Would 'Educating Rita' be a suitable play to take my 14 year old daughter to? What is it about?

Answer 1

If y'all read the question, you'll notice that this person isn't talking about going to see the MOVIE; she wants to know whether the PLAY is suitable for his/her daughter. They're not the same thing, folks.

Briefly, the play is about a working-class woman who enrolls in a private tutoring program at the local university. She has a sense that she would like to expand her experiences, and thinks that education is the answer. Her tutor, Frank, is a bit of a cynical academia burn-out. Because of his own disillusionment, he has a hard time embracing Rita's great enthusiasm for the project. The play is the story of how these two people help each other to escape their respective ruts, and move along with their lives.

And, by the way, neither the play nor the movie are about a "man who has an affair with a teen." Sheesh.

I don't see why a contemporary 14-year-old couldn't have a very positive experience of this show. However, the parent in question ought to be ready to answer some rather serious questions in the aftermath of the performance. Besides Frank's alcohol problem, the play treats on issues concerning commitment in marriage. Moreover, there's an ongoing issue as to whether Rita is deceiving her husband by continuing to take birth control pills when her husband wants her to have children.

Go see the show...and have a great chat afterwards!

Answer 2

Whether or not you should take your fourteen-year-old to Educating Rita is a matter of personal taste. Given that the movie came out in the early eighties, it would seem unlikely to be capable of offending our modern, new-millennium sensibilities.

The plot is basically about social and class mobility and entrenched blue-blood hierarchies. Being suitable to Hollywood--that is to say, being topic exploration lite--it lacks the seriousness of a profound exploration of the theme, but it may be adequate as a stimulus for an adolescent.

In a similar vein, I would suggest Bernard Malamud's 'The Assistant' or Anzia Yezierska's "The Bread-Givers." The latter might be more appealing to your daughter since Yezierska has a feminist message which is probably appealing to young women of your daughter's age. Yezierska's feminism, by the way, was a product of her environment and character and not just the self-indulgence which is so common these days, and, for this reason, she is a very interesting read also.

Returning to the topic, I am also recalling that in the movie, there was a very inane subplot concerning a dizzy alcoholic friend who eventually commits suicide. That character is probably what ruined the movie. It was contrived, false, and had no cohesion with the theme of social mobility.

In general, the story is very predictable and follows the classic climax and denouement pattern so common to Hollywood suitable material. Postmodern is much more fun because it very often rejects these norms, forcing writers to be creative and audiences to be attentive.

Answer 3

I think so. Have you seen the film with Julie Walters and Michael Caine? It's by Willy Russell, and tells of a girl from a disadvantaged background who makes the effort to go to university against all odds and make a future of herself. There is some swearing and drunkenness (if the play is similar to the film: I haven't seen it), but the message is great. I think she might like it!
http://fcis.oise.utoronto.ca/~daniel_sch/assignment1/1980educating_rita.html

Answer 4

... Rent the movie. It's about a man who has an affair with a teen if I'm not mistaken. If I had a choice, I wouldn't. Unless she really wanted to.

Take her to Pirates of the Caribbean 2.

Answer 5

it is about a girl discovering more to life. She was uneducated met a professor and he encouraged her to further her education . It is not dirty and will encourage her to look for more in life.

Answer 6

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Educating_Rita

yes you should.