A View From the Stalls. Dame Maggie Smith stands as a remarkable example of the concomitance - in a performers career - of typecasting and characterisation, that has the ability to impersonate against type infinitely various screen or stage characters. This biography essentially aims at correcting the preconceived image that the general public has of Dame Maggie Smith. Focusing on the last twenty-five years, it examines, through the many parts she has played since the early 1990s, her ability to go beyond typecasting and give, thanks to her chameleon skills, nuanced and convincing portrays of infinitely diverse characters.