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Love is in the air and on the stage
By Megan Joy Kok
Staff Writer
FILE PHOTO
The cast of CTC's latest play, "Emma," takes turns playing many different roles in this comedic piece "all about love.".
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[ special 'Emma' photo coverage ]
It is spring again. Love is in the air and on the stage at Calvin College. The Calvin Theatre Company opened their final production of the season last night with “Emma.” Show times are 8 p.m., April 3-5 and April 10-12 in the Gezon Auditorium.
This adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel, and this production in particular, is very much a storytelling event. The publicity for this show has indicated that “Emma” is told through Jane Austen’s eyes. On the lovely posters around campus, audiences have already observed an image of Emma inside the famous Jane Austen silhouette. When they enter the theatre this weekend, audience members will immediately see the silhouette on an elegant curtain. As the play opens, a spotlight first illuminates the musician (Becky Carpenter), who acts in the chorus as the voice of Jane Austen. Then a spot lights Emma (Tammy Goodrich) behind the silhouette, and she enters the playing space through split curtains. The production staff has done a wonderful job of introducing audiences to the style and themes of the show.
But one needn’t speculate that, as title character, Emma dominates the play. On the contrary, director Stephanie Sandberg establishes the role of the ensemble from the beginning. The ensemble is composed of eight actors and the musician who elegantly perform the community of Highbury, England.
The play starts at Emma’s beloved governess, Miss Taylor’s (Beth Gunnink), wedding to Mr. Weston (Neal DeRoo). There we also meet the vicar, Mr. Elton (David Ellens), Emma’s health-conscious father, Mr. Woodhouse (Michael Hutchins) and her long-time friend Mr. Knightley (Brian Farish). The actors tell the story and celebrate together.
As the story progresses, we meet Miss Harriet Smith (Elizabeth Waid), who Emma makes her protणgण and make a match for Mr. Elton. Then enter Miss Jane Fairfax (Meredith Bytwerk), Emma’s nemesis, and soon after Mr. Frank Churchill (played also by Neal DeRoo) with whom Emma is eager to become acquainted. Here the plot twits begin as subtlety, secrets and suppositions mask reality. After a tumultuous failure at grafting Mr. Elton’s affections onto Harriet, he introduces his wife, Mrs. Elton (Beth Gunnink’s second role) and Emma vows she is through with affairs of love. I’ll refrain from divulging much more in a complete synopsis, but accept my promise that this is not the end of Jane Austen’s romantic comedy.
Interestingly, “Emma” is the only story Jane Austen wrote which takes place entirely in one town, making it a story full of community participation. All of the actors participate as chorus members as well as individual characters and they often address the audience directly. They engage the audience and require their participation in the storytelling.
One particularly notable character, Mrs. Bates, is actually portrayed by eight or three or one of the cast members at various times. Mrs. Bates is difficult to describe in words, as her excitability must be observed. Suffice it to say that the actors demonstrate ensemble commitment to Mrs. Bates’s long-winded, high-pitched enthusiasm. Donning red bonnets, they surround Emma, chattering about all news and bragging on about her niece, who happens to be Jane Fairfax.
The ensemble scenes are doubtlessly the most interesting. There are few large set pieces and together the actors create a sculpture gallery, a horse-drawn carriage, a canopy bed and a forest. They also serve as Emma’s conscience, discussing social events or nightmarishly showing her the wrong of her ways. The cast also seized the opportunity to create natural sound on stage instead of the use of sound effects. They provide the soundtrack to a romantic forest encounter most successfully.
The ensemble scenes are a showcase for the costumes. It is visually stunning to see designer Heather Brown’s colorful costumes on stage together in a scene like the sculpture gallery.
Creating the physical world of a play is scenic designer David Leugs’s job. The floor of the stage is a revolving turn table with a smaller, raked turn table on top. The turn tables can move together or in opposite directions, making charming stage pictures and evoking in the audience the same dizzy feeling the characters in love must be experiencing.
From the ceiling hang several sheer curtains, which in addition to being pretty to look at, are tremendously communicative of Highbury values and the play’s themes. Highbury society revolves around appearances and few characters ever show their true motivation. It is a testimony to good theatre production when the discussion of one aspect blends into the discussion of another, and so it is with Leugs’s design and Sandberg’s direction. His design and her movement are delightfully integrated, demonstrating their success at creating the world of the play. And the actors masterfully move through the space, manipulating the curtains with ease and grace.
When Professor Stephanie Sandberg visited the Calvin Theatre Company to present her directorial concept, she said, “My goal is to make everyone fall in love.” The production staff, crew and cast of “Emma” have succeeded in creating an evening of theatre that is sure to capture our imaginations and awake springtime delight in all of us.
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