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feather_ghyll) wrote2009-04-05 07:51 am
feather_ghyll) wrote2009-04-05 07:51 am
REVIEW: Daisy Pulls it Off
Daisy Pulls it Off (Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama, Sherman Theatre, 4/4/2009)
Daisy Pulls it Off
Written by: Denise Deegan
Well played, Denise Deegan!
Last night, I went to see Daisy Pulls it Off, which I have been itching to see since I first heard of it - a play that gently sends up and celebrates girls' boarding school stories. At the start of the year, I saw that this production was on and rushed to buy a ticket. As the date approached, I began to wonder how they'd handle the material, I only knew a rough outline of the story, but I started worrying that the production would poke fun in the wrong way, but it didn't and now I really want a copy of the play. Oh, and I'm really rather chuffed.
Denise Deegan knew what she was doing. I suppose <Disy is a send-up, but at the same time it isn't. For me it was more of a distillation of the classic story you're likely to come across in boarding school stories, I must have read a dozen variations (I think that Dimsie Goes to School would be the latest.) We start off with the framing device of 'modern day' Grangewood fourth formers putting on a play to celebrate the school's twenty-fifth anniversary. THe play is called Daisy Pulls it Off.
Daisy Meredith is an Elementay Schoolgirl who wins a scholarship to Grangewood. Some of its scholars (snobbish Sybil and her toadying companion Monica) are disgusted at the thought of such a low creature entering their hallowed halls. But the right sort, head girl Clare and her Irish second Alice, not to mention Trixie Martin (self-confessed madcap and poetess of the upper fourth) are much mre welcoming. Daisy struggles, but soon proves that she is good at all her work, capable of playing hockey well, although she has only learned it from a book until now, and musical to boot, the latter inherited from her Welsh opera-singing mother, no doubt. In short, she is one of the Extraordinary New Girls and the school would see her as a credit, were it not for the determined campaign against her instigated by Sybil.
Oh, and the head girl, Clare, is the one who's family used to own the school building and grounds but had to give it up after her grandfather died, hiding the family treasure and leaving a mysterious will. Clare may have to leave at the end of the term. Can straight, honourable, prodigously gifted Daisy and Trixie, always up for a 'stunt' find the treasure where everyone else has failed? Or will the enigmatic Russian singing master beat them to it? And why does the touched under gardener keep whistling 'All Through the Night'? Daisy is accused falsely of sneaking and cheating, but gets an opportunity to save the school (at hockey after the worst run of injuries ever seen in a hockey team), her enemies Sybil and Monica (I forgot to mention that the school is next to the sea, but you should have assumed that) and the Beaumont family, to which she may have a hitherto unsuspected connection. Not only does Daisy play the game, but she, most triumphantly, pulls it off!
That's the story then, and do see what I mean about distilling everything that's in these books? There's a glorious feeling of 'of course' about it. Of course Daisy is to enter the fourth, of course the headmistress is yonug, wise and adored, of course Daisy and Trixie share a dorm with Sybil and Monica, of course they set up a secret treasure-hunting society with a Latin motto, of course there's an Irish girl, a mademoiselle, a poetry competition and a couple of midnight feasts (Deegan never forgets' schoolgirls' greed). The only thing that made me go 'huh' was the Russian singing master - although it's later revealed that there's a plotty reason for it. I can think of musical teaching masters (Plato or Cicero or whatever he was called), and I have a vague recollection of French masters, but Russian? Everything else was wonderfully familiar and spot on, from the characters to the language, both the slang that the girls use and the narration.
Actually, that was neatly done - the transfer of a narrative to a theatrical play. I haven't read the play or seen another production, so I don't know what was the playwright or the director's ideas, but by having the farming device of the girls playing versions of themselves (with the help of two teachers, who double as all the adults) they are able to be both character and narrator, imparting the authorial gems that tell us that prefects are biting their lips at their juniors' escapeades, or describing Daisy's mental state - I wish I could remember an example to cite, but suffice it to say that the tone is perfect.
