain, where he joined the Lope de Vega theater company, and chronicles his transition as an actor from stage to screen. He credits cinematographer Gabriel Figueroa with introducing him to film and remarks upon how lucky he felt to day find himself working alongside the stars of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema, such as Dolores del Río, María Félix, Pedro Armendáriz and Emilio Fernández.
Citing numerous film works López Tarso traces his career as an actor and recounts his experiences working with many of the influential Mexican directors. He describes meeting Luis Buñuel and starring in Nazarín (1959) and working with Ismael Rodríguez on La cucaracha (The Soldiers of Pancho Villa, 1959). He relates how he came to be cast in Macario (1960) and shares memories of Roberto Gaval-dón, a director he greatly admired. He details his working relationship with María Félix in multiple films, including La estrella vacia (The Empty Star, 1960), La generala (The General, 1971) and La cucaracha (The Soldiers of Pancho Villa, 1959). Referencing Under the Volcano (1984), he speaks about John Huston with great affection, describing him as an “exemplary director.” In closing, López Tarso discusses the rise and fall of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema, states that he has never had any desire to work in Hollywood and describes what he believes to be the essential qualities needed to be a successful actor.
(jtakahashi 7/21/17)
