Blue Stockings

The play was certainly a very appropriate choice for the space.  The Studio is quite an intimate and unusual venue: this is not the place for grand spectaculars, but for forensic analyses of concepts and characters.  And the director certainly gave us that in this fascinating study of the pioneering female students at Girton College, Cambridge, and their fight for proper recognition through the right to graduate with a university degree.  The prejudice and misogyny faced by these women was truly appalling, and I was interested to hear that while the matinee audience was largely shocked into silence, the audiences at some other performances had tried to laugh off their embarrassment.  To be fair, the piece has plenty of amusing and uplifting moments, often in the details of the characterisation, but for me the principal resonance was neatly summarised in the director’s programme note: “However far we’ve come, we’ve still got a long way to go.”

The director was fortunate to have a very strong cast, but it was also clear that she had worked hard to bring out so many memorable performances.  The techniques required when performing in a small space were well understood; the dialogue was generally secure, cues were hit promptly, ellipses were delivered appropriately, and there were no declamatory speeches designed to reach the back of a much larger auditorium.  Similarly, everyone knew that subtle but deliberate gestures and modest changes of expression are all that is required when the audience is so close.  The company was actually quite large for the Studio, but onstage space was used well, with some notably powerful and effective groupings such as the examiners standing behind the candidates, and the Girton College members finding themselves with their backs literally up against the wall when the angry mob breaks in.  The narrative thread stayed strong, and in my view the story had the capacity to shock and to inspire in roughly equal measure.

The set was both detailed and effective; good use was made of the upper level, and the blackboards which largely defined the main acting area were covered with advanced scientific equations.  I had my suspicions that they might be 20th century, but clearly the set designer is even more nerdy than me as I was assured that they had been thoroughly researched and 19th century in origin.  The set was finished with persuasively period wooden furniture, and piles of books which further heightened the seat-of-learning atmosphere.  There were a few missing details, though: the bag of escargots was obviously empty, while the mug of cocoa was similarly devoid of any hot, milky beverage.  The lighting design by James Denny enabled different zones of the stage to be illuminated as necessary, and I liked the impression of movement generated by the sequenced strip lights.  The well-chosen musical interludes added significantly to the atmosphere but were perhaps a little too high in the mix; night time was indicated by hooting owls and by rather more cicadas than I can ever remember hearing in the Fens.  The costumes incorporated some authentic period garments – notably the bloomers and long skirts.

This was an accomplished, thought-provoking drama brought to life by a talented company.  It lived up to its billing as a story to amuse and captivate, and to anger and inspire.

© NODA CIO.  All rights reserved.

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.