Here, the main set of moveable climbing bars was used imaginatively to depict various parts of the school grounds, with the real girls used as stage crew and set, sometimes acting as a sort of chorus, responding to events, usually for comic punctuation. The cliffside rescue and the hockey match were really well done, given the resources and that they couldn't do it 'straight', although the audience laughed. Actually, some of the audience laughed a bit too racuously - the slang got them going, particularly 'tophole' and slangy Trixie's repeated exclamations ('Jubilate!' = good, 'Jemima' = shocking"). And then there was the sole male player, who was the OTT Russian, channelling his Alistair Sim to play a mistress and Matron, then channelling Hugh Grant at the end to play Daisy's long-lost father and a ninja ball-carrier at one point.
Actually, during the interval, I heard a little girl solemnly suggesting ways for Daisy to clear her name (oh how I wanted to ask for her address and send her some of my doublers, but I didn't) while behind me people were trying to solve the 'intricacies' of the plot, which amused me, because knowing the material Deegan had cribbed from, the only thing that surprised me was the physical location of the treasure - in the cases that had been used as cases and set. Most ingenious.
But enough about the audeince, because I had a blast, touches like 'As the kiddies say, scooterons-nous' made me gleeful. I would like to shake Deegan's hand and arm off. The production was well directed, mostly playing it straight - I mean, Daisy is ludicrous, but at times she was pathetic, and they got natural not cruel laughs from the material. The physical stuff ws perhaps the best - the silent movie-like scenes of the hotwater battle fight and night prowling were gems, but I'm thinking of the little touches that helped with the transition from scene to scene. The girl playing Daisy was very good, and only stumbled on her lines once, while the girl playing the mistresses (significantly taller than all the other 'girls', who were clearly post-pubescent when they were in their gym clothes, but otherwise, a good fit) stumbled a lot. A part of me was irritated tha she (and a couple of others couldn't learn their lines. And if the lead who had such a lot to learn could do it...) I don't know if they were under-rehearsed or not given enought ime, although a part of me thinks it's the unfamiliarity of the language. As the audience's laughter reminded me, not everyone is familiar with the argot peculiar to schoolgirls, or the narrative style of these books (this girl was quite obviously trying to get the words out in the right order with the headmistresses' later speeches, and missing the needed rhythym and emphasis quite badly). I bet the director didn't hand everyone a copy of Brent-Dyer, Brazil, Fairlie Bruce or Mallory Towers of their own to read in preparation. Although I hope some of the cas did read some in their childhoods.
I particulrly liked Trixie - I don't want to over-praise the actress, because I think it was more the enthusiasm of the character, but there was this ants-in-her-pants sort of buzziness about her. I thought the sixth-formers were somewhat disappointing. In fact, perhaps the girl playing Irish Alice should have played Clare, because she had more glamour about her. The Clare didn't convey why Daisy should hero worship her so. (Oh, and one crit for Deegan, surely Mlle. Fitzpatrick should have been a Biddy not Alice!?) Sybil was also a touch underwhelming (especially highlighted when it came to her and Daisy making up, when you thought 'oh, this should be a bigger moment'). She was fine, but I think that part of the problem was that the girl playing Monica was excellent, with fantabulous comic timing, and had stolen the show from the beginning.
And I haven't metnioned the beginning, have I? This was the first time I'd been to this theatre, the auditorium was quite dark and I was concentrating on finding my spot. When I got it and turned around, I was confronted by the low stage dressed as a gym, about ten girls in black shorts and a vest messing around, not quite doing a demonstration with a female and male (!) teacher helping them. They seemed aware of us, waving as if they knew some of us, and talking and chatting to others. I was cringing a bit and relieved I was ensconced somewhere in the unreachable middle. And they were using 'OK' liberally, even the mistress. Now if this was alll meant to be set in the late 1920s, that wouldn't be on, surely. Of course, after the introduction and the play started, they left us alone, and did a fine job.
