This November, Covenant College Theatre Department will produce the adaptation of Charlotte
Brontë’s beloved novel Jane Eyre.
Review for Jane Eyre:
The common misconception for Jane Eyre is that it is a Jane Austin novel, a type of lovey dovey romance with witty social critique on the side. However, Charlotte Brontë’s novel is primarily a gothic story with a sliver of romance. The story proudly meddles with the British gothic elements of creepy mansions, burning fires, and spiritual ghosts.
Director Camille Hallstrom said, “Jane Eyre is not primarily a romance novel. It has conspicuous themes of practical Christian theology about how Christians act and behave, otherwise known as orthopraxy.”
Throughout the story, Jane confronts immensely difficult decisions between selfish behaviors and morally correct actions. However, the novel balances the elements of orthopraxy, gothic, and romance to create this blend of a fascinating story; it is not only one genre.
With such daunting shoes to fill, script adapter Anya Klumpenhower sought to adapt the novel in a way that preserves Jane Eyre’s timelessness while also condensing the 700 page book into one evening's performance.
Actress Luisa Monteiro-Oliveira, starring as Jane, eagerly accepts the challenge of translating the character to the stage. "My favorite element of the novel is the intimacy Jane shares with the reader, what with us having access to her many internal monologues," said Ms. Monteiro-Oliveira, "yet now I've somehow got to translate everything learned from Jane's thoughts into my voice and body, and what an honor that is to take on!"
The show is adapted by Ms. Klumpenhower, directed by Prof. Hallstrom with senior Ms. Monteiro-Oliveira performing the title role for her Senior Capstone, and senior Jessica Seabolt designing the costumes for her Senior Capstone.
Jane Eyre will be performed on Nov. 14-15 at 7:30 p.m. with a matinee performance on Nov. 16 at 2:30 p.m. at Covenant College’s Sanderson Auditorium, 14049 Scenic Hwy., Lookout Mountain, Ga. To purchase tickets, go to covenant.edu/theatre, or contact boxoffice@covenant.edu, or (706) 419-1051. Tickets are $10 for general admission, and $7 for students, staff, and seniors.