Educating Rita Devil Wears Prada
EDUCATING RITA INTERVIEW
Host: Good morning listeners, this is Sam Lee with this week’s program of ‘Into the world’ where we discuss ways individuals make challenging transitions into new and different worlds and the risks and possibilities, which coincide with them. Significant experiences in people’s lives provide opportunities for growth and development. Going ‘into the world’ means moving from familiar experiences to new horizons. We are especially blessed today to have Willy Russell famous playwright discussing his play ‘Educating Rita’ and David Frankel the director of ‘The Devil Wears Prada’.
W.R: Thank you for having me on the program: it is a pleasure to discuss ‘Educating Rita’.
Host: Willy how close is Rita’s story to your own?
W.R: Is it that strikingly obvious Sam? I was a male hairdresser and owned my own salon before I began to compose novels, which enabled me to construct a more realistic character for Rita. ‘Educating Rita’ could be seen, as a semi-autobiography as I have already experienced the difficulties of being working class and I am aware of the challenges people with this social background may endure. Similarly to Rita I also dreamed of better things, and returned to further education as a mature student attending evening classes at university, immersing in the delights of English literature.
Host: Your mentor for Rita is Frank a flawed professor, why did you create such a complex mentor for Rita?
W.R: Frank is perfect for Rita in his ‘imperfections’ as a real studious, pedantic professor would have frightened Rita off. At the start of the play, Frank and Rita can be seen as opposites and any friendship between the two seems unlikely, but they quickly warm to one another as first appearances show. Frank sees Rita as a breath of fresh air in his life and he responds very well to her cheeky and irreverent approach to almost anything. They are both involved in unsatisfactory relationships, and they both want more from life
Host: Good morning listeners, this is Sam Lee with this week’s program of ‘Into the world’ where we discuss ways individuals make challenging transitions into new and different worlds and the risks and possibilities, which coincide with them. Significant experiences in people’s lives provide opportunities for growth and development. Going ‘into the world’ means moving from familiar experiences to new horizons. We are especially blessed today to have Willy Russell famous playwright discussing his play ‘Educating Rita’ and David Frankel the director of ‘The Devil Wears Prada’.
W.R: Thank you for having me on the program: it is a pleasure to discuss ‘Educating Rita’.
Host: Willy how close is Rita’s story to your own?
W.R: Is it that strikingly obvious Sam? I was a male hairdresser and owned my own salon before I began to compose novels, which enabled me to construct a more realistic character for Rita. ‘Educating Rita’ could be seen, as a semi-autobiography as I have already experienced the difficulties of being working class and I am aware of the challenges people with this social background may endure. Similarly to Rita I also dreamed of better things, and returned to further education as a mature student attending evening classes at university, immersing in the delights of English literature.
Host: Your mentor for Rita is Frank a flawed professor, why did you create such a complex mentor for Rita?
W.R: Frank is perfect for Rita in his ‘imperfections’ as a real studious, pedantic professor would have frightened Rita off. At the start of the play, Frank and Rita can be seen as opposites and any friendship between the two seems unlikely, but they quickly warm to one another as first appearances show. Frank sees Rita as a breath of fresh air in his life and he responds very well to her cheeky and irreverent approach to almost anything. They are both involved in unsatisfactory relationships, and they both want more from life