Bette Midler On The Rose: “The character I play is a girl singer, strong-willed and somewhat shell-shocked by the tumult of those times. As I was myself…The part reflects a couple of things about me. A certain amount of insecurity, for example ”“ most people experience it, but don’t want to reveal it. My best work is always revelatory. When I stand on the stage, I try to get not completely naked, because you have to hold something back or else there’s no mystery, but as close to naked as I can bear to come. I want people to sense that what I’m showing them isn’t phony. I want to spark that shock of recognition that makes them say, ‘Oh, I know what that gesture means, that look.” That’s some form of acting, and I’ve always done it.
