World renowned actress Jeanne Moreau visits Silver Spring

Internationally respected French actress Jeanne Moreau spoke to the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center patrons in downtown Silver Spring on Tuesday, Feb. 3.

Murray Horwitz, Director and Chief Operating Officer of the Silver, introduced The Bay of Angels, a film about compulsive gambling starring Moreau. He especially thanked the Embassy of France for helping to sponsor Moreau's trip to Silver Spring. Horwitz then announced that Moreau would appear after the film for an open discussion of her work.

The movie, Bay of Angels or in French La Baie des Anges, was directed by Jacques Demy and released in 1963. The audience watched the black and white film in French with English subtitles, and at its conclusion, Horwitz addressed the gathered crowd, saying he knew Moreau had been introduced in a number of different manners, but he hoped she would accept the simple but truthful statement, "Ladies and gentlemen, a very great human being." The audience rose to their feet in respect as Moreau walked up to the stage.

Moreau, who was born in Paris, France, on Jan. 23, 1928, answered a wide range of questions. She is known to change her appearance for various movie roles by dying her hair and changing costumes. She was asked specifically about dying her hair for the Silver's featured film of the night, and she admitted, "Yes, [Bay of Angels] was the blondest."

She also gave some incites into the variety of lavish costumes she wore for the film. Moreau thinks outfits tell a lot about a character and chose high heels for her part in Bay of Angels as Jean Fournier in order to add to the woman's unique gait. Moreau added as a side fact that costumes were selected for actors before the script had been completed for the film.

Moreau has worked with various actors and directors, among them American director Orson Welles. At times, he would discard the script, roll the cameras, and think of spontaneous dialogue to have Moreau repeat on film, she said.

She shared an experience involving a journalist who accused her of being Welles' "puppet." "So what?" Moreau responded. "I loved to be his puppet."

When asked to name her overall favorite role, Moreau said she did not have a preference. If she did not like a character she played or liked one more than another, then she felt she would betray the part. "You never judge anybody. How could I be honest to the director and to the public if I didn't accept all the [aspects] of my characters?" said Moreau. An audience member also questioned Moreau about her role in Jules and Jim, Jules et Jim (1962), as Catherine, saying that the character is fairly easy to love but causes many problems. Moreau's simple quick-witted response was, "That's life my boy."

She told the audience that she did know of a few roles in movies she would have liked to play but discretely avoided sharing them. "What's given to me, it has to be given to me," said Moreau, "and if it wasn't given to me, then it wasn't meant for me."

Other than Jules et Jim and Bay of Angels, Moreau has appeared in over 100 films, including Les Louves (1957), Eva (1962), The Last Tycoon (1976), and The Proprietor (1996).

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