The Diary of Anne Frank

Staging a theatre production of a diary can sometimes be difficult, as the cast and crew are faced with a need to sustain interesting action, as well as managing to convey the inner emotions and feelings of the author, without resorting to a mere series of voiceovers. The Diary of Anne Frank began with a voiceover from the start of the diary, describing the journey to and beginning of the ‘adventure’ of the secret annexe. Being originally faced with this, I was concerned that this would be what the entire play would consist of. However, despite occasional excerpts from important stages in the diary, the majority of the play was performed in a set, mimicking the claustrophobic setting demonstrating the intense, sometimes antagonistic relationships between the inhabitants, and there was a good balance between Anne’s personal reflections, and scenes described in the diary.

The script and general production were okay, with a good balance between sentimentality and humour, particularly offered by the relationship between Mr and Mrs van Daan (Steven Pinder and Sarah Ingram), whose volatile marriage provided a backdrop for some comic relief amongst the tragedy of the story. The set also was good, minimal props and furniture simulating the closeness of the environment, the actors never actually leaving the stage but merely sitting at the side at times when they were supposed to be out of the main room and the consistent presence of a German soldier poised slightly out of the way, created a persistent underlying threat of discovery. A bicycle and swing suspended from the ceiling, posters of Hollywood movie stars and the bookcase also served to highlight the outside world and the isolation of the characters. These set pieces were however a little obvious, the bicycle seeming an odd addition as opposed to a subtle metaphor for freedom and lost innocence, as did the descent of hundreds of pieces of paper at the end signifying the end of the diary.

The script was honest without being too intense, facilitating simple scenes from the period of the annexe such as Hannukah and Anne’s inquisition into the history of Mrs van Daan’s fur coat and her previous lovers. It is a shame therefore that the script was overshadowed by some rather mediocre acting, particularly from Amy Dawson’s Anne herself, whose teenage immaturity, vivacity and playfulness was far too over the top to the point of irritating leading the audience to a dislike of the protagonist. I even overheard a neighbour describing her at the interval as ‘insufferable,’ which unfortunately detracted from much of the potential for an intense, honest yet poignant illustration of adolescence and humanity. Even the blossoming of Anne and Peter van Daan’s (Robert Galas) relationship was blighted by the insincerity of the performance. Whether the aim was to convey the awkwardness of such a situation or not was unclear, but it did make for rather uncomfortable viewing. Saying this, the relationship between Anne Frank and her father Otto (Christopher Timothy) was portrayed well, though I believe this was due to Timothy’s performance as Otto being the most earnest of the entire production. Victoria Ross’s Margot was unfortunately wet, dreary and uninteresting; the result of these lacklustre performances being that the audience struggled to empathise with the characters, and the penultimate scene of their discovery was weakened by the lack of real emotion showed throughout the play, in spite of the tragedy of the circumstances.

Overall, The Diary of Anne Frank was an adequate adaptation. The set and script provided a satisfactory outlet for just the right mix of tragedy, humour, claustrophobia and adolescent hostility and awakening. It was a shame therefore that quite an average and at times grating cast undermined these aspects, resulting in an underwhelming mediocrity in the wake of such an important work.

Oxfordshire Art Weeks

Oxfordshire Art Weeks is an annual festival in the county of Oxfordshire, with hundreds of local artists and crafters opening their houses to showcase their work, and many local businesses such as restaurants, book shops, galleries, university departments and even the castle holding exhibitions. Not only holding over 500 free exhibitions over the course of three weeks in May, the festival also organises tours, workshops, speakers and forums, their focal event this year being a panel discussion of ‘What is Art?’

Oxfordshire ArtWeeks facilitates an immense variety of techniques and media. Not only are there the more traditional painters and photographers, but also jewellers, ceramicists, sculptors and woodturners. The festival is divided up into thirds, with each week being the focus of a different section of the county, the north, south and the city of Oxford. Jericho itself provided a large range of opportunities for mid-afternoon artistic browsing and during my excursions to some of the venues I encountered some really interesting artists and was exposed to many different types of art. The Oxford Ceramics Gallery, which is located on Walton Street, exhibited a selection of porcelain pieces from various local ceramicists. Helen Beard’s pottery in particular was charming. Helen drew her inspiration from ‘quirky, individual and curious’ places, which she would then hand paint on to Limoges porcelain and group the pieces together in sets to create a story.

