Writer: Anouk Saint
Director: Amelie Ashley-Timms
This diligently researched and well written play shines a light on Hollywood in the 1950s and on three women who fought to get their voices heard at the risk of their future careers. The three, Mary Costa, Adriana Caselotti and Helene Stanley may not be household names but Costa and Caselotti provided the voices of Sleeping Beauty and Snow White respectively, and Stanley was the live role model for Cinderella.
Costa, played by Olivia Hollreiser, is the central character in the play. A 29 year-old actress coming to the end of a contract with MGM and trying to move into film production. Her MGM boss Bill Meyer, (Oli Silverman) is not interested in her attempts to extend her role and build a career. He is typical of the attitude towards women of an industry dominated by men. Likewise, the career cul-de-sac Costa has been driven down where you can play the voice of a 16 year old when you’re nearly 30 but will struggle to get cast as anyone your own age after that, is typical of the fate of many actresses at the time.
Anouk Saint’s script links her story with those of Caselotti and Stanley, switching between them and occasionally running them in parallel. The highlight is a superbly executed scene where Costa first lunches with Caselotti (Sophia Pettit) and then meets Stanley (Lara Lisozzi-Lenik), before continually switching between the two meetings. The movement of the three is stylised and graceful and Hollreiser’s facial expressions and mannerisms constantly change to match the conversations.
In contrast to Costa, Caselloti’s story is that of a young child star, overworked and kept running on a diet of pills that she will become addicted to. Pettit captures the reality of a 15 year old who has to try to appear younger while also feeling a lot older as she is thrust into a world of adults and denied a childhood.
Lisozzi-Lenik as Stanley is the more aloof of the three, reflecting Stanley’s career journey from someone deemed to be a female lead but often only given 5 lines in a movie, to someone who’s movements are drawn and owned by someone else. She is perhaps the sharpest of the three when it comes to playing the system, in contrast to the active rebellion of Costa and the exhaustion and defeat of Caselotti.
Saint’s choreography and Amelie Ashley-Timms direction give a smooth and graceful flow to the stories and movement. The mood is always elegant and the pace never slows, while the undercurrent of oppression and control can be felt anytime that Meyer, played with the false charm of an oil skin salesman by Silverman, and any of his immediate cohort enter the fray.
It’s an introduction, rather than a deep dive, into any of the three women’s lives, and inevitably takes some liberties with the stories to tie them together, make the connections between them and keep it all within the 50 minute time slot. But there is also clearly the potential here for a full length play that could explore the central characters and theme in greater depth.
Runs until 20 August 2023
