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31 July – 1 August 2002
Deegan’s cross-dressing parody of the jolly hockey sticks style of schoolgirl story was a huge hit and remains wildly popular. Daisy Pulls It Off was the first play Chelsfield Players took to the Edinburgh Fringe. The company used the name ‘Jim Slips’ to satisfy the constitutional requirement that the Society perform its plays in Chelsfield.
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JIM SLIPS PULLS IT OFF WITH DAISY
Contemporary report by Madeline McCubbin and Anne Finn
As not everybody was able to go to Edinburgh and see Daisy Pulls It Off at the Fringe, we thought that you might like to hear about our experiences as members of the audience.
When it was first suggested that Chelsfield Players take a play to the Edinburgh Fringe, the idea was met with scepticism by some and open arms by others. Some thought it a good idea but wanted to delay for a year, others wanted nothing to do with it at all. So those intrepid players who wanted to go for it took the bull by the horns and formed an Edinburgh Fringe committee and a new Company to ensure that if the plan failed, it would not fall back on Chelsfield Players.
Interestingly, once the new Company had been formed and plans were put in place, the vast majority of the society supported the venture and gave support in many ways: some with their time with fundraising events; others putting in hard cash and others as members of the audience at the fundraising evenings.
Daisy was performed in Chelsfield Village Hall at the end of July and was a huge success. Could this be replicated in Edinburgh, we all wondered, especially as there were to be two big cast changes and the show had to be cut down to an hour and a half?
Your reporters arrived in Edinburgh on Thursday 22nd August. The play had already been running for four days and reports back to London had been good. We found the cast in wonderful spirits but very tired: not only were they performing every night for a week, but during the day they had a 20-minute slot in The Royal Mile where they performed a section of the play to drum up ticket sales. Your reporters were roped in as rent-an-audience in an effort to get people round the stage. I’m not sure we were very good as we were mesmerised by what was going on around us. A tightrope walker performing in front, a brass band playing at the side and hundreds of other performers parading up and down the street handing out their own leaflets. The friendly banter that went between performers when handing each other their leaflets was a joy to behold. No luvvies here, just a lot of people having a wonderful time doing what they enjoy doing: entertaining people.
The range of performers was unbelievable, from Professionals to Drama School students, from University Drama Groups to Village Hall actors.
To those who have never been to the Edinburgh Fringe, and neither of us had, it is an amazing experience for anyone interested in theatre. The venues range from tiny square boxes with black curtains round the walls seating less than 30 people to large, ‘proper’ theatres. It appears that any space in Edinburgh that can take performers, opens its doors and welcomes you with open arms. Each day a magazine appears listing every performance that is taking place that day, the time of the performance and how long it lasts. We found ourselves at 10.00 a.m. having Breakfast with Shakespeare with coffee and croissants included, all for the princely sum of £5, and at 1.30 p.m. watching Jerry Springer the Opera (see what I mean about something for everyone). There must have been at least 100 different shows going on at any one time. It starts at 9.30 a.m. and finishes at about 1.30 a.m. the next morning.
Daisy’s venue appeared to us to be perfect. It was right in the heart of the Fringe area, had raked seating for 65 people and had a cafe and bar within stepping distance with outside seating. Perfect for attracting passing trade. The time slot chosen also appeared just right, 6.20 p.m. for an hour and a half. Just time to get a show in before dinner. It was a sell-out and I have the pictures to prove it. (Well done Jeremy, we understand you chose the venue and time.)
We watched three performances and both us and the audiences loved it. On two evenings local schools had parties in and the ‘headmistress’ used their school name in the play. That went down well. The cast worked extremely well together; you could see that this was a very well-rehearsed play although, unfortunately, the local critic saw the show on the first night with the new cast and commented on a couple of fluffed lines which I thought was a bit harsh. But the report in the local Edinburgh Fringe newspaper gave it 3 stars and highlighted the train sequence as the ‘thrill’ of the show.
For those of you who saw it in Chelsfield and applauded the cliff scene, which was so well done, and wondered why this wasn’t the ‘thrill’ of the show, it was because of the setting of the play on a flat floor, it didn’t have quite the same impact as at Chelsfield, although the acting was just as good.
During our time in Edinburgh, it was wonderful to see so many of the Chelsfield Players turn up to support and we are sure that the cast appreciated it. Their obvious delight every time a ‘new’ face appeared made you feel very much part of what was happening.
This was obviously a very hard week for the cast. They all said they thought they needed another holiday after this and as most of them had taken their annual leave to go to Edinburgh they were very grateful that they had the Bank Holiday before they had to return to work.
