The Covenant College Theatre Department will recreate the proper romance of 19th-century England with an adaptation of Jane Austen’s “Sense and Sensibility.” From left are Andrew Lupinek, Abi Ogle, Caroline McLeod and Noah Lloyd.If you go
› What: Covenant College Theatre’s “Sense and Sensibility.”› When: 8 p.m. today and Friday, April 21-22, 2:30 p.m. Saturday, April 23.› Where: Sanderson Auditorium, Covenant College, 14049 Scenic Highway, Lookout Mountain, Ga.› Admission: $5 adults, $3 seniors, students and staff.› Phone: 706-419-1051.› Email: boxoffice@covenant.edu.› Note: Tonight’s presentation is the final dress rehearsal.
A timeless literary romance will be rekindled onstage this weekend as the Covenant College Theatre Department presents Jon Jory’s adaptation of Jane Austen’s first novel, “Sense and Sensibility.”
The play, according to producers, retains the spirit of the 1811 novel, revitalizing the familiar tussle between logic and emotion, mismatched lovers and manipulative family members. Theatergoers familiar with Austen’s original work will see that this production adds new faces and a few new quips as well.
A Chicago Sun-Times reviewer has said Jory’s adaptation stays true to the humor, sentiments and manners of Austen’s era but has “a freshness, speed and immediacy that gives the storytelling a contemporary energy .”
Senior Nyssa Coffman, who is directing the production, the last of the season, expects that the adaptation will fulfill the audience’s expectations and remind viewers why Jane Austen is still a best-selling author after two centuries.
“I wanted to choose a well-known play, a well-known story,” says Coffman. “We’ve been having a lot of obscure plays recently and haven’t had a lot of big-name productions.”
Set against the backdrop of 19th-century England, the play follows the climactic journeys of sisters Elinor and Marianne Dashwood as they are ferried between family estates and encounter numerous suitors. Elinor is the perfect image of rational, practical thinking, the “sense,” while free-spirited Marianne embodies the sensibility of unbridled, passionate emotion.
Elinor will be played by sophomore Abi Ogle, while Caroline McLeod will play Marianne. Junior Austen Crim, sophomore Andrew Lupinek and sophomore Noah Lloyd will play suitors John Willoughby, Edward Ferrars and Colonel Brandon, respectively.
Ogle believes audiences will take away “a new love for the story” as they consider whether sense should trump sensibility or if a happy medium is necessary.