I saw the show on Saturday night and loved it very much. However, the one thing I was having trouble figuring out is the age of Bloody Mary's daughter. I know that they kept saying that she was young, but they never gave an age.
At first I thought that she was around 18 or so. However, after a second look, I thought that she must be younger then that.
"If you try to shag my husband while I am still alive, I will shove the art of motorcycle maintenance up your rancid little Cu**. That's a good dear"
Tom Stoppard's Rock N Roll
I'm not sure if it's written anywhere, but I always thought her to be closer to 16. Still innocent, still "mama's girl".
However, in the current production, I thought she actually seemed older than other versions I'd seen.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
I always thought that Liate was supposed to be in her late teens--like 16-18. You know, old enough to be thought a woman but not really an adult. They never really say how old she actually is.
"Hello. How are we today? I'm feeling a little blue myself. You know, a little anxious for no particular reason, a little sad that I should feel anxious at this age, you know, a little self-concious anxiety resulting in non-specific sadness: a state that I call 'blue'."
--The Drowsy Chaperone
18 was my first guess. But, I stopped and did a double take and thought "Is she really 18?" I was having trouble figuring out her age just by watching the character. I thought about asking one of the actors at the stage door but I totally forgot to do that.
"If you try to shag my husband while I am still alive, I will shove the art of motorcycle maintenance up your rancid little Cu**. That's a good dear"
Tom Stoppard's Rock N Roll
I don't think anyone ever got more specific than "teenage", but you're looking at no less than 16, for the most basic decency, and no greater than 18, because she really is very young.
Does anyone know what the Michener book says? I thought it was closer to 15 than 18 - she is very child-like, and would have been considered marriageable once she reached puberty.
Second World War, right? Don't know about you guys, but we had kids scarcely out of school signing up to the military, many lying about their age so they'd get taken. 19 does sound awfully young, but therein lies half the tragedy of war. Stanhope in 'Journey's End' (yes, I know it was a different war) was only 21.
I always thought Cable was around 25 and Liat was around 15-16. Not uncommon in those times or in that area of the world, and in the age difference/"purity" of Liat lies some of Cable's inner strife.
This wouldn't have been an issue if only Rogers and Hammerstein had left in the original song for South Pacific, sung by Liat, instead of taking it out and saving it for a later show. You know the number, when Liat enters and sings "I am Sixteen, Going on Seventeen".
Wait.... The classic thing would have been if Liat wouuld have been the name of one of the whores in Miss Saigon... Now there would have been an inside joke....
"Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge - they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaky feeling you'll find that love actually is all around."
Liat is ranged 15-22 in the equity auditions information on playbill. and I agree, Cable has to be in his mid-20s since he has already graduated from Princeton
I just checked Michner's book (which I've owned forever and, admittedly, have never never gotten around to reading). Liat is described as being "around seventeen years old."
Bloody Mary is 55. Nellie Forbush is 22.
I'm just skimming through and I haven't found exactly how old Cable is supposed to be, but he describes himself as still being a student at Princeton.
Of course, differences probably exist between the book and musical scripts.
Now, mother always said that whenever you hear a strange, frightening, and potentially life-threatening ghostly chant coming from the dark woods that there's one thing that you should do: Not wake the others and go investigate it alone...