Reggie and Rose

Synopsis

Reggie Befriends Rose a woman working in the school cafeteria who is suddenly made redundant. Reggie persuades her to follow her dreams and become a student at the School of the Arts. Meanwhile Shorofsky tries to get Reggie to take a job in Summer stock.

My Review

Guest star syndrome takes over for this episode as Carrie Hamilton's real life mother, Carol Burnett takes a role on "Fame". It was apparently the first time Mother and Daughter had worked together. I guess it was inevitable that having a cast member with a famous Mother the producers would want to get that person on the show and came up with an idea to showcase Carol Burnett's talents but I've never been a fan of having a guest star take over so much an episode.

It doesn't help that a lot of the story is contrived. Rose works in the school cafeteria, although we've never seen her before. She never finished High School but gets on down when the kids start to perform in the cafeteria. Reggie tells Dyrenforth that she lights up when she hears the music. However, when there are cut backs Rose is made redundant and Reggie thinks it would be a good idea for her to enrol in the school to get her High School diploma. Rose doesn't seem to want to be a performer but hey she sung in the church choir a couple of times and lets herself get talked into it. Reggie then, very quickly, gets Dyrenforth to arrange an audition for Rose and wham she's in the school!

Firstly, I don't believe the school Principal is involved in hiring and firing the cafeteria staff. Plus there is no discussion between the faculty about setting up a special audition. Remember in season 1 when Doris wanted to try and get runaway Tracey into the school? The teachers then had a scene debating the rights or wrongs of giving special treatment but no here. Dyrenforth is a little concerned he wont be able to talk the board into it nut Reggie says they can't refused as they have ruined Rose's life for making her redundant. The school board we've heard about over the last 6 years wouldn't be open to emotional blackmail. However no one seems to have a problem and Rose gets her audition.

We are virtually at the end of the school year. It seems a little crazy that a 49 year old would join High School with just a couple of months to go but the writers and producers don't seem to worry about that. This same 49 year old doesn't seem to have any ambition to actually be a performer she just regrets not getting her High School diploma. Surely it would be a struggle for anyone of that age to try to fit into a normal High School never mind one where you have to do acting, singing and dancing! At the audition Dyrenforth is on the panel along with Paul and a couple of unknown people. Since when has Dyrenforth been involved in auditions and judging talent? Where are Lydia or Shorofsky? Don't they do auditions anymore?

Well Rose does a little comedy routine and she's in the school. We see a montage of her attending classes and Reggie helping her fit in. She performs for Shorofsky in music class and he thinks she has potential. Then the tables turn and Rose has to pressure Reggie to do something out of her comfort zone and audition for the job with Shorofsky's friend's Summer Stock company. Reggie says she will if Rose helps her and so they come up with a routine to "A Couple of Swells" but on the big day Rose gets nervous and messes up which leads to a big fight and Rose decides she's in way over her head and doesn't really want to be in school after all and so quits.

A few weeks later we discover Rose is dating Dyrenforth, is attending night School and performing a little and she needed Reggie pusher to make changes in her life. We also discover that Reggie decided to push her boundaries too and try out for the Summer stock on her own with a style of song she wouldn't normally touch with a barge pole.

This is not a favourite of mine at all. The rest of the cast are pretty much relegated to supporting players and the music is old time musical hall stuff which I don;t really relate too.

Episode Pictures