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﻿<title﻿>﻿New Socialist Magazine, Who Killed Daisy Action? - Review﻿</title>﻿
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﻿<b﻿>﻿Who Killed Daisy Action? 
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﻿<i﻿>﻿New Socialist Magazine, July - August 1999﻿</i>﻿<br﻿>﻿<br﻿>﻿<br﻿>﻿
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﻿<font﻿ ﻿size="1"﻿>﻿(Note from the Editors: As a socialist publication, we are committed to coverage of the arts and culture. Of course, we generally only review serious drama with a redeeming social message, or youth culture that makes us sound "hip." This summer, we were offered complimentary tickets to the opening of a new Canadian opera called "Who Killed Daisy Action?" Sadly, we were unable to attend as it took place outside of Toronto. However, we asked for and received permission to reprint the programme notes from this challenging opera. We hope in our small way to contribute to the dissemination of new, socially-relevant Canadian culture.)﻿</font>﻿<br﻿>﻿<br﻿>﻿

From the liner notes by Benjamin Walters: 
﻿<br﻿>﻿<br﻿>﻿
"Who Killed Daisy Action?" is a charming piece of Canadian musical theatre. Of course, it suffers from an all-too-predictable ending. But it has just that right mixture of highs and lows, of tears and laughter, to keep a summer audience entertained. It also has just a spot of psychological complexity and an intriguing plot twist or two. 
﻿<br﻿>﻿<br﻿>﻿
This little musical is rather more soap opera than opera, but after all it is summer stock. The plot begins with the Leader of the OFL giving birth after an unwanted pregnancy. The Leader, despite giving birth, turns out to be a man named Gordon (but then the conventions of opera have not been limited by gender conformity - remember the poor castrati!). Gordon has profoundly ambivalent feelings about his child, who is named Daisy Action. Despite a difficult childhood alternating between rejection and suffocating attention, Daisy grows and prospers. She goes on to achieve a great triumph in Toronto. 
﻿<br﻿>﻿<br﻿>﻿
This success is too much for Gordon, who like many parents has mixed feelings as his child develops a life of her own. At the same time, a nasty clique called the Pink Papers (Harry from the Steelworkers, John from the Powerworkers and a chorus of others) conspires against Daisy, frightened that her seductive charms might appeal to their members. Harry and John spring a surprise attack on Daisy as she is basking in the glory of her Toronto days. As she is stabbed, she sings the lilting aria "Et tu, Johnny?"accusingly to the man who had seemed so supportive in her early days. She falls bleeding to the ground. The Leader does nothing as his daughter lies dying. But at the last minute, Buzz, Sid and Leah rush in to save her. 
﻿<br﻿>﻿<br﻿>﻿
The final act is filled with more betrayals in the best operatic tradition. Leah ditches Buzz and Sid and takes up with the Pink Papers, singing the charming number (intriguingly influenced lyrically by Bob Dylan) "I don't need a weather man to know which way the wind blows." The tension builds in a dramatic scene near the end, when Buzz and Sid are left alone with the wounded Daisy. She coughs and gasps for breath, bringing back memories of poor Mimi in "La Boheme." She pleads with Sid and Buzz for a shot of oxygen from the tank that sits by her bed. But they refuse. "Put her out of her misery," sings Buzz in his startling aria "Euthanasia." As Daisy chokes on her last breath, Sid bursts from the room. He points at Harry and John and sings the angry "Murderers," adapted from a traditional Irish melody. 
﻿<br﻿>﻿<br﻿>﻿
But it does not end on this note of despair. At the last moment, Howie Hampton bounds on to the stage and the whole cast gathers around the body of Daisy singing the beautiful final chorus, "Don't blame me, I'm voting NDP." Off stage, Harris and Martin can be heard sharing a mighty chuckle. The curtain falls.
﻿<br﻿>﻿<br﻿>﻿
Alan Sears
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