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Jane Eyre |
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Author: Music and Lyrics by Paul Gordon;
Book and Additional Lyrics by John Caird
Based on the Novel by Charlotte Bronte
Reviewer: Carolyn Albert and Joanna Lee for Theatre Reviews
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Sparks fly from the stage of the Brooks Atkinson Theatre whenever JAMES BARBOUR as Edward Fairfax Rochester enters and fixes his dark stare upon Jane Eyre, the sympathetic heroine of Charlotte Bronte's 1848 novel, appealingly portrayed by MARLA SHAFFEL. Although a great deal of story is covered in this musical adaptation, when Barbour and Shaffel are onstage together, the moments are breathtaking.
  
Jane, orphaned from birth, has been brought up in a loveless home by her Aunt Reed (GINA FERRALL) who unfairly favors her spoiled son, John (LEE ZARRETT). A fight between the children causes Aunt Reed to place Jane in Lowood, a charity boarding school as grim and foreboding as any orphanage in Dickens' novels. Jane's only friend there is Helen Burns, a child whose emaciated tubercular body cannot fight the typhus that kills many of the half-starved residents of Lowood.
Jane survives to becomes a teacher herself at Lowood, but by age nineteen longs to find her place in the outside world and applies for a position as Governess at Thornfield Hall to teach a little girl, Adele. For three months, she believes the housekeeper, Mrs. Fairfax, to be the owner of the estate, until she meets the mysterious master of Thornfield Hall, Edward Rochester, a brooding man in his late thirties.
He becomes fascinated by her outspoken boldness. Rapport develops between them almost immediately, but Jane cannot even hope that the wealthy and landed gentleman would have feelings for her, a plain-looking girl, as all are quick to remind her.
The two and three-quarter hour show has a great deal that is excellent. Choices made by the creative team has resulted in a show with moments of spellbinding passion as stirring to the emotions as the original Charlotte Bronte novel has been to generations of young readers.
The tone set is one of great solemnity. For our ears, music by PAUL GORDON is a blend of modern atonality and operatic recitative sprinkled with brief melodic phrases. While the music fails to achieve the dramatic exaltation of splendid melody, the strong lines do display the cast's vocal abilities. Gordon's lyrics are mostly good, but often betray the false rhymes ("dreaming" with "meaning," for example) of rock musicians. For our eyes, the somber tones are in elusive shadows and silhouettes, nearly all black, white, and grays. Direction by JOHN CAIRD & SCOTT SCHWARTZ emphasizes the continuing flow of time and events to give the musical a rhythm to compensate for any lack of choreography. Scenic design by JOHN NAPIER nearly always forsakes scenes and flats for a rotating turntable that brings only what is needed out of the austere darkness. Lighting design by JULES FISHER & PEGGY EISENHAUER conjures up gothic windows and perilous lightning to beguile or frighten, with projections by the set and lighting designers along with LISA PODGUR CUSCUNA. ANDREANE NEOFITOU's costumes define the characters.
The framework of the play is narrated by Shaffel as the adult Jane. Her intelligent expressive face conveys a complexity of emotions and her strong alto voice is pleasant to hear. Shaffel is a credible Victorian heroine of wit and sensibility as well as of valor and virtue. The musical highlight of the show is early in Act II with Jane's soliloquy, "Painting Her Portrait," in which she compares her appearance with the glamour of her rival.
Barbour is an Edward Rochester that producers dream of. Physically tall and attractive, Barbour has a melodic baritone voice that caresses each note before driving it out vigorously to enchant the listener's ears. His solos and a gorgeous duet with Ms. Shaffel are the warm musical heart of the show (vocal arrangements by the excellent musical director, STEVEN TYLER.)
A comic persona has been written for the housekeeper of Thornfield Hall. MARY STOUT as Mrs. Fairfax fills the role with restrained precision, gracing the somber musical with some lightness while never ruining the otherwise dusky mood.
ELIZABETH DeGRAZIA displays a gorgeous coloratura soprano as the snobby Blanche Ingram, Jane's rival for Mr. Rochester's affections. Her duet with Jane, "In the Light of the Virgin Morning," was beautifully done. ANDREA BOWEN is a sweet Adele, keeping the child from being overly cute or cloying. BILL NOLTE is effective as Mason.
Not all choices enhanced the show. As young Jane Eyre, LISA MUSSER is given little to do or sing except look and sound petulant. She doesn't resemble the grown up Jane in appearance. The casting of an adult woman, JAYNE PATTERSON, to play the child, Helen Burns, unbalances what was meant to be a sweet friendship between two very unloved children at the harsh orphanage run by the cruel Mr. Brocklehurst (DON RICHARD).
Where most musicals lately have suffered from financial attrition by having their choruses pared down, "Jane Eyre" sports more choral support than often seemed necessary. Six shadowy figures sometimes become Jane's alter-egos, a device that adds little and is sometimes confusing - especially when Jane herself is sometimes inside the story and sometimes stands to the side, narrating. This is at first poignant, as the elder Jane appears to be a guardian angel watching over her younger self.
The anticipated fire scene in which Thornfield Hall burns nearly to the ground is brief, flat, and disappointing, nor do we get to see the symbolic destruction of the family's majestic chestnut tree. MARGUERITE MacINTIRE as Bertha looks more like an unkempt schoolgirl wearing a veil than a woman prone to violent psychotic episodes. Her sole moment of credibility was a brief interchange of sympathy when Jane returns Bertha's doll to her.
The best scenes are when the selfishness and isolation that surround the world of Jane Eyre are pierced by a bit of kindness or a gentle word. The essence of the adaptation is not its grand scale but in the small moments of human contact. Wherever the creative team that turned this beloved novel into a musical recognized and honored that essence, "Jane Eyre - the musical" is most successful in touching the hearts of its viewers.
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Produced by Annette Niemtzow, Janet Robinson, Pamela Koslow, and Margaret McFeeley Golden in association with Jennifer Manocherian and Carolyn Kim McCarthy.
CAST:
Theater: Brooks Atkinson Theatre, 256 West 47th Street.
Schedule: Opening: Sunday, December 10th, 2000. Plays Tuesday through Saturday at 8:00 p.m.; matinees: Wednesday and Saturday at 2:00 p.m., Sunday at 3:00 p.m.
Tickets: $50.00-$86.00. At box office or via TicketMaster
at (212) 307-4100.
More information at http://www.janeeyreonbroadway.com
Audience: Teenagers on up.
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