Jane Austen Unscripted...with Tea
Little Yuzu is Listening To
Merlin: Series Two (Original Television Soundtrack)
Rob Lane, Rohan Stevenson
In celebration of Jane Austen's birthday, this past weekend I attended a theater event called Jane Austen Unscripted. As Austen mainly wrote novels, it's uncommon for her works to make it to the stage. So I was thrilled that an Austen production was showing locally. The Impro Theatre is a company of classically trained actors who are highly skilled in improvisation. Every play they put on is unique, as they're making up the characters, dialogue and plot as they're performing. You can really tell the shows are unscripted because the actors sometimes talk over one another, as they don't have cues or stage directions.
The play was performed at The Broad Stage, a new, modern performance facility on the Santa Monica College campus. I saw Shakespeare's Love's Labours Lost here last month, and I was happy to make another trip here for this show. The architecture is beautiful, and the performance spaces are perfect - every seat is a good seat. Jane Austen Unscripted was held in a small rehearsal space behind the main theater. It was great being up close to the action of the play.
When the show started, the actors came out and asked the audience for trivial topics of conversation on which they can focus their play. One woman shouted, "Zombies!" (Oh, please, no...not an entire play about zombies!) But others said "weather" and "gardening," so fortunately the actors went with one of those. Actor/co-founder Dan O'Connor (he's always funny) incorporated zombies into the garden theme when he said he was throwing a ball to celebrate his zombie rose, a flower that only blooms once a year and therefore frightens some people. LOL.
The play was about Mrs. Greene, who worries her three daughters - Anne, Lily and Fanny - will never marry. She tries to get any bachelor in town to stay for tea so they can meet her daughters. There's the apothecary Mr. Geoffries; Mr. Charles, who's untalented in poetry; Mr. Higgins, whose horse has a knack for running over animals (and people); Lord Bateman, a recluse who enjoys bad weather; and Mr. Tingley, a young landowner with a penchant for parsley. There was [faux] pianoforte-playing, a woman getting sick after running out in a storm, dancing at a ball, and, of course, three marriages by the end of the play. It was a highly enjoyable show, one of the most hilarious theater experiences I've ever had. The American actors had good British accents, the costumes were pretty accurate, and the dialogue and plot were very Austen-esque. I think Jane Austen herself would've had a good laugh.
Immediately following the performance, The Broad Stage hosted a special holiday tea. The spread included zucchini bread topped with chicken and apricot sauce, cucumber and tomato sandwiches, chocolate coconut macarons, heart-shaped shortbread cookies, linzer cookies, plain scones, and assorted English teas. Everything was delicious. It was a perfect way to end an Austen day.
I'm currently reading my last book for the Everything Austen Challenge. I might add another book too, if I have time to finish it before the end of the year. I hope you all are gearing up for Christmas in a few days! I'm not even done with my shopping. Whatever. I'll come up with ideas on December 23.