Madwoman in the Attic Gets a Makeover at Westmont

Giving a new twist to the classic story often studied in high school English class, Westmont College’s production of Charlotte Bront»’s Jane Eyre promises passion and intrigues enough to fascinate even the most unfocused students.

This dramatic adaptation, which was written by Polly Teale, allows viewers a more in-depth look at Jane Eyre’s inner struggles as she fights to control her natural spirits and desire for freedom in accordance with the rigid expectations of women in her society. Teale is already well known for her earlier theatrical adaptations of other classic novels including Anna Karenina and War and Peace. Teale was described by London’s Guardian as having “single-handedly reinvented the page-to-stage genre as inspired by rather than handcuffed to the original novels,” and her inspiration certainly shows in this reworking of Jane Eyre.

For the Westmont Theatre Arts Department, Jane Eyre continues an established tradition of producing contemporary theatrical adaptations of classic novels. When first performed by the theater company Shared Experience in 1997, Teale’s version was acclaimed for its insight not only into the characters of the novel, but into Bront» as well.