Somewhere in the neighbourhood of Dickens

My readers should be forewarned that this post will contain a host of associations so loose that they would need a wrench beyond that which Dickens sometimes gives to the heartstrings. I always enjoyed (most of) Dickens, though I'll admit that, for reasons unknown, I did not read much of his work in later years. I still want to send a complete set of Dickens' novels to those who seem to have neglected dear Charles' work while concentrating only on Trollope... (Philosophically if not in fact. Just to mention the Dickens character who is best known, I've known many a modern day Ebenezer Scrooge - too bad that the consummate laissez faire capitalist is too oft depicted as a cartoon miser. One might not meet Obadiah Slope on every corner, but the sort of dream world which Trollope satirised exists in some minds today - and it is not all that amusing when it is used to make it seem that making the poor die in the streets was quite a nice circumstance for those who could live very lavishly in the days before taxes.)

Enough of my social concerns for the day... on to looser associations. Last month, I had the pleasure of once again attending the Dickens festival in Rochester. Much of it is pure fun - the Mrs Rochester contest is hilarious, and I envy those who are so uninhibited that they can (as one candidate put it) not fear to make fools of themselves. The parade included people who either were recognisable characters from Dickens, or who just were 'types' from his period - and I was amused, much as I was with the contest, to see women, of my age or even a bit older, having great fun dressing as the idealised, "Nancy sings Oom Pah Pah" type of East End prostitute. (Of course, we all know that Jack the Ripper's victims - prematurely aged women in their forties, with no teeth and driven to desperation - were far more the norm than the crowd singing "I'd Do Anything" in Oliver! - but dramatic licence is de rigueur in some forms of entertainment, if not all.)

Bear with me, dear readers. Now that I once more have a working computer, I am trying to oil the wheels of my blogging once again, and may take a while to get up to speed.

Switching into yet another very loose association, I'll admit that I enjoy watching the I'd Do Anything competition (for which I provided a link in the title of this post as well as here.) It indeed nearly inspired me to write at length about method acting... but I no more have the energy for such a post today than I do for an in depth literary treatment of my old friend Dickens. Details are on the BBC site, but I'll say briefly that preparation for this competition was exceedingly demanding and thorough.

I'm sure that the 11 potential Nancys who did not win the competition, particularly those eliminated towards the end, will not be strangers to the West End for long. Even apart from their clear talent, I wonder if the most difficult acting jobs of their lives (at least to this point) was having to be eliminated, have those remaining sing "Be Back Soon," then perform "As Long as He Needs Me," signature number of the character they ached to play and would not, without flinching.

On the last night, certainly both Jodie (the winner, based on viewers' votes) and Jessie were splendid - not that this was news to those who'd seen previous 'rounds.' (I personally thought Jessie overacted a bit, and that her passion could be mistaken for anger at some points, but the comments on the I'd Do Anything site show that lots of viewers are disappointed that she was not the winner. In any event, she is a serious talent, and I doubt she won't be headlining on the West End soon.)

My own days of singing (I'm hardly an accomplished actress, but was an artist quality operatic singer in my day) were all in companies of whom no one other than the members have never heard - like most promising sopranos, I never amounted to anything in my field. I certainly have no experience to compare with any chance, let alone appearance, at the West End. Yet I did feel for Jodie, despite that she won. Of the five judges, including the director, three stated a preference for Jessie. Posts on the site, comments in the media, and so forth have called the winner, despite clear talent, a 'safe' choice - the one who'd be chosen because she was a 'traditional' Nancy - too fat (perhaps I'm blind, but I think she has a good figure) - the candidate who should not have been chosen over the 'young, pretty' Jessie. (Jodie could easily be my daughter, but I don't think that is the reason I am puzzled at to where anyone would think she was not both young and pretty...) I cannot fully envy anyone who, despite having the coveted role, has to receive such publicity - or embark on the run of the show knowing the director would have preferred someone else.

What is my point in this post? For once, I don't know that I have one. Perhaps it is just a vague idea that no one can ever please everyone - and that fame means constant criticism. Ask Dickens...