Meanwhile, he also appeared in several feature films. Shakespeare always had a prominent role in Close's life, even before he arranged his latest role. Goodman officials say they have not decided on a suitable spot for Close's skull to reside when it is not on stage. One option, Falls said, could be a perch near the theater's bar, an ironically appropriate location given Close's many years of substance-abuse battles. Wherever it ends up, having a new Shakespearean actor on the Chicago scene might take some getting used to, actors and directors say.
Theaters generally rely on prosthetic skeletal parts for props.
When Henry Godinez last played Hamlet in a 1996 production for the Oak Park Festival Theatre, his Yorick was made of rubber. To appear with a legend like Close, Godinez says, would be inspiring. While Close may be the first actor to will his anatomy to a theater, there is at least one other who appeared on stage posthumously. George Frederick Cooke, a distinguished 18th Century English actor known particularly for his habit of performing while drunk, died in New York in 1812. After his death, theater historians say, Cooke's attending physician, Dr. John Francis, removed the actor's head for the purpose of studying the brain.