Super Special #9: Starring the Baby-sitters Club!
Stoneybrook Middle School is putting on a production of Peter Pan, a “musical extravaganza,” and apparently it’s the biggest thing to ever hit SMS.
Jessi, who’s just earned a role as the sixth-grade correspondent for the school newspaper the SMS Express, decides she’s going to play Peter Pan and write an insider article about the play for the paper. Kristy wants to play Nana (the dog-nanny), Claudia wants to do scenery, Mallory wants to work on the costumes, Stacey and Logan each just want some part but don’t really care what or how big it is, and Dawn has her heart set on playing Tiger Lily. (Hmm, quite the culturally insensitive pick for the supposedly socially conscious member of the BSC. Then again, it was 1992… but still.) When Dawn finds out Cokie Mason is also going out for TL, though, she has second thoughts. Look, Dawn, I know I’ve said some terrible things about you in print, but you’ve gotta take Cokie down.
I usually like Jessi, but in this book she comes across as so conceited and condescending What the hell. (Then again, maybe I just can’t imagine what it’s like to not have crippling self-doubt.) There’s a rude awakening in store when the Peter Pan cast list is posted:
Peter Pan - Kristy Thomas
Wendy - Dawn Schafer
Michael - Jackie Rodowsky
Mrs. Darling - Stacey McGill
Mr. Darling - Sam Thomas
Tiger Lily - Cokie Mason
Tinker Bell - Karen Brewer
Pirate - Jessi Ramsey
Nana/Crocodile - Pete Black
Smee - Alan Gray
Logan and a bunch of BSC charges also have supporting roles, Claudia is the set designer, and Mallory is the apprentice costume designer. There are mixed reactions: Claudia and Mallory were both given bigger jobs than they wanted; Kristy and Dawn, while flattered by being cast as the leads, are nervous about having such big roles; and Jessi is feeling a bit murderous about getting such a small role. She convinces Mr. Cheney, the director, to make her the assistant choreographer. It’s all very… awkward.
Side note: I can handle Claudia being a bad speller, but I draw the line at her spelling HER OWN FRIENDS’ NAMES WRONG.
Because of all the rambunctious little kids enlisted to play pirates and such, Mary Anne gets the task of being the “backstage baby-sitter” and Jackie Rodowsky’s personal coach. Have fun, M.A.! Mallory freaks out when she’s tasked with measuring boys for their costumes. (Eleven-year-old me would have jumped at the opportunity.) And Dawn realizes that Peter Pan is more than a little sexist. Mark this down in history: Chapter 10 of Super Special #9 is what got me back on Team Dawn. (At least for now.)
Come on, Kristy! Help Dawn smash the patriarchy! Meanwhile, Logan gets kicked out of the play for swordfighting with Alan Gray and yelling “mutiny!” during rehearsal. Whoops. He manages to sweet-talk his way back in, but he’s on probation. Kristy’s having trouble learning her lines, partly because she’s always half-annoyed by Cokie Mason. Jackie Rodowsky is terrified of Pete Black’s crocodile costume and screams every time he sees it. Mallory keeps stepping on Mary Anne’s “backstage baby-sitter” toes. Claudia is afraid her scenery is going to fall, bonk someone on the head, and kill them. Jessi has her head up her own ass about being an “assistant producer” and feeling unappreciated, and Stacey’s fed up with Sam calling her “Mother” and “Mrs. Darling” even when they’re not rehearsing. Alas, the shit show must go on…
“Stacey McGill is terrific. She really is. She’s gorgeous and sophisticated and funny and smart and popular.” - Sam Thomas (and me)
Of course, this is The Baby-sitters Club, not The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, so things start to work themselves out. Mallory gets back in her lane and focuses on her job. Sam explains his behavior to Stacey and they make a deal moving forward. Pete Black falls off his bike and breaks his nose, and Jessi has to take over the roles of Nana and the crocodile (which, helpfully, makes Jackie less scared of the crocodile).
The play, of course, goes really well. Everyone is great, the audience loves it, and Kristy and Dawn get flowers at curtain call (Kristy from Bart, and Dawn from Richard Spier). Backstage, Sam kisses Stacey in front of everyone and Bart kisses Kristy in front of everyone. BOW CHICKA WOW WOW…
