Daisy Pulls It Off - Park Theatre

[showgirl]

Surprising not to find a thread, really, as this is a revival of Denise Deegan's 1983 spoof set in a girls' boarding school (I saw the original 1983 production on its transfer from Southampton to London) and not only has this version received some enthusiastic reviews but it makes a great Xmas alternative to panto and is ideal for families, provided the children are the right age.

I saw the matinee yesterday and really enjoyed it, despite its 2 hour 30 running time, and the difference this time - which I found very effective - is that director Paulette Randall has chosen her cast not only on a colour-blind but age-blind basis.  There are only 7 of them (including a single man), so lots of doubling required, but not only did they pull it off; the whole production did.

At yesterday's very busy matinee, there was some fidgeting and whispering (I'd hoped in vain that schools didn't break up until today), but not an unreasonable amount and for anyone thinking of booking, Todaytix are offering best seats for £15, which is half-price at most performances.

[stevej678]

I saw the Thursday matinee of this last week when there were two large (well behaved) school groups in. I thought it was great fun, with terrific performances all round, particularly Pauline McGlynn as Trixie and Melanie Fullbrook as head girl Clare. Really effective staging too, especially the hockey match. The cast seemed to be having a ball. Is it a great alternative to panto? Oh yes it is.

[showgirl]

Same performance as I saw then, stevej678. I think it was the children in small family groups - I didn't notice any schools, so they must have been fine - who were the fidgety, talkative ones. So that's who played Trixie - PM was great, but then they all were.

[Deleted]

The twelve-year old relative I accompanied to this production absolutely loved it. Me, not so much, but my young companion is a very discerning critic, so I recommend the production.

[lynette]

What age for kids do you recommend, showgirl?

[showgirl]

Hard to say for sure, lynette, since I have no contact with children other than in public spaces, but maybe from about 7 up to early teenage? And, sexist though this sounds, this show may appeal more to girls than boys, since it's set in a girls' boarding school - in 1927. Any child who enjoyed reading stories about girls' boarding schools should be a safe bet - if any still do.

[Deleted]

Dec 23, 2017 5:03:40 GMT showgirl said:

Any child who enjoyed reading stories about girls' boarding schools should be a safe bet - if any still do.

And who get pleasure from pulling it off.

[lynette]

Dec 23, 2017 5:03:40 GMT showgirl said:

Hard to say for sure, lynette , since I have no contact with children other than in public spaces, but maybe from about 7 up to early teenage? And, sexist though this sounds, this show may appeal more to girls than boys, since it's set in a girls' boarding school - in 1927. Any child who enjoyed reading stories about girls' boarding schools should be a safe bet - if any still do.

Perfect for my grown up daughter then but not so much for her two sons 😂

[andromedadench]

I saw the first preview without knowing much about the show (other than it was an 80s WE hit and, for some reason, I thought it was a musical) and found it hugely entertaining. Both the show itself and this production in particular are totally bonkers. I was seated next to an incredibly stylish lady with the most infectious laugh, only to find out during the interval that she was the director - she clearly had a great time, too. I felt the second act could have been a bit shorter, but also thought that the nutty, panto-inspired everything-blind casting worked great.