I cant turn your soul on. Leave me those feelings; and you can take away the voice and the face. They are not you. That's a quote from George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion, and it has a particular significance to the episode of Orphan Black where the classic play is referenced. Season one's Effects Of External Conditions actually has shout-outs to a couple of theatrical performances, both of which echo what's going on in the episode. Both Pygmalion and Robert Harlings Steel Magnolias are invoked by Felix when he's chatting with Alison about her am-dram past, although it's the film version of the latter that he's specifically referring to, asking if the clone played the Daryl Hannah part. Pygmalion is especially important in that episode, what with it about being about turning a working class gal into a convincing member of the middle class with is the opposite of what's happening when Felix is coaching Alison to act more like Sarah. Oh, and that musical Alison appears in during season two? That's Blood Ties, a real production about pals cleaning up after a friend commits suicide.
Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/
