Programme (Thistledown Theatre's Emma)

A RTI STI C D I RE CTOR'S N OTE
E
mma is the
only novel by
Jane Austen
named for the
her oine; even Lizzie
Bennet, sur ely the
w or ld's best-loved
and w ell-know n of
Austen's
pr otagonists, w as
r epr esented only
conceptually in her
novel's title. We as
r eader s under stand
fr om the ver y
beginning that this
stor y is the stor y of
one w oman, Emma,
and those w ho or bit
her in the social
space that is
H ighbur y.
H aving been given
the oppor tunity to
use the iconic and
impr essive space of
St. M ar y the Vir gin,
w e w anted to
pr oduce a show
w hich w ould
complement the
natur al beauty and
w eight of histor y
evident in the
building itself. A
Jane Austen piece
seemed like the
r ight fit; w hile
r ehear sing in the
venue, w e kept in
mind that Austen
her self may have
visited dur ing her
br ief stay in Oxfor d.
When you see our
player s w ander ing
among the pillar s
and dow n the aisles
of the Chur ch, you
ar e seeing the
echoes of people
w ho w alked her e
two hundr ed year s
ago. Such is Oxfor d.
We w er e dr aw n to
Emma specifically
for sever al r easons.
Fir st and for emost, it
is a cr acking stor y
and one of the most
inter esting and
moder n pieces fr om
Austen's canon. As
Dr. Jen Sugden
explains in her
pr ogr amme notes
this is the stor y of a
w omen w ho lacks
nothing; she has a
fr eedom stemming
fr om her w ealth and
social position w hich
lessen the pr essur e
to mar r y (a constant
obsession in most of
Austen's w or ks) and
hence, allow s the
stor y to explor e
other themes in
mor e depth:
fr iendship,
self-aw ar eness,
society. I loved the
fact that though this
is an Austen (and,
thus, pr eoccupied
w ith matr imony), at
the end of the day,
that is a side-issue to
the pr imar y stor y of
self-development
and know ledge
w hich w e w itness
thr ough Emma's
exper ience.
As a play, it has an
excellent selection of
par ts for actor s of all
ages and an even
spr ead of good r oles
for both men and
w omen. Fr equent
theatr e-goer s and
theatr e-maker s w ill
know how r ar e it is
to find a piece w her e
vir tually ever y cast
member has a juicy,
if not extensive, r ole.
The adaptation w e
have chosen ser ves
leads and char acter
actor s alike w ith
inter esting vignettes
and moments
thr oughout, w hich
has been inter esting
both fr om an acting
and dir ecting
standpoint. Our play
and Company ar e
r icher for having
collabor ated w ith
actor s w ith a var iety
of styles, methods
and exper ience
dur ing this
pr oduction. As a
dir ector , I have
lear ned much fr om
the cast w ho have
gener ously shar ed
their ideas and
exper ience to cr eate
this show
collabor atively w ith
me and the r est of
the pr oduction team.
This is Thistledow n's
fir st official show ,
though the major ity
of us in both the cast
and pr oduction team
have w or ked
together on many
pr ojects in Oxfor d
for sever al differ ent
companies. If you
ar e a playw r ight,
actor , technician or
other w ise inter ested
in gr ow ing the
Oxfor d theatr e
scene, please get in
touch - w e w ould
love to collabor ate
w ith you on a futur e
pr oject.
What can you expect
fr om us in futur e? A
huge var iety of
things - fr om Fr inge
show s, to new
w r iting, to beautiful
classics like Emma.
We ar e ver y gr ateful
to you for your
suppor t and hope to
see you at another
show soon.
L au r en ce Good w i n
Ar tistic Dir ector
Thistledow n Theatr e
TH ISTLEDOWN TH EATRE | 2