Connie
Stepping out from the comfort zone of her sofa beneath the wall of dolls in her small flat, Dolly Diggs has paralysing stage fright, dying on her feet on her first attempt at public performance at the open mic comedy night, desperately needing to find her voice, or perhaps someone to speak for her.
Hitting upon the idea of ventriloquism, to project her voice and ideas through another while giving her act a quirky spin, her puppet Connie has a voice and opinions, and carried on a wave of inappropriate comments the duo are an unexpected hit, rising up the bill and challenging the other local puppet act, Ollie and Hank, but with Dolly and Ollie finding common ground and friendship, Connie becomes jealous.
Written and directed by Cat Davies, previously behind and in front of the camera for vegetarian zombie short KEEN-wah, with Connie she places The Library Suicides’ Catrin Stewart front and centre on the unforgiving stage in front of a hostile audience, her only defence and protection the seemingly innocuous assemblage of fabric who becomes more than a tool to overcome her lack of confidence.
Dolly’s ambition modest, Connie wants more, undertaking research while Dolly has an awkward date with Ollie (David Puckridge) and Kim Newman provides a brief history of doll horror and its frequent end point, a once popular entertainment now pigeonholed, a fringe act performed by those with no other outlet for their passions and frustrations, Connie perhaps laying out its plan a little obviously but still enjoyable.
Connie will be available on the the Arrow platform from Friday 13th September
