She is led by the voices of st. Catherine, st. Margaret, and st. Michael who instructed her to acquire a horse, soldiers clothing with armor, and an army and drive the english out of france. So her actions are based on her faith in her voices. Shaw was a codirector for the first london production in 1924 with Sybil Thorndike in the title role, and he reminded her that joan was a sturdy, independent 19yearold woman, not a sweet angelic little girl. The story of joan is fascinating. She was a village girl born in the early 1400s, a warrior in her teens and was accused of heresy and witchcraft because she would not deny her visions and voices and consequent was convicted and burned at the stake. Almost 500 years later, joan was canonized by the church. Shakespeare, bertolt brecht, Maxwell Anderson and jean anouilh all have dramatized the joan story, each reflecting a personal point of view and interest. To meet the challenge of that role required a special actress. Our guest is that speci