http://www.oxfordceramics.com/

http://www.helenbeard.com/index.html

The Albion Beatnik, is a wonderful bookshop and café that often hosts events and readings, as well as intimate gigs and even bookbinding courses. In their basement for Oxfordshire Art Weeks, Stella Shakerchi exhibited. Stella’s work is based on her academic past where she studied amongst other disciplines medieval mythology. In her own words, Stella wants her art ‘to reflect the fun in life hidden behind what looks serious.’ The pieces were made from a huge range of materials such as iridescent powder, mirrors, holographic card, sequins, coloured glass and there was also a UV light to see in the dark parts of the art hidden song lyrics and poem stanzas. Stella’s work shows an acute attention to detail, the colours are rich, vibrant and the collages provide a forum for texture and emotion. Unlike chain stores, the Albion Beatnik’s ethos is personal and intimate, a perfect place for an art exhibition.

http://www.oxstudio.co.uk/

Hidden in the depths of Jericho, St Barnabas Church housed a wide variety of work encompassing an assortment of materials and pursuits. There were The Ten Potters, ceramicists that included Alison Jones, whose wall vases and unusual designs that worked with shape and movement were fascinating. The careful leaf print designs of Liz Teall were also beautiful, and the process of printing the leaves onto the pottery ensures crafted and refined designs. I also loved the graphic digital art prints of David Harris, the completely contrasting embroidery of Jane Bale and the still lifes of Clova Stuart- Hamilton.

http://www.alisonjonesceramics.co.uk/index.htm

http://www.lizteallpottery.com//

http://www.whitewall.com/davidharris

Venturing further afield and along the Woodstock Road, I visited the exhibition of Katherine and Richard Shock, a painter and wood turner respectively. Exhibiting here as well were the silversmith John Huddleston and the jewellery designer Guen Palmer. John creates delicate jewellery as well as candlestick holders and brooches, including some really unusual cat brooches, using a drawing of Katherine’s.

http://www.jhsilver.co.uk/index.html

http://www.guenpalmer.com/index.htm

Art Weeks allowed the ‘outside Jericho’ adventure and subsequent discovery of new venues most notably The Old Boot Factory in Cowley, unsurprisingly, an old boot factory that has been converted into an arts venue and exhibition space, utilised during Art Weeks by Sarah Mayhew and her installation ‘The Natural Course of Things.’ Having originally studied international relations, Sarah’s art demonstrates the potential for art as a medium for socio-political messages and reform. Her work is ultimately concerned with the ‘psychology of space,’ how people view one another as well as the wider world around them. This particular installation draws from experience of the impact of weather, the environment and nature and how these impact on decisions and behaviour, and luckily I was able to view the exhibition in daylight as well as in the dark, when it looks a lot different. On the final night of the installation, Shelter held a charity gig in the venue where the bands The Half Rabbits and The Scholars as well as the soloists Richard Walters and Phil McMinn performed amongst the art. As well as Sarah, lighting designer Jon Barker’s installation ‘Journey’ was staged behind a black curtain, where walkers became part of the installation themselves, as whenever a Twitter post with the word ‘journey’ in it appeared, the message was projected onto the individual behind the curtain. Finally, in the Old Boot Factory, Joseph Fairweather-Hole’s ‘Chimney’ commanded attention as a dominant concrete structure surrounded by moving lights.

Just off the Cowley Road is The Garden Café, the main office of mental health charity Restore, which works with people who have experienced severe mental health problems and aims to rehabilitate them using skills such as woodwork, gardening, construction, cookery and art. As part of Oxford ArtWeeks, Restore’s Straw Bale Gallery housed some work from the Oxford Complex Needs Service, including poetry as well as paintings, sculpture and mosaic. 

http://www.restore.org.uk/

There was also a sculpture by Tessa Campbell Fraser outside the Museum of Natural History...

Killing Hitler

The opening night performance of Killing Hitler began as technically and visually impressive as it was to continue. Taking our seats after walking through the set, the audience was faced with the still image of the characters in their default positions, with a woman shuffling scores at a piano, a man in a suit pondering the newspaper in an armchair, and someone standing on a table, transfixed on a wall. The set had a refined authenticity, complete with candles and a 1930s rocking horse. The effort put into the sounds and lighting was noticeable but despite these technical accomplishments, the writing could have explored human fallibility, the choice between ‘commission and omission’ in a more effective and sensitive manner, with much of the impressive set seeming a shield for rather underwhelming and at times static writing.

