Anyone who sees ‘The New World,? the historical drama about the founding of Jamestown, may catch a glimpse of a former Clarkston resident on the big screen.
Margaret Mabe, the daughter of Mary Carol Ridgeway and the late Wayne A. Ridgeway, grew up in the Clarkston area. A 1971 gradute of Clarkston High School and mother of three, Mabe eventually moved to Williamsburg, Virginia, where she worked as part of historical reanactments at Colonial Williamsburg.
One day, Mabe heard about a casting call for parts in ‘The New World,? which was filmed on location in Virigina. Mabe said she performed in high school plays and her job required acting in many aspects, but she was never in a movie before.
Mabe decided to try out. After spending what she described as a ‘very long and grueling day? in line with thousands of other applicants, Mabe auditioned for one of six open roles for female extras.
Not long after, Mabe recieved a callback, and landed a role as an English lady who comes to America on one of the first ships to make the journey. Mabe said she is visible in six scenes in the film. She said the other two English ladies wore very tall hats in their scenes while she wore a short, flat-top hat.
Mabe said she died her blonde hair brown and donned a 15-pound costume for her role. She was on the set for eight days of production where she had a chance to witness the movie-making process and interact with real movie stars.
Mabe said she spoke with the movie’s stars Colin Farrel and Christian Bale on several occassions.
‘Colin was an absolute gentleman,? Mabe said, recalling a particularly hot day when Farrell brought her bottled water during downtime.
Mabe said she kept the bottle and joked that she was considering selling the memorabilia on eBay.
Likewise, Mabe said she enjoyed working with Bale. Mabe said Bale’s wife was expecting a child at anytime during production and to her, he was visibly concerned at times.
‘He was able to focus on his part, but you could tell he was distracted,? Mabe said.
When work was done, Mabe was invited to celebrate with the stars as well, attending several parties and one of the film’s premiers.
‘They party-hardy, but they work hard,? Mabe said about the cast and crew.
After seeing the finished version of the film on the silver screen, Mabe said she was disappointed that many scenes involving Native Americans were cut.
‘I felt bad because stuff I felt was extraordinary was not put in there,? she said, remarking that she hopes the extra scenes will be included when the film is released on DVD.
Overall, the expereience left a lasting impression on Mabe. Since her big sceen debut, she has already stared in a television commerical and customer service training video for local companies in Virginia.
As for the big screen, Mabe hopes to appear again, and has attended a casting call for a future project about John Adams that is expected to star Tom Hanks.