Daisy Pulls it Off
Written by: Denise Deegan
Well played, Denise Deegan!
Last night, I went to see Daisy Pulls it Off, which I have been itching to see since I first heard of it - a play that gently sends up and celebrates girls' boarding school stories. At the start of the year, I saw that this production was on and rushed to buy a ticket. As the date approached, I began to wonder how they'd handle the material, I only knew a rough outline of the story, but I started worrying that the production would poke fun in the wrong way, but it didn't and now I really want a copy of the play. Oh, and I'm really rather chuffed.
Denise Deegan knew what she was doing. I suppose <Disy is a send-up, but at the same time it isn't. For me it was more of a distillation of the classic story you're likely to come across in boarding school stories, I must have read a dozen variations (I think that Dimsie Goes to School would be the latest.) We start off with the framing device of 'modern day' Grangewood fourth formers putting on a play to celebrate the school's twenty-fifth anniversary. THe play is called Daisy Pulls it Off.
Daisy Meredith is an Elementay Schoolgirl who wins a scholarship to Grangewood. Some of its scholars (snobbish Sybil and her toadying companion Monica) are disgusted at the thought of such a low creature entering their hallowed halls. But the right sort, head girl Clare and her Irish second Alice, not to mention Trixie Martin (self-confessed madcap and poetess of the upper fourth) are much mre welcoming. Daisy struggles, but soon proves that she is good at all her work, capable of playing hockey well, although she has only learned it from a book until now, and musical to boot, the latter inherited from her Welsh opera-singing mother, no doubt. In short, she is one of the Extraordinary New Girls and the school would see her as a credit, were it not for the determined campaign against her instigated by Sybil.
Oh, and the head girl, Clare, is the one who's family used to own the school building and grounds but had to give it up after her grandfather died, hiding the family treasure and leaving a mysterious will. Clare may have to leave at the end of the term. Can straight, honourable, prodigously gifted Daisy and Trixie, always up for a 'stunt' find the treasure where everyone else has failed? Or will the enigmatic Russian singing master beat them to it? And why does the touched under gardener keep whistling 'All Through the Night'? Daisy is accused falsely of sneaking and cheating, but gets an opportunity to save the school (at hockey after the worst run of injuries ever seen in a hockey team), her enemies Sybil and Monica (I forgot to mention that the school is next to the sea, but you should have assumed that) and the Beaumont family, to which she may have a hitherto unsuspected connection. Not only does Daisy play the game, but she, most triumphantly, pulls it off!
That's the story then, and do see what I mean about distilling everything that's in these books? There's a glorious feeling of 'of course' about it. Of course Daisy is to enter the fourth, of course the headmistress is yonug, wise and adored, of course Daisy and Trixie share a dorm with Sybil and Monica, of course they set up a secret treasure-hunting society with a Latin motto, of course there's an Irish girl, a mademoiselle, a poetry competition and a couple of midnight feasts (Deegan never forgets' schoolgirls' greed). The only thing that made me go 'huh' was the Russian singing master - although it's later revealed that there's a plotty reason for it. I can think of musical teaching masters (Plato or Cicero or whatever he was called), and I have a vague recollection of French masters, but Russian? Everything else was wonderfully familiar and spot on, from the characters to the language, both the slang that the girls use and the narration.
Actually, that was neatly done - the transfer of a narrative to a theatrical play. I haven't read the play or seen another production, so I don't know what was the playwright or the director's ideas, but by having the farming device of the girls playing versions of themselves (with the help of two teachers, who double as all the adults) they are able to be both character and narrator, imparting the authorial gems that tell us that prefects are biting their lips at their juniors' escapeades, or describing Daisy's mental state - I wish I could remember an example to cite, but suffice it to say that the tone is perfect.