Based on the July Plot to assassinate Hitler, the play used scenes from alternating time periods to illustrate the different aspects of the relationships of the individuals involved in the plot, such as Adam von Trott, his secretary Missie, Adam and Claus von Stauffenberg, Anthony Eden and the Bishop of Chichester. While giving an honest performance as Adam, Christopher Williams failed to achieve the sincere and sympathetic performance required from a protagonist whose encounters with others involved in the plot constituted the focus of the narrative. The best performances were by those who made shorter appearances. David Shields gave an imposing yet moving stint as von Stauffenberg and Miles Lawrence’s Bishop of Chichester conveyed an urgent innocence in a confrontation with Anthony Eden, despite being only briefly on stage. Self-confessed on the programme, the only invented character was Hans Lohmann, a prison officer, who whilst providing a good presentation of a retrospective look at the July Plot, was an unnecessary creation and merely distracted from the other characters with clichéd considerations and confessions of guilt at not being as brave as those executed.

While the premise of the story, as well as impressive sets and ambitious lighting meant Killing Hitler had some strong potential, the show did not deliver quite in the same way that its historical background and production could have done. There were far too many sound effects – at times they were also too loud – with dialogue in the opening scene being drowned out by background chatter simulating a court room. For some reason as well, whenever the cast needed to facilitate a door opening or closing, there was an action by the cast member accompanied by a sound effect, which added nothing to the story or setting, and instead was a false, almost slapstick approach to changing scenes. Saying this, Andrew Sachs's voiceover as Hitler, and some piano music providing a sweet contrast to the graphic torture scene of von Trott were a good use of sound as an instrumental addition to the story.

Killing Hitler was a good production, and presented a different aspect of the war with an examination of human relationships with scenes from before and after the execution of the plot. If the writing and the performers had lived up to the promise offered by the set, Killing Hitler would have been great, but unfortunately the performance was essentially underwhelming.

The Rain Starts A-Fallin'

When I recently asked my 11 year old brother if he knew what he wanted to do with his life he replied that all he could say was that he would like to do something memorable. As he said this I remembered that at his age, and even right up until A-Levels when you are still clinging on to the last remnants of childhood, my friends and I wanted this as well. Despite not knowing in what direction, everyone wanted their lives to take them somewhere, and for the majority, university was where they would discover that. Almost two years through, with still no idea where your life is going yet no childhood excuse to fall back on is a sentiment embraced by many a second year student, and encapsulated in The Rain Starts A-Fallin, a story of a group of people at a school reunion, with flashbacks to their schooldays and demonstrating how far they had come since their classroom musings of ‘what is good, if it is not to change the world?’

Despite using the rather predictable setting of a school reunion to channel the retrospective feelings of a group of graduates having left school, the play was a relevant look at the issues that face many young people today. It was a very relatable play, with many references to the dreaded UCAS applications, internship recruitment posters and the mysterious realm of management consultancy, but I can’t see that it would have had as much impact on someone who had not been faced with those decisions. It is a play that will be very much of its time, but in spite of this was a witty and honest representation of student life.

It was a great strength of the play to use Bob Dylan and his work as a consistent metaphor throughout of defiance, rebellion and a desire for change. ‘The Wall’ at the back of the set, which had at its centre a large photograph of Dylan, as well as fliers from other indie bands, demonstrated the ideas and concepts that when at school, people want to talk about and which to inspired them to change the world, and its removal by the time of the school reunion ten years later was an effective manifestation of the destruction of hope and aspiration. As well as this, a passionate speech about ‘what happened in 1965’ by resident rebel Quinn, played well by Thomas Oliver and some classic Dylan tracks in-between scenes brought the play in line with an edging on polemic look at choice, conviction and irony.

The three main characters Ellis, Anna and Colin, (played by Andy Butler, Emily Stewart and Jack Levy respectively) had good chemistry, although the best performance was Ben Currie as Miles, who despite only fleeting appearances, had an instrumental stage presence that managed to convey much of the sentiment, without the need for any dialogue, which at times from other characters felt a little long-winded and contrived. On the whole, it was a good production, the music and sets providing an appropriate background for the characters. There were some amusing one-liners, but much of the comedy and appeal was situational and I think would have only been interesting if like me, you could pick up on all of the cynical comments for example about A-Level education, my personal favourite being the suggestion that in an essay on Wilfred Owen, Colin just write that there was an ‘underlying current of homosexuality.’

