Warning: This review discusses body-shaming and eating disorders
The Sculpture is a play which tells the story of Molly O’Dea, an early Hollywood star, who has largely been forgotten by history.
At a claimed age of 18, Molly has won a coveted film role in the production The Patent Leather Kid. She’s changed her name, her hair, and she’s vaguely distanced herself from her sister, already an established actress.
This is the age of the silent movie, so the ability to act is low down the list of director’s requirements for any role. Molly can act though, and, at least in the beginning, she has the right ‘look’, and is given a studio contract.
In those early days of Hollywood, the newspapers and studios worked together, to promote the studios’ output, and to make stars out of their roster of actors and actresses. Flaws could be covered up, and private lives left undisturbed, if the stars toed the line.
Molly is quickly promoted by the newspapers, who run gossip articles about her, and print ‘human interest’ interviews that include asking if she eats dessert.
The Studio system had long contracts, and placed its stars under immense amounts of pressure. Especially for young actresses, the rules within the contracts were strict. Very strict.
Gain, or lose too much weight? Suspended. Have an accident and lose your looks? Suspended. Acted “immorally”? Suspended. And always without pay.
Molly, really 16 when she won that first part, slowly gains weight. And to be clear, she gains twenty-five pounds over a number of years.
Despite being on a studio contract, the work dries up. Younger, slimmer girls win the roles Molly auditions for, even though they can’t act.
The newspapers are unrelentingly harsh. Vicious, even. For a young girl, in the back stabbing world of Hollywood, it’s a lot to deal with.
Nothing Molly does to try to lose weight works. Pills, injections, fasting, nothing works.
Northern Lights Theatre tells this story in a very creative way. We see the cast change accessories and costume items on stage, whilst the action whirls past Molly at an increasingly frantic pace.
We see Molly’s despair, and the pressure she is under. This pressure comes not just from the newspapers, and the studio executives, but also from her own sister, who repeatedly tries to dissuade her from an acting career, or tells her that she’s too fat.
Strong performances, music and story
The show is very well put together, and there’s some songs appropriate to the setting within the narrative. Perhaps somewhat jarringly, as the story is building to a climax, we are shown the aftermath of Molly’s surgery, as the actor portraying her appears on stage covered in blood, the character having undergone then experimental lipo-suction.
This is an interesting story, well-put together by the creative team. The staging possibly reflects the constraints of the room at The Caves, but this works effectively for the tone of the story. Tonally, there is some whiplash between the first two-thirds of the narrative, and the closing section.
The performances are strong, and the songs do add to the aesthetic, and the story. Perhaps though everything needs to be a little clearer, in terms of timeline. It’s not clear how long we are in Molly’s world for – did the events shown happen over months? Or years? How did the coming of sound affect Molly’s career? There’s unexplored aspects of this story, and greater depths to be explored.
The Sculpture continues at 20:50, in Just the Fancy Room at Just The Tonic at the Caves until August 11
Featured Image courtesy Northern Lights Theatre Company
