★★★★
Drama Girls is a behind-the-scenes peek at the hardships and highlights of drama school. Written by Tilly Woof, the play follows third year students Lisa (Woof), Dani (Claudia Sears) and Jen (Mia Turley) as they prepare for their final end of year showcase. On the surface, they may look like friends, but their constant cattiness and sly digs fuelled by the competitive and comparative nature of the acting industry suggests otherwise.
The girls are all dealing with their own issues. The most discussed are Lisa’s, who unlike most of her classmates, comes from a working-class background. She has to work part time in a bar, which negatively impacts her university performance. Jen and Dani just don’t understand it, telling her to give up her daily chai lattes and quit her job. When she struggles to get her character shoes on, Dani makes snippy comments, telling her it wouldn’t happen if she was wearing LaDucas, (high quality dance shoes, for those not acquainted with the dance world). Her storyline really raises awareness of the barriers that working class students face at university, and the sacrifices they have to make.
Jen is performing near the top of the class, but this takes a huge toll on her mental health: she is constantly working, or relying on various substances to stop herself from spiralling. Dani has doubts that she wants to pursue a career in musical theatre any more, and she doesn’t want to be criticised by the industry her whole life. There are a few references to calorie counting and self esteem issues, namely when Louise, the strict headmistress criticises their headshots and points out all their flaws, but it’s not too heavy and overall, the show is a humorous one.
The competition between the girls fully hits its peak when Dani is given one of the lead roles in the end of term showcase, while Jen and Lisa get minor ones. Jen is insanely jealous, telling her she doesn’t deserve it and rolling her eyes whenever she makes a mistake. Instead of Dani and Jen ganging up on Lisa, Jen is now the target. It brilliantly encapsulates the dog-eat-dog nature of the drama world, showing that no one is ever truly secure in their position.
While the girls are enemies in class, they are a team onstage, giving each other pep talks and helping each other to get ready. It’s one of the rare moments in the show where their friendship seems genuine, and it’s very sweet to see. Learning where the girls end up after graduating is also a nice touch; and there’s some surprises in there too!
Drama Girls will be performed at theSpace at Symposium Hall – Annexe until 23 August as part of Edinburgh Fringe.
Words by Ellen Leslie
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