The Rain Starts A-Fallin’ was the attitude and emotions of current students incarnate, and writer Rory Platt’s observant writing is commendable. As a second year undergraduate, you will enjoy this play, if only for the assurance that someone else is experiencing the same doubts and pressures as well. 

The Garden Show

Amongst the punting, the croquet and the Pimms on freshly shaven lawns, the garden show is one of those phenomenon that represents an Oxfordian summer. Classically intellectual and brimming with ‘thesps’ the audience absorbing the play whilst enclosed in cloisters, columns and clematis are immersed in a time warp; all one need do is imagine yourself in a white cotton dress or some tweed with a parasol or a pipe and as the sun sets behind the stage and the fireflies dart between the spotlights, your fingers reach for the hired blanket shortly after the interval. Any play in Oxford takes part of its triumph from the space it works with and the experience it leaves the theatre-goer remembering; a play after all is much more than words and costumes, and setting a Shakespearean tragedy or Edwardian comedy in a garden does add a touch of class. After three weeks of consistent rain to begin my exam-free (and thus supposedly glorious) Trinity, it did seem appropriate that the first garden show of the year was The Tempest, the blustering trees of Magdalen and the whistles of the wind almost drowning out the speech in the opening scene, conveniently set during a storm. It was almost as if the weather knew that what it was faced with was a group of undergraduates, desperate for some redeeming features of a Trinity that has so far been rather miserable. An average of three year long degrees without any sweltering quad reading or leaping into the Cherwell would leave many middle aged Oxford graduates desperately wishing that they had spent that one day of sunshine outside rather than underground amongst the dust or for modern times, the constant brain bashing alterations of Nexus… Luckily however, despite having to move the opening night into an auditorium, the rain held off for the Thursday night performance by The Magdalen Players of The Tempest and if we weren’t mistaken, there was even a dash of blue sky; get the swimming togs out everyone!

The show decided to convey Prospero as a ring-master, in command of his Island circus, Caliban almost a dancing bear and Ariel the fairy a magician, hopping around the stage and causing mischief at Prospero’s command. There were also the clowns, the comic characters of Stephano the drunk and his friend Trinculo were evocative of court jesters transported from the Globe itself. The costumes and props were the main medium of communicating the circus theme however with bright diamond baggy trousers, waistcoats, bowties and even leather trousers for Prospero and there was a lot of work with umbrellas, appropriate for the circumstances and inventively used by Trinculo mainly to illustrate his confusion at just having been shipwrecked and discovering the beast Caliban. There was definitely something trippy about the whole performance, but it worked. If that show was anything to perform, it was a lot of fun. The whole performance had an energy and a vibe; it was zany, quirky, at times a little weird… the morph suits and water pistols were an interesting interpretation, but at times it did all feel a little immature. Miranda’s constantly pitch changing voice and much of the mockery made some of the dialogue feel unnatural, the characters forcing the meter and the sounds, reciting Shakespeare rather than taking on the persona of their character. Contrasted with the RSC’s globe tour production of Henry V at the Playhouse, The Tempest was noticeably a student production. The actors of Henry V on the other hand, were outstanding. King Henry was domineering, noble and at times chilling, Princess Catherine weak, innocent and impressionable and the comical Pistol, Nym and Bardolph were a brilliant supporting cast. The production, despite being confined within the walls of the Playhouse, created a mesmerisingly realistic Elizabethan atmosphere with lyres and drums playing inbetween scenes, and the actors walking amongst the aisles and marching back on to stage for the battle scenes. I left desperate for more, overwhelmed by the entire performance. Mere phenomenal acting, traditional sets and costumes and passionate speech meant there was no need for eccentricity or unusual interpretations, something that many modern adaptations of Shakespeare plays feel the need to include, in order to make their performance original.  