Here, the main set of moveable climbing bars was used imaginatively to depict various parts of the school grounds, with the real girls used as stage crew and set, sometimes acting as a sort of chorus, responding to events, usually for comic punctuation. The cliffside rescue and the hockey match were really well done, given the resources and that they couldn't do it 'straight', although the audience laughed. Actually, some of the audience laughed a bit too racuously - the slang got them going, particularly 'tophole' and slangy Trixie's repeated exclamations ('Jubilate!' = good, 'Jemima' = shocking"). And then there was the sole male player, who was the OTT Russian, channelling his Alistair Sim to play a mistress and Matron, then channelling Hugh Grant at the end to play Daisy's long-lost father and a ninja ball-carrier at one point.
Actually, during the interval, I heard a little girl solemnly suggesting ways for Daisy to clear her name (oh how I wanted to ask for her address and send her some of my doublers, but I didn't) while behind me people were trying to solve the 'intricacies' of the plot, which amused me, because knowing the material Deegan had cribbed from, the only thing that surprised me was the physical location of the treasure - in the cases that had been used as cases and set. Most ingenious.
But enough about the audeince, because I had a blast, touches like 'As the kiddies say, scooterons-nous' made me gleeful. I would like to shake Deegan's hand and arm off. The production was well directed, mostly playing it straight - I mean, Daisy is ludicrous, but at times she was pathetic, and they got natural not cruel laughs from the material. The physical stuff ws perhaps the best - the silent movie-like scenes of the hotwater battle fight and night prowling were gems, but I'm thinking of the little touches that helped with the transition from scene to scene. The girl playing Daisy was very good, and only stumbled on her lines once, while the girl playing the mistresses (significantly taller than all the other 'girls', who were clearly post-pubescent when they were in their gym clothes, but otherwise, a good fit) stumbled a lot. A part of me was irritated tha she (and a couple of others couldn't learn their lines. And if the lead who had such a lot to learn could do it...) I don't know if they were under-rehearsed or not given enought ime, although a part of me thinks it's the unfamiliarity of the language. As the audience's laughter reminded me, not everyone is familiar with the argot peculiar to schoolgirls, or the narrative style of these books (this girl was quite obviously trying to get the words out in the right order with the headmistresses' later speeches, and missing the needed rhythym and emphasis quite badly). I bet the director didn't hand everyone a copy of Brent-Dyer, Brazil, Fairlie Bruce or Mallory Towers of their own to read in preparation. Although I hope some of the cas did read some in their childhoods.
I particulrly liked Trixie - I don't want to over-praise the actress, because I think it was more the enthusiasm of the character, but there was this ants-in-her-pants sort of buzziness about her. I thought the sixth-formers were somewhat disappointing. In fact, perhaps the girl playing Irish Alice should have played Clare, because she had more glamour about her. The Clare didn't convey why Daisy should hero worship her so. (Oh, and one crit for Deegan, surely Mlle. Fitzpatrick should have been a Biddy not Alice!?) Sybil was also a touch underwhelming (especially highlighted when it came to her and Daisy making up, when you thought 'oh, this should be a bigger moment'). She was fine, but I think that part of the problem was that the girl playing Monica was excellent, with fantabulous comic timing, and had stolen the show from the beginning.
And I haven't metnioned the beginning, have I? This was the first time I'd been to this theatre, the auditorium was quite dark and I was concentrating on finding my spot. When I got it and turned around, I was confronted by the low stage dressed as a gym, about ten girls in black shorts and a vest messing around, not quite doing a demonstration with a female and male (!) teacher helping them. They seemed aware of us, waving as if they knew some of us, and talking and chatting to others. I was cringing a bit and relieved I was ensconced somewhere in the unreachable middle. And they were using 'OK' liberally, even the mistress. Now if this was alll meant to be set in the late 1920s, that wouldn't be on, surely. Of course, after the introduction and the play started, they left us alone, and did a fine job.
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