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| SENSE AND SENSIBILITY Dallas Theater Center Kalita Humphreys Theater |
The Travelling Toe and 2 other Jan Austen fans, traveled east to Dallas for the Sunday matinee performance of "Sense and Sensibility" at the Kalita Humphreys Theater.
As none of the 3 of us had been to this theater previously, we allotted extra time to find it and was eternally glad we had done so as when we found Turtle Creek Blvd it had lanes and roads blocked due to some sort of marathon race being held in the area. We sought assistance from the local constabulary on duty that the cross points but they were not familiar with the location of the theater. Therefore we drove in circles for some time until we finally found someone to assist us. We attempted to contact the box office staff for assistance but their line was closed and not taking calls...so no help there. It would have been helpful if the theater had notified patrons by email of the street closures and the best routes to arrive at the theater but that did not happen. Due to the street issues and audience members on the run to arrive at the theater, the opening "curtain" was delayed by 20 or so minutes.
Finally, the lights dimmed and harpsichord music filled the hall and actors in period costume began to set the stage. Then,we were transported back to the early 1800's English countryside.
If you do not know the story line of Jane Austen's story of love lost, love found and a lot of angst in between, then The Travelling Toe must assume you do not have a taste for English classic literature or have been living under a rock.
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| JANE AUSTEN |
The story centers on the lives and loves of the 2 older Dashwood sisters, Elinor and Marianne. Their father has recently passed away and they along with their mother and younger sister, Margaret, must leave their home and move to a small cottage in the country. This is because of archaic English law that a man must inherit property so now the home, money and all things Dashwood belong to their half-brother John Dashwood and his wife (hiss-boo).
In the mean time, Elinor has a hankering for a young man, Edward Ferrars, who is secretly pledged to another young lady. Marianne meets and falls madly in love with the neighborhood bad boy John Willoughby. Alas he must marry for money as he has none. so Marianne is out as a suitable mate. But will stoic Colonel Brandon who loves Marianne from afar be able to save her from scandal? Does true love conquer all?
Well, dear readers, you will just have to read the book, rent the DVD of the movie, or see the play at Kalita Humphreys Theater in Dallas.
A couple of side notes regarding the theater, tote your own bottle of water in as they do charge $3.00 per bottle and if you happen to only have a $20.00 bill you will be required to purchase 2 bottles - well that was our experience. Also the sound system is not the greatest so be prepared for that
On the positive side the actors did a marvelous job of their roles and maintained their British accents throughout the performance. This production is an accomplished representation of the fairly recent movie with Emma Thompson and of course Jane's book. The period costumes were spot on target. Kudos to the costume and hair designers. The stage setting was very well done, often using the actors to move pieces of furniture in and out to set the next scene. One very cleaver bit was how they replicated a coach ride...the audience loved it. The director made inventive use of the aisles and balconies for the "gossips" who keep the story going.
We three weary travelers agreed that the performance was very much enjoyed but the price per ticket of $50.00 was a bit much for this aging venue.
Disclaimer: The Travelling Toe is not a professional theater critic and any opinions expressed are for entertainment purposed only.
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