From a spectator point of view what we saw was a very close-knit group of people, who had all worked extremely hard and deserved the success they achieved. We know that by the time they came home on Sunday they were all very tired.
Congratulations to everyone involved and wasn’t the weather glorious.
Madeline & Anne
Contemporary report by Madeline McCubbin and Anne Finn
As not everybody was able to go to Edinburgh and see Daisy Pulls It Off at the Fringe, we thought that you might like to hear about our experiences as members of the audience.
When it was first suggested that Chelsfield Players take a play to the Edinburgh Fringe, the idea was met with scepticism by some and open arms by others. Some thought it a good idea but wanted to delay for a year, others wanted nothing to do with it at all. So those intrepid players who wanted to go for it took the bull by the horns and formed an Edinburgh Fringe committee and a new Company to ensure that if the plan failed, it would not fall back on Chelsfield Players.
Interestingly, once the new Company had been formed and plans were put in place, the vast majority of the society supported the venture and gave support in many ways: some with their time with fundraising events; others putting in hard cash and others as members of the audience at the fundraising evenings.
Daisy was performed in Chelsfield Village Hall at the end of July and was a huge success. Could this be replicated in Edinburgh, we all wondered, especially as there were to be two big cast changes and the show had to be cut down to an hour and a half?
Your reporters arrived in Edinburgh on Thursday 22nd August. The play had already been running for four days and reports back to London had been good. We found the cast in wonderful spirits but very tired: not only were they performing every night for a week, but during the day they had a 20-minute slot in The Royal Mile where they performed a section of the play to drum up ticket sales. Your reporters were roped in as rent-an-audience in an effort to get people round the stage. I’m not sure we were very good as we were mesmerised by what was going on around us. A tightrope walker performing in front, a brass band playing at the side and hundreds of other performers parading up and down the street handing out their own leaflets. The friendly banter that went between performers when handing each other their leaflets was a joy to behold. No luvvies here, just a lot of people having a wonderful time doing what they enjoy doing: entertaining people.
The range of performers was unbelievable, from Professionals to Drama School students, from University Drama Groups to Village Hall actors.
To those who have never been to the Edinburgh Fringe, and neither of us had, it is an amazing experience for anyone interested in theatre. The venues range from tiny square boxes with black curtains round the walls seating less than 30 people to large, ‘proper’ theatres. It appears that any space in Edinburgh that can take performers, opens its doors and welcomes you with open arms. Each day a magazine appears listing every performance that is taking place that day, the time of the performance and how long it lasts. We found ourselves at 10.00 a.m. having Breakfast with Shakespeare with coffee and croissants included, all for the princely sum of £5, and at 1.30 p.m. watching Jerry Springer the Opera (see what I mean about something for everyone). There must have been at least 100 different shows going on at any one time. It starts at 9.30 a.m. and finishes at about 1.30 a.m. the next morning.
Daisy’s venue appeared to us to be perfect. It was right in the heart of the Fringe area, had raked seating for 65 people and had a cafe and bar within stepping distance with outside seating. Perfect for attracting passing trade. The time slot chosen also appeared just right, 6.20 p.m. for an hour and a half. Just time to get a show in before dinner. It was a sell-out and I have the pictures to prove it. (Well done Jeremy, we understand you chose the venue and time.)
We watched three performances and both us and the audiences loved it. On two evenings local schools had parties in and the ‘headmistress’ used their school name in the play. That went down well. The cast worked extremely well together; you could see that this was a very well-rehearsed play although, unfortunately, the local critic saw the show on the first night with the new cast and commented on a couple of fluffed lines which I thought was a bit harsh. But the report in the local Edinburgh Fringe newspaper gave it 3 stars and highlighted the train sequence as the ‘thrill’ of the show.
For those of you who saw it in Chelsfield and applauded the cliff scene, which was so well done, and wondered why this wasn’t the ‘thrill’ of the show, it was because of the setting of the play on a flat floor, it didn’t have quite the same impact as at Chelsfield, although the acting was just as good.
During our time in Edinburgh, it was wonderful to see so many of the Chelsfield Players turn up to support and we are sure that the cast appreciated it. Their obvious delight every time a ‘new’ face appeared made you feel very much part of what was happening.
This was obviously a very hard week for the cast. They all said they thought they needed another holiday after this and as most of them had taken their annual leave to go to Edinburgh they were very grateful that they had the Bank Holiday before they had to return to work.
From a spectator point of view what we saw was a very close-knit group of people, who had all worked extremely hard and deserved the success they achieved. We know that by the time they came home on Sunday they were all very tired.
Congratulations to everyone involved and wasn’t the weather glorious.
Madeline & Anne