For the Love: A Review of The Complete Works of Jane Austen

Photo by Meredith Longo

The classics became classics at a time long before we had a say in what we liked. Much of what circulates in the literary world was forced on us in high school classrooms before the themes could take proper root in our lives— that includes the works of Jane Austen. The Complete Works of Jane Austen (Abridged) at Playhouse on Park gives a new feel to the classics, and some lesser works, of Ms. Austen. It’s a cocktail of literary truths, film adaptations, and a repertoire of new-age references that connects the dots of Jane Austen's stories and the truths of the everywoman. Director and co-author, Kathryn MacMillan along with production stage manager, Rebecca Donaghy bring us to the heart of Jane through the minds of her characters.

In addition to providing a complete rundown of Jane’s heroines, their fantasies and flaws, and their poorly timed realizations of their feelings for the men in their lives—Jessica Bedford, Kathryn Macmillan, Charlotte Northeast, and Meghan Winch offer us the satirical Spark Notes version that we need to enjoy the vintage of these books while allowing the themes at the center of the stories to rise to the surface.

Why do you love Jane Austen? Or more specifically, why do you love the heroines at the center of Jane Austen’s stories? It surely isn’t just for the antiquated garb and dense verbiage. Perhaps we enjoy these things because we enjoy the stories that they set the stage for. These conversations and more are juggled between the small cast of Charlotte, Brittany, and Mike played by Charlotte Northeast, Brittany Onukwugha, and Shannon Michael Wamser. 

Jane’s fandom is embodied in the performance of Onukwugha. Brittany serves as one of three voices of exposition, giving us the tea, if you will, in a giddy and gossipy, fantasy-driven adoration for Jane’s writing. Northeast, riddled with comedic brilliance, takes on the nuances of Jane’s characters, both male and female alike— letting us in on a full spectrum of talent from the different voices she evokes to the way her body language adds layers to the story at hand. Wamser serves as the newcomer, the entity who is just enough in the dark to warrant the complete rundown of details for the benefit of the audience. Mike floats in and out of characters with a bumbling grace appropriate for the newbie he is.

There’s a level of satire that crosses over into irreverent and makes a mockery out of the thing it claims to revere. That is something this production manages to avoid. While putting all of Jane Austen’s work under a microscope, it manages to reverberate a fondness and leaves the criticism to the characters in a back and forth about their qualities, their idiosyncrasies, how we relate to the ever-present will-they-won’t-they of the characters who are clearly enamored with each other in action even when their self-awareness is lacking. 

The breaking of the fourth wall of the remarkably designed set in conjunction with the intimate size of the playhouse, brings the audience right into the story making our cheers and chuckles feel like part of the show. All the intricacies of scenic designer Johann Fitzpatrick’s set and Judi Manfre’s props turn back the hands of time in a way that doesn’t feel that foreign to the senses.

Conversations with themes of feminism and patriarchy as the soft underbelly are stirred in with upbeat remarks about the female anatomy and how it looks in clothing from Jane’s era. Costume designer, Barbara Erin Delo accents the cast with versatile pieces that do well in not complicating the floating in and out of characters. In addition to impeccable audio quality and the cast’s excellent comedic timing, the well-placed sound effects by designer Kirk Ruby paired with Christopher Chambers’ lighting design seamlessly bring us from the folds of the Regency and through each and every time warp the production provides.

Some feather-ruffling commentary on men’s roles in Austen’s works proves to linger in the truths of today. What do Jane’s heroines want? What do women today want? Is it marriage? Is it agency? And does it reflect in our behavior? Or do “our feelings prey upon us” as Anne Elliot of Persuasion suggests?

In short, this production says what we’ve all thought at one time or another— about the works, about the truths they highlight, about how little has changed in the affairs of men and women, despite how much has changed in our world since these stories were written. Without such critical deconstructions of not just the creative works we love and live by, but also of our lives, we allow romanticized tragedy to excuse our unproductive patterns.

You can see The Complete Works of Jane Austen (Abridged) at Playhouse on Park through October 22, 2023. For tickets, visit www.Playhouseonpark.org.