There is definitely something about open air performances that suits Shakespeare and particularly a play such as The Tempest gained a lot from being performed outside. It is set on an island and its focal point is the storm, a natural wonder and even if it was only a light breeze, fluttering leaves did enhance the magic. The garden show format does not however work for everything. Players should not make the mistake of thinking that just because it is set outside, it will automatically convey an enchanting atmosphere. Like The Burton Taylor studio, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. Pygmalion, my first year garden show experience and also set in Magdalen did well to transform the stony walls of the President’s garden into a stuffy Edwardian living room and a dusty Covent Garden pavement, with the clusters of trees providing an effective offstage area, as did Arcadia, the surrealist Tom Stoppard piece performed in Frewin Court, with a live tortoise on a oak table providing the main prop.

In spite of our excursion to The Tempest requiring a remedy of a mug of hot chocolate or brandy to warm our insides, outdoor theatre is a wonderful experience. Under the sun or the stars, the performance feels natural and hopeful, even if that hope is for that suspicious looking cloud to drift away towards Cowley… Henry V demonstrated that Shakespeare works best when in open air, when the cast can move around the audience as opposed to appearing statically on a stage. It was due to the quality of the performance that allowed the audience to feel like they were in The Globe in the early 1600s, despite being inside on what turned out to be the first sunny afternoon in Oxford this term. The experience of theatre is far more important than just the script. Henry V was exciting, energetic, witty, tragic, compassionate and dignified; the walls of the playhouse proved no barrier to conveying that; a play is much more than just words and costumes after all, but I will not deny the satisfaction felt at seeing a Shakespeare play under the stars. 

Court

The Burton Taylor studio was the ideal location for this ingenious and imaginative expose of the meaning of the phrase ‘court room drama.’ Written by a second year undergraduate, Court is set in a courtroom minutes before the commencement of a trial, the characters compiling of the defendant, the defence barrister, the prosecutor and two others, the latter’s involvement in the lives of the lawyers becoming apparent through the hilarious narration of the is he or isn’t he a mad murderer, Suleyman Jones.

The psychological analysis of the relationships that was created by the excellent comic timing and use of meta-theatre, or ‘mental theatre’ as described by Jones, as played by Tim Schneider whose impeccable wit and delivery was apt for the role, was intensified by the intimate environment and direct audience interaction. This began immediately with Suleyman taking the role of a stand-up comedian, introducing the audience to his story and its unravelling, unveiling by the end the bare bones of human morality and the burden of striving for justice.

Cliched metaphors and analogies between the legal system and other phenomena revolving around waste, toilets and cleanliness were removed by the ideal casting of Ibrahim Khan as the sinister defence lawyer, whose relationship with Suleyman provides some of the best on stage chemistry seen on an Oxford stage, the pair creating an amusing yet chilling rapport, which swells as the back story is revealed, straining the relationship of the defended and the defender. Also wonderful was Gabriel Nicklin’s stint as an aggrieved prisoner, who managed to entice sympathy from the audience whilst communicating the darkly humorous farce of the legal system.

What carried this production was the comedy, which managed to convey the message of the play without ruining its sincerity. Schneider was perfectly cast and performed his role with sensitivity and intelligence. If anything, he was almost too good, as any other scenes where he was reduced to a mere bystander as the confrontations between the other characters occurred, fell slightly flat in comparison to his previous monologues and banter with the audience. This was highlighted further by the fumbling of words by the other characters at important moments in the play, which altered the flow of the narrative slightly, but should be put down to opening night nerves and not the lack of ability or potential in the cast.

Court was one of the funniest and most creative plays I have seen at the Burton Taylor. The production’s experimentation with lighting and form, which incorporated a weird yet brilliant parody on modern religious conversion for example, was inspired and the writing, by Hanzla MacDonald should be commended as one of the most intuitive and perceptive commentaries on the human psyche and the role of law, and particularly its moral impact on the lives of people embroiled in its consequences. Overall, for a short student production, Court was brilliant. It induced a lot of laughter through satire and parody, but sustained an intensely sincere explanation of human relationships through original and artistic production and acting, and is thoroughly worth a visit. 

SAW; Somerville Art Society

The final event of Somerville Arts Week was the launch of Somerville Art Society, created last term for the purpose of enabling students to spend a couple of hours each week relaxing in the bar participating in various creative pursuits. For the launch, we had some mono-printing and the creation of a Somerville Doodle, which people dropped in to the bar and contributed to and which will be displayed around college as a memento of Arts Week and a celebration of student creativity. 

