Double Digits

everyone here knows that i love les miz, right?
well, it is no longer my fave musical!

last night, i saw the fourth showing of the BHS spring musical, Double Digits.

now, don't g to google- it most likely won't be there - yet.
the musical was written by two BHS seniors- dialogue, music, everything. and it was amazing. stunning. beautiful.

when the drama teacher told us about it, all she really said was 'it is about fifth graders, dealing with the trails of being between 'kid' and 'teen', suffering 'pointless' tests, and there is an abusive power at the school'.
so i thought- it'll be like Matilda, only with less psychic powers and older kids.
how wrong i was.

what i saw was not Matilda... it was like Candy shop war meets After meets Return from Witch Mountain meets bar code tattoo. but with fifth graders.. ok, so the kids are 5th graders in candy shop wars.. yeah, ok... (spoilers alert!!! this is review mixed with what happens!!!)
the main character is Annie- played by a friend of mine who was perfect for the role- a girl who is the classic teacher's pet. shy, studious, uncomfortable around other kids, striving to get into a prestigious private school near by. the first so is 'limbo, one of the best, although each song is stirring and wonderful. on the fist day of school, annie laments having to go to a school where 'they're all just kids', while other students talk about making something of themselves, and the transition between single digits, and being ten.

then the bell rings, ending the song.
right away, a pop quiz is passed out. just after, dashul, a returning fifth grader after flunking spanish, enters. he is seated next to annie :)
meanwhile, the principal discovers she slept in, and the secretary, the yappy, hyper, sunnshine-y betty sue, yammers on and on. Principal K realizes her ex, the prinipal of the local, prestigous school for gifted students, has been named principal of the month.

after school, the janitor sings about having to clean up, but being intrested in the brain, and hiw it works.
at annies house
annie learns she has been rejected from the school, even though she has strived for years to be perfect. following the letter, the song 'rejected' plays, wherein future annie tells the young girl that her life was destroyed because she was rejected- she fell in with the wrong crowed, took up smoking, dropped out, had a child, became a prostitute. in dispare, annie runs from the house- knocking over dashul, who scolds her for not carring, and only thinking about school, rather than appreciating whats around her. he mentions he had come to ask for tutorinfg, but after the heated discussion, he leaves. Annie calls him back, asking if friday would work. he agrees, smiling.

friday rolls around, and the two sit studying( yes, they do study!) when annie's pinky brushes Dashuls, starting the song 'oh no!'( they start to show that they each have a crush on the other) which ends with dashul blurting out the question, " annie, will you be my girlfriend?" to which she squeaks 'ok!'
at the same time, the preppy, popular girl, Victoria, calls Dashul's house, as she has already spoken about how she has a crush on him to her gang of wannabes. she is heartbroken to learn he is doing homework at 'some girls house' in the scene, we also see that dashul's home life is the opposite of annie's- while her parents pressure her to be the best, his father is a bum and his waitress mother constantly insults her husband, and neither seem to expect their son to do anything with his life.

on monday morning, the test scores are announced- with very few exceptions, the were awful.the teacher displays one student( duke) 's bubble sheet- he has spelled out 'poop' the class thinks this hilarious, and they begin to re-take the test

Principal Kathleen gets a call from the school board- if the test scores do not go up, she will be fired. then, mr. weedmore, the afore mentioned ex and principal of the month, calls, and gloats in her face, angering her. thus begins the song, desperate measure() my other favorite) ( this song is very similar to les miz's 'one day more')
while kathleen sings about how desperate measures must be taken, and frets, she comes up with a plan, and orders betty sue to get the janitor, and Duke.
duke has been plotting with his friends about how to get into the girls bathroom. she brings both to the office, where the janitor preforms some sort of operation by this time, school is out, and students gather on the steps. the popular girls sing about nail polish( i like pink, blue is better, blue is for boys, pink is for girls) victoria sings that she is going to live the life she wants. dashul and annie sing in spanish/english respectively as they study. one student, dressed in a cape, says, as he bashes super heroes together that 'no one's gonna boss me around this year' all the songs inter twin, with a slightly melancholy tone
kathleen's voice then takes over as she repeats the opening of the song, then stops, asking duke, who is sitting up strait, a series of questions, ending with a repeating decimal number question. it is clear he has become robotic.
everyone repeats their part of the song, and the music fades.

