Playing at Morley College Drama Studio on Friday 24 October, Jane Eyre Convention is a play that follows the first ever live re-enactment of Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre in a community hall somewhere in West Norwood.
Theatre Caddis, Double Edinburgh Fringe First winners, ask the following questions: Why are there so many adaptations of this tale? Who do they leave out? Can this story of survival still be a framework for healing?
The play sees diverse, opinionated and quarrelsome aficionados gather to squabble over lines, scenes and interpretations. The audience witnesses the characters on their own journeys of discovery and transformation, and the performers are dialled in to how we respond.
According to writer and co-director Eleanor Zeal, their performances are “less about presenting a fixed story and more about offering an invitation- an open space that shifts slightly with each audience, as we respond to their energy and reactions in the moment.”
In the play, themes of loss, abandonment, bullying and abuse jostle with poverty and heartbreak, but hope and perseverance remain stubbornly at the centre.
Four of the five members of the cast and crew are dramatherapists, practitioners of a form of psychological therapy that uses drama, movement, and story-making to work through feelings and explore issues that a client might have. This has had a large impact on how the company developed the piece. Zeal describes how their day jobs demand “a deep level of empathy, and that inevitably shapes how we develop characters and collaborate as a company. In therapy, we use metaphor and character to help clients make sense of their experiences, and the play mirrors this process.”
We asked about what drew Zeal to set the play in South London, which is not often compared to the grounds of Thornfield Hall:
“It just felt right to keep it local. West Norwood deserves its moment in the spotlight, and there’s something really compelling about bringing the drama home to the spaces and people we know. The juxtaposition of the wild, open moors of Yorkshire with the community halls of South London creates an interesting contrast.”
“Performing at the Lambeth Fringe also felt like a natural fit, it’s a celebration of the creative energy that thrives here, and we’re excited to be part of that.”
The play is co-directed by Eleanor Zeal and Danielle Arkwright, and is performed by Eleanor Zeal, Ben Everett Riley, Whitley Laurice Senior, and Rachel Overd.
Jane Eyre Convention can be seen on Friday 24th October at 8pm. The venue is Morley College Drama Studio, 61 Westminster Bridge Road London SE1 7HT. Tickets £16, £14 Concs. Find more details about the Lambeth Fringe here.