As well as this, the Art Society welcomed Richard Shock, a local woodturner, and his wife Katherine, also an artist. The talk explained the technique and variations of woodturning, as well as handing around some bowls and plates that had been made. The second half of the talk was about sculpture around Oxford, explaining pieces from the Ashmolean, churches and various college buildings. We also found out about the Turrill Sculpture Garden, which is located in Summertown and was begun by Katherine to improve the space behind the Summertown library. The work of Richard and Katherine, as well as hundreds of other artists will be exhibited around the county during Oxfordshire ArtWeeks, which began on the 5th May and will run for 3 weeks, and including many different visual arts and crafts. 

http://www.turrillsculpturegarden.org.uk/

http://www.artweeks.org/

SAW; Musical Variety

Friday’s event for Somerville Arts Week was a Musical Variety Concert, organised in association with Somerville Music Society, who hold lunchtime recitals every Friday in the chapel, as well as a whole host of other events such as choir concerts and open mic nights. The concert included a huge range of performers including opera, piano, a bassoon duet, jazz, organ and local band, ‘The Oh So Many.’

http://www.somervillemusicsociety.com/

SAW; Cocktails & Costumes

One of the most eagerly anticipated events of Somerville Arts Week was the historical costume show, a presentation of the history of the college using photographs from the archives and a huge variety of outfits ranging from Victorian and Edwardian costumes from the National Theatre, used originally in productions of The Cherry Orchard or The White Guard, to some beautiful 90s treasures, including some vintage Versace for the introduction of boys in 1994.

The evening began with a demonstration from Angels cocktail bar, where the attendees learned how to make classics such as martinis, cosmopolitans and mojitos, as well as some new creations like the ‘Maid in Chelsea’, a mixture of gin, lemon juice and elderflower cordial! Next, we moved over to the chapel for some harp music, a presentation and the show itself, accompanied by some great period accessories and music. 

With thanks to the National Theatre, OUDS & Angels Cocktail Bar.

http://www.angelsbar.co.uk/

SAW; Gillian Cross

As mentioned previously, Somerville has produced a huge amount of notable alumni that have become authors. Amongst the Sayers, the Holtbys and the Brittains, the college has also some more modern authors to its name, including that of Gillian Cross. Gillian is a children’s author whose works include ‘The Demon Headmaster’ and ‘Where I Belong,’ and these were the books that she chose to focus on when she came and spoke during Arts Week on Wednesday 2^nd May. I asked Gillian to talk about her experience as a writer, the story of a book from its inception to its publication, her anecdotes along the way and her attitude to reading and writing.

Echoing the sentiments expressed by PD James during the Oxford Literary Festival, it was clear that for Gillian, ‘the books choose you’ and her falling into particularly children’s writing was as much a serendipitous occurrence as the accomplishment of an enjoyable past time.  The Demon Headmaster began as a suggestion from her young daughter that Gillian write about a wicked headmaster, and the rest fell into place. After considering the idea, the hypnotism element was introduced as a way for the headmaster to get away with his agenda, an idea that ‘connected with children’ without being too sinister. Despite it being a novel for young people, Cross had to rewrite a great deal of the book in order to get it right and eventually realised what was wrong with the first draft after sensing subconsciously that there was something not quite right with the story. The book is incredibly important to Gillian; it has always been her most popular book, even before the BBC approached her in the early 1990s to turn it into a series, and her determination to include the scene in the snow where the prefects punish SPLAT for throwing the forbidden snowball by forcing them to roll all of the snow on the field into snowballs, without their hats, coats or gloves despite the BBC arguing that it was too expensive, demonstrates the importance of the book's integrity, despite its young audience.

Gillian’s attitude to the role of an author was also interesting; in terms of research, she suggested that researching hypnotism would have been a barrier, as making it too technical would have removed some of the fun from the book. On the other hand, for Where I Belong, her novel based on a visit to a Leicester school about Somalia required a great deal of research as writing about someone else’s culture involves ‘a moral duty to get it right.’ The talk included a huge variety of material and discussion and it was a pleasure to welcome Gillian back to Somerville.

http://www.gillian-cross.co.uk/

SAW; Principals of Murder

For many Somervillians, students and staff, the event of Arts Week 2012 that most epitomised Somerville and everything artsy related to it was the short play, ‘Principals of Murder.’ This was loosely based on Dorothy L Sayer’s Gaudy Night; a murder mystery set in Somerville College, Harriet Vane having returned to her old college to give a talk on the ‘Principles of Murder,’ incorporating her works and her experience in Holloway, an incident that occurred in Strong Poison, the novel that introduced Harriet to Lord Peter Wimsey, who assists her after she is arrested for the murder of her fiancé. 