the next day, duke is acting strange, but everyone is too caught up in themselves- even annie- to notice. dashul alone sees something is wrong, causing him to shout at the class for not noticing that somethig is wrong. the teacher yells at him, and dashul and annie fight- she just wants him to sit down, and behave, but he refuses to stop until the class sees that duke isn't acting like duke- even at a 'butt' joke he doesn't laugh. storming out, dashul overhears walter- the janitor, telling kathleen he only has enough equipment to 'do' one more student. kathleen gives him money, telling him to get anything he needs, she wants half the school changed by christmas. as he leaves, Dashul confronts him, after which the janitor grabs him, and they preform the operation on him.

annie goes to visit dashul, to apologize for the way she acted when he was right, but he, now robotic, brushes her off saying that he was at fault, and he needs to do his math. she pleads with him to tell her what happened, and he responds with the crypic phrase- ask the janitor. annie cries, but is comforted by peter the insect boy.

end of act one.

act two opens with a play ground scene, wherein everyone is dressed the same, and speaks in a monotone., repeating song lyrics like 'sara and jonny sitting in a tree' ' one two buckle my shoe' and 'down by the banks of the hankey pankey' it is one of the creepiest parts of the play.
slowly, the last three students- Annie, Peter and Victoria emerge, and are filled with fear, wishing it was all a dream.
they take a test, and are worried. annie decides she needs to find out what happened , and she and peter sneak out of class, surprising the janitor. annie recalls what dashul told her, and begins to question him, at which point he breaks down and confesses- he thought it was for the greater good, and didn't know it would make them emotionless.
later at annies house, the four meets, and victoria asks why the should trust her," you're just like them" annie gets angry and insists that she isn't, and feels bad because she gas no friends,. at last, they agree on a plan. but after the meeting, victoria calls up kathleen, saying there is something she has to say.

during the next day's test, annie, victoria and peter sneak out- peter is sent to find walt and then get the kids out of class, one by one, so walt came do the reverse operation. Annie and victoria go to stop betty sue and kathleen. they jump betty sue, tying a potato sack around her, and proceed to the principals office, where annie triumphantly declares that it is over, the students have won, she ( kathleen) is out numbered, at which point victoria, holding a jump rope, hows her true side, and ties up annie. kathleen reveals that she knew all about the plan, and pulls a bound walt up from behind her desk. while victoria sits to the side, kathleen speaks about how she didn't want yo have to change annie- she was her star pupil, but she has no choice now. walt declare he will not do the operation, and kathleen says that he is 'just a janitor- expendable' very afraid, annie struggles to free herself, while kathleen gloats over her title as principal of the month. suddenly, peter appears, saying he couldn't find walt- the panics. as betty sue and kathleen attempt to seize him, he pulls a vial from his pocket, uncapping it. it contains a powerful spider venom that makes the two women hallucinate , and faint. peter then unties the captives, and walt laments about how his tools were destroyed- there is no hope. they try to think of a way to save the kids, when walt recalls that the spider venom peter has will, in the right dosage, cause the kid's brains to reject the influence of the microchip he implanted. they race into the classroom, and begin to shove rags with the venom on them under the kids' noses. the students, now free, run out, after betty sue and kathleen, who have fled. only dashul remains, and annie frees him. he begins to tell her about the plot, when she interrupts, telling him everyone is free, and tanking him, saying she couldn't have done it without him. they apologize for the fight, and leave the classroom, where the rest of the kids have tied up kathleen and betty sue, with swords held to their throats. annie tries to convince the kids not to hurt them, not to sink to their level, but they ignore her, as she isn't a friend to them, and they want revenge. finally dashul cries out loudly to 'listen to her( annie), and they quiet down. annie apologizes for never trying to be their friend, and makes a speech, after which they allow the women to leave, warning them never to return. they have recess, and sing 'limbo' agai, during the song, victoria says she is sorry, but she isn't forgiven- yet. annie gives dashul a quick kiss, they sing the final lime 'but i'm stuck here down in limbo till that recess bell rings' and the curtain closes.


so now you know the story, and a wonderful one it is. one of the best ever. a recording was made of the song, and i will be buying it.:)
apparently, an unconfirmed rumor that a Broadway scout was in the audience circulated- i hope so, this musical should be shared with the world! so, look for it in a few years!