The Girls of Slender Means is nothing short of spectacular. This adaptation of Muriel Spark’s beloved novel dazzles, delights, and shocks. The play’s most amazing achievement is its ability to be simultaneously uplifting and heartbreaking. As the girls navigate the effects of the second world war, the audience will surely root for them to find happiness in the aftermath of tragedy.
The talented cast perfectly portray the odd assortment of girls in the May of Teck Club. The five women have clear chemistry on stage, bonded by the comforts of friendship and their shared experiences of trauma in the war. They each have their own baggage and coping mechanisms. For instance, Jane (Molly Vevers) writes outrageously fraudulent letters for money, Selina (Julia Brown) sleeps around with married men, and Pauline (Shannon Watson) deludedly believes she is dating a famous star.
Their lives change when Nicholas Farringdon walks into their lives, causing rifts in friendships and hurtful revelations. The writer is pompous, self-interested, and sexist, yet he does make interesting observations about the girls in the May of Teck Club. In particular, he is interested in the pervasive power of a single Schiaparelli gown, the gown the girls seem to worship. He is welcomed into their circle, and their array of dysfunctional behaviours.
The sets and costumes perfectly set the scene of wartime poverty while still being aesthetically pleasing, with hopeful pops of color. This dichotomy between the traumatic and the frivolous ultimately perfectly depicts the play itself. The girls must ration food, save clothing coupons, and work as busy secretaries in wartorn London. In one heartbreaking scene, we see the traumatic effects of a false bomb warning on otherwise confident, fearless Selina. In another, we watch the permanent effects of Jane’s mysterious wartime occupation. Still, the girls dance, sing, joke around, and ogle over dresses and suitors. There is a mix of terror and defiant frivolity.
The ending of the play is perfect, appropriately melancholy and hopeful. For history buffs, feminists, or anyone looking for an enthralling story of female friendship in wartime, The Girls of Slender Means is the show for you.
Image ‘The Girls of Slender Means_(L-R)Shannon Watson as Pauline Fox, Molly Vevers as Jane Wright, Molly McGrath as Joanna Childe and Amy Kennedy as Anne Markham’ Credit Mihaela Bodlovic is provided via Royal Lyceum Theatre Press Release