Author: mlj012

By Carolyn Williams

Staff Writer

“It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.” So begins Jane Austen’s best-loved novel, “Pride and Prejudice,” adapted for the stage and performed here at the University this homecoming weekend. For those little acquainted with the plot, here’s a brief overview.

Elizabeth Bennet is the quick-witted second of five sisters living in Regency, England. Her father’s estate is entailed away from his female descendants, who are, as such, faced with the daunting task of marrying well with “little but our charms to recommend us.” When a wealthy young gentleman moves into town, their incorrigible mother decides that one of them must marry him. This man, the amiable Mr. Bingley, brings along his best friend, the seemingly arrogant and slightly mysterious Mr. Darcy. While Bingley takes a keen interest in the eldest Miss Bennet, Jane, who happily returns his affections, Darcy quickly earns the disapproval of Elizabeth. Their relationship, however, soon develops in divergent directions, and both find themselves questioning whether their initial impressions of the other were perhaps mistaken after all. Fittingly, the original working title for the novel was “First Impressions,” and Austen’s novel of manners is close to the hearts of those who have read the original text, or who have seen any of the many film versions.

“It’s a fairly faithful rendition of the beloved classic which channels the BBC ‘Pride and Prejudice’ successfully and enjoyably,” Kate Wilsterman ’14 said of the adaptation.

Director Anjalee Hutchinson’s interpretation of the novel is enhanced by a beautiful set, numerous carefully choreographed dance sequences and diligently maintained British accents. The book’s narrative style is simulated by the Bennet sisters addressing the audience, giving their “interpretation” of background information, thereby including necessary details which would otherwise be lost in translation between the mediums of text and stage.

Starring as our lovers are theatre and psychology major Katharina Schmidt ’13, as Elizabeth, and theatre major Banner White ’14 as Darcy. Aside from reading the novel, the two prepared for the parts by utilizing Chekhov-based styles of method acting, which rely heavily on physicality and expression, and actually were forced to stay apart from each other outside of rehearsal for much of the process of putting the play together.

“When we weren’t allowed to talk to each other, we wrote letters to each other as Elizabeth and Darcy, and snuck them to each other in our classes, which was a lot of fun,” White said.

As to the magnitude of playing one of English literature’s favorite pairs of lovers, Schmidt said, “Of course it was intimidating. The toughest part about playing these characters was that everyone knows them. It’s a lot of pressure to try to do justice to Austen.” To get into character as Darcy, White watched numerous romantic comedies, and said he didn’t quite feel the full weight of the role immediately.

“I don’t know if it added or took away from the process that we both found a lot of ourselves in our characters. The magnitude of the role in English-speaking culture didn’t really hit me until later. I rolled with it, but to be compared to actors such as Colin Firth and Laurence Olivier is intense.”

Aside from the superb leads, whose onstage chemistry will please all Elizabeth and Darcy fans, the play is really made excellent with the help of the supporting leads, notably Eve Carlson ’12, for her dead-on interpretation of the most mortifying mother of all time, Mrs. Bennet; Emily Hooper ’14 as the haughty and cruel Caroline Bingley; Molly Davis ’14 as the irrepressible Lydia Bennet; and Matt Dranzik ’13 as the always affable Mr. Bingley.

This interpretation of “Pride and Prejudice” is tastefully done, with a fresh cast, but at the end of the day it’s the same great story we all love, as good the first time as the 20th.

“The play was extremely well done, very well acted, I highly recommend seeing it,” Emily Conners ’14 said.

Some of the play’s themes are relevant to the University’s current environment, as well as the modern world at large. “I think an overarching goal of our production is to remember what it’s like to have romance. As we’ve been frequently reminded thanks to the campus climate report, Bucknell is more of a “hook-up culture” than not, and I want to see romance brought back. That’s part of what makes this so fun, reviving a completely different world. I think what we hope to leave everyone who sees the play with a longing for the romance and flirtation which is so prevalent in Jane Austen’s work,” Dranzik said.

