The cast and crew of Caryl Churchill’s Top Girls have been rehearsing diligently these last few weeks in preparation for the show’s October 23rd opening. Caroline Rensel, Sarah Ann Wollett, and Kathryn Bogley have been preparing for far longer, as they are all acting in Top Girls to complete their senior thesis projects. After the research, rehearsal, and performance aspect is complete, their projects will culminate in a fifteen to twenty page paper and an oral presentation.
Kathryn claims that she was informed she would be playing both Angie and Lady Nijo in late July. Since then, she has spent a great deal of time researching the rich historical and political context of the play. This has included reading Lady Nijo’s 13th century memoir, as well as researching Margaret Thatcher and 1980’s London. Kathryn seems genuinely enthused by Caryl Churchill’s work. She says that, “Even though the play takes place in 1980’s London and includes characters from the 13th century, the Victorian era, and even a character who is the subject of a painting, the topic of the role of women in society is still extremely relevant today, and the way Caryl Churchill points to these important themes is simply beautiful.”
Both Caroline and Sarah Ann echo Kathryn’s commitment to research, especially when it comes to mastering the accents the show requires. Sarah Ann has found the dialects to be an exciting challenge. She knew initially that she would be using a British accent for her role as Joyce, but it wasn’t until later that she learned she would also need to master a Scottish accent to play Isabella Bird. In addition to a great deal of reading, she has been listening to podcasts from the regions her characters are from in order to gain a sense of the language. Caroline added that she watched a great deal of BBC during the summer in order to tackle the dialect of her character, Marlene.
Caroline states that, “I am so excited that Harper Joy is doing this play, especially with the current climate surrounding gender. This play takes place during the 1980’s, but there are still huge discrepancies today.” The other women agree, thrilled to be a part of such an impactful, strongly written ensemble play where the female characters are so well rounded.
Top Girls runs from October 23rd-26th.