Adapted for Arts Week by two students who altered the plot but retained many of the key elements of Sayers’ novels, the play was a huge success. It was staged in the chapel and members of the cast sat amongst the pews to reflect the intimate nature of the story. Harriet’s return to Somerville takes an unsavoury turn when the JCR President ends up murdered but, with the help of Lord Peter Wimsey and some telephone calls, the mystery is resolved in a tense and shocking manner, the denouement shaking many audience members, particularly the women! Despite the plot changes and references to modern day issues such as the financial ‘irregularities’ of the bursar and the JCR President/ Vice-President rivalry, as well as the scandalous relationship between the Principal and the Porter, the play echoed many traditional Sayers’ techniques and phrases. Lord Peter’s musings that ‘when you know how, you know who’ and Harriet’s admittance that she would perform the traditional female role of ‘scrubbing floors very badly whilst being able to write detective novels rather well’, ensured that the ambiance of Sayers’ mysteries was sustained, and the issue of women in education brought out the liberal and independent minds of historical Somervillians like Sayers’ whose books propelled the notion of female empowerment and wit. The wit of Sayers herself resonated too with references to a fictional Vane novel, Lethal Passions in the Porters Lodge, a misogynist male tutor who asks of the ‘question’ of equality and education and a senior tutor with a pile of manuscripts that will forever remain unfinished.

The play was a fantastic combination of Somerville, old Somervillians and the arts and definitely a highlight of the week. 

SAW; Poetry

Monday evening saw an intimate poetry workshop and reading from Somerville alumnus Kate McLoughlin, an English literature lecturer at Birkbeck who has recently turned her hand to poetry and some students, including the newly elected Poet Laureate, Krishan Neelendra.

Kate’s recent venture into verse was spurned by two things; a 1934 poem by William Carlos Williams, called ‘Just a Note to Say,’ which is about a note left on a fridge from someone who has eaten someone else’s plums, and a trip to Barcelona where Kate saw a painting by Picasso, a response to another work by Velasquez.

William Carlos Williams, 'Just a Note to Say.'

I have eaten

the plums

that were in

the icebox

and which

you were probably

saving

for breakfast

Forgive me

they were delicious

so sweet

and so cold

Kate began to wonder what it would be like to respond to the note. Her book ‘Plums’ is a collection of poems written from the mind of the person to whom the note was left. They are all of varied length, tone, style and include experimentation with the elements of the poem, after they had been stripped down and analysed, emulating what Picasso had done to the Velasquez painting. McLoughlin’s 58 variations explored many different ways of responding to the note. She changed the endings, the attitude of the writer in response to the note, played around with the concepts of forgiveness, sin, stealing and retaliation and altered the structure and form of the poems to create a hugely varied assortment of verse.

After Kate introduced her work, some of the students had the chance to read some poetry, whether written by themselves or another. There was a huge range. We began with some hilarity from Krish with a poem based on the tort law case of Donoghue v Stevenson, which concerned a woman who discovered a decomposing snail in a bottle of ginger beer, followed by a piece echoing Poe’s ‘The Raven,’ and based on a dream of his where he and a friend found a dead pigeon, before closing with the infamous ‘Trilogy.’ Next, we had some poems concerning relationships, a product of ‘doodling with words’ exploring not only relationships between couples and friends, but also the relationship that one establishes with a poet. Some Patois poems by Linton Kwesi Johnson, ‘Sonny’s Letter’ and ‘Inglan is a bitch’ came next, the reader communicating how a poem can be just as powerful when based on day-to-day experiences than on great themes such as love, hate or the meaning of life. The experiences in these two poems concerned the ‘stop and search’ law and a Jamaican immigrant’s difficulty to find work on arriving in England. Finally, we had a poem by Edward Thomas called ‘May 23^rd’, which was special to the reader for its evocative portrayal of idyllic, countryside living and the memories that this revived. 