“Pride and Prejudice” will be performed October 21-24. Performances are at 8 p.m. in Harvey M. Powers Theatre on Friday, Saturday and Monday, wiht a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students, seniors (over 62) and youths (under 18).

By: Saba Davis

Contributing Writer

Ever heard of the Brawley Fund?  No, it’s not the University’s answer to Fight Club.  The Brawley Fund was established by E.M. Brawley, who graduated in 1875 as the University’s first African-American student.  He created the fund to provide monetary support to underrepresented students for various research and internship opportunities.

This past summer, theatre major and Brawley Fund recipient Diego M. Chiri ’12 traveled to Scotland to film a documentary that captured the making of the play “The American Family.” The film was a collaborative project between the University and Western Washington University students.  The play  included many of the performers’ personal stories, such as coming out to parents, dealing with the effects of divorce, going to a grandfather’s funeral, or personal traumas from childhood.

What is particularly interesting about Chiri’s experience is that he witnessed an experimental method of theatre production called “devising.”  His documentary gives some insight into “devising” and its application, Chiri said. The “devising” technique promotes equality so producers and directors don’t rely on the previously-established hierarchy of writers, he said.

“There is no director at first, just performers exploring time and exploring space … they become the writers. The text is not the most important thing; instead we start with a concept, a question or a desire.”  Performers were trained by the renowned Andy Paris, one of the founding members of the Tectonic Theatre, a company that professionally practices the application of devising theatre techniques in the United States.

Chiri explained the special importance of the documentary for his own education by saying, “When I was told that I was going to be filming [the documentary], I didn’t want it to be just about the experience of just going to Scotland, or just footage from the play. I wanted it to have an educational purpose— in order to understand ‘The American Family’ as a play, you first need to understand how devising works as a theatre technique.” Chiri said that his documentary is about the making of a play, but there are two aspects that are especially important: the “theory of devising” and “putting the devising technique into practice, which is the play itself.” When asked if he had any advice for aspiring students, he said, “If you’re interested in theatre or filmmaking, try this technique.”

By Heather Hennigan

Writer

No, University students didn’t meet the baby elephant with the huge ears. What they did do was even better, believe it or not. On Sept. 24, over 40 students hopped onto a bus bound for Brooklyn to visit a temporary Mecca for the arts in New York–-the 15th annual DUMBO Arts Festival. The Presidential Arts Initiative and the Griot Institute for Africana Studies sponsored this one-day event.

DUMBO featured 100 studios, 50 galleries and stages, and over 500 artists from a variety of disciplines, encompassing art from local, national and international communities. Musicians, painters, poets, performance artists and dancers filled the streets and created an atmosphere that was nothing short of spectacular.

“Everyone was involved in everything that was going on; the audience was just as engaged as the performers were,” Elyas Harris ’13 said. “I’d love to see something like this brought to the Bucknell campus.”

The Festival also featured a gallery talk and exhibit, “Invisible,” by art and art history professor and artist Tulu Bayar.

“[The festival had] cutting-edge multi-disciplinary and interdisciplinary works. The whole neighborhood was turned into a creative lab. Besides the galleries in the area, various artwork was displayed in elevators of buildings, on and under the bridge, in dumpster trucks converted into display units, in the park and on the sky,” Bayar said.

“[My exhibition] received very positive feedback from hundreds of festival attendees and gave me the assurance that ‘Invisible’ was a great beginning for a new direction in my work. It was worth all the hard work, risk-taking and experimentation. I would like to thank every Bucknellian for their invaluable support. I am especially grateful to Carmen Gillespie, who organized the ‘Bucknell in Brooklyn’ bus trip. Her enthusiasm, wisdom, imagination and organizational skills are amazing. I am a proud Bucknellian,” Bayar said.

For more information on the DUMBO Arts Festival, visit dumboartsfestival.com.

Visit bucknell.edu/x71757.xml for “The Muse,” a new weekly arts overview, to stay updated on arts happenings on campus.