SAW; Dorothy L Sayers

Somerville Arts Week 2012 began on Monday 30^th April with a talk from two delightful ladies from the Dorothy L Sayers Society, an international ‘appreciation society’ dedicated to the life and work of detective novelist and notable Somerville alumnus, Dorothy L Sayers. 2012 is the centenary of Sayers ‘coming up’ to Oxford and the society is commemorating this in August with a convention that is taking place in college and will comprise of various talks and events, celebrating the life and memory of the writer and reviving enthusiasm for her work. Radio 4, who serialised some of the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries on air, recently did this too. Sayers’ talent and determination to succeed in all areas of her work is admirable, and in true Somerville fashion, her particular fortitude to pursue lines that were previously the realm of men designates her as a figure that Somerville should be proud to remember and promote. It was therefore an absolute pleasure to invite Seona Ford and Jasmine Simeone, the Vice-Chairman and Secretary of the society respectively, to speak during term-time to the students and enlighten them on some of the lesser known aspects of Sayers’ life and work, particularly her poetry, something that the audience, myself included were ignorant of its importance and influence on her. The talk was part biography, interspersed with passages from her books and anecdotes from her life.

Sayers was born in Oxford, her ‘appreciation of words’ was evident from an early age when she would change the language of nursery rhymes to fit her own family and experiences. Like many authors, she was a great reader and constantly experimented with poetry and prose relating to the world around her, acting as a script writer for a pageant at a local village and producing poems such as ‘The Gargoyle’ in her mid teens. Sayers won the Gilchrist scholarship to Oxford to study modern languages with the highest recorded marks that year, where she continued to flourish and cultivate her talent through groups of like-minded students such as ‘the mutual admiration society,’ a group of young women who encouraged each other with their work and studies.

Sayers’ work was influenced by the goings on around her and much of her work is drawn directly from her experiences in Oxford during the First World War and consequently her work at Bensons, an advertising agency, where she first began to develop a taste for the manipulation of words and style. This assisted her greatly in ‘Murder Must Advertise,’ her experiences of a working environment dominated by men were seen here and subsequently in the work of Miss Climpson, a character with a typing bureau in the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries who is employed by Wimsey to assist his investigations, as in the musings of Lord Peter and thus Sayers herself, who would suspect a woman…?

Sayers had a confident and direct yet professional approach to writing. She was aware of censorship laws, seen notably in ‘Whose Body?’ where her idea for the body found to be a naked man in bath drew much intrigue and controversy. Sayers was also prepared to research her material intricately. ‘Five Red Herrings’ required research into train timetables and the work of painters and ‘The Nine Tailors’ facilitated a great deal of research into the art of bell-ringing, yet by the end of this Sayers had still never pulled a rope.

The best thing about the talk was the insight it gave into how varied the work of Sayers was. She wrote comedy, mystery, about religion, village life, the impact of the war, her cats and even did a great deal of work translating other works such as ‘Song of Rowland’ and Dante, the latter being completed after her death by her goddaughter, Margaret Reynolds who was chair of the Dorothy L Sayers society until her death in March. Sayers was also an incredibly sophisticated writer. She moved both the genre and characters of detective fiction forward; Martin Edwards has recognised this particularly with the development of Lord Peter Wimsey, who was given a history of shell shock from the war and was impacted by the various reforms of the roles of peers in the House of Lords during the time of Sayers’ writing.

Somerville college has produced a vast number of strong female authors, Winifred Holtby and Vera Brittain included, but the dedication of Sayers to her writings, her characters and to Oxford itself, seen most particularly with the reunion of Harriet Vane and Lord Peter Wimsey in the fictional Shrewsbury College in ‘Gaudy Night,’ ensures that she will and should be celebrated as a great author as well as a great Somervillian. 

‘The Gargoyle.’

The Gargoyle takes his giddy perch

On a cathedral or a church,

There, mid ecclesiastic style

He smiles an early Gothic smile

And while the parson, full of pride,

Spouts at his weary flock inside,

The Gargoyle, from his lofty seat,

Spouts at the people in the street;

And like the parson seems to say,

In accents doleful, ‘Let Us Pray.’

I like the gargoyle best. He plays

So cheerfully on rainy days-

While parsons, no one can deny,

Are awful dampers when they’re dry.

http://www.sayers.org.uk/