Jane Eyre 1949 with Mary Sinclair and Charleton Heston

Imdb lists Mary Malone as playing Jane Eyre, however, the credits from the production list Sinclair. I have no explaination for this. Once again, Thisbeciel has some screencaps for us, and another video clip from the 1957 Jane Eyre with Joan Elam and Patrick McNee. This production is in most respects identical to the 1952 version with Katherine Bard and Kevin McCarthy. The sets are the very same sets, the story has many of the same changes, and even some of the camera angles and direction are identical. There are a few differences, and some of them are quite interesting while others are very silly indeed. So, let's get started. Here are a few selections from the screencaps:

There's no Hay Lane scene. Mrs. Fairfax calls Jane to meet the master. He makes shadow puppets for her- actually, for a few moments this is all we see of Rochester while Mrs. Fairfax keeps repeating how strange he is.


Rochester meets up with Jane and Adele in the garden with Bertha looking on.


I don't know what it is about these second interviews... this is the 'look at my leg, Jane' shot which also appears in the 1952 version. Then, as in the 1952 version, Bertha sets his chair on fire.

Rochester roughs Jane up to keep her quiet about the fire. This is the 'you're depressed' scene moved into the garden.
Jane decides to leave, then Rochester proposes.
Mr. Mason, and Briggs decide to visit Grace Poole.
Miss Eyre! Pst! Pst! Miss Eyre! Oh, so that strange woman watching the wedding was his wife all along!
We think this is a first- Bertha lunges at Jane.

Rochester begs Jane to stay, then throws himself on the stairs (looks a little like he has fallen asleep on the stairs with his security blanket. Oh, the depth of symbolism in this production is very great indeed).

And you know how the rest goes. This production starred Mary Sinclair as Jane Eyre, Charlton Heston as Mr Rochester. And also starred Viola Roache, Ethel Everett,Joan Wetmore. It was adapted by Sumner Locke-Elliot, produced by Worthington Miner, and directed by Franklin Schaffner.

Bronte News

Clare Boyland, author of Emma Brown- a novel based on Charlotte Bronte's Emma- has died of cancer.

This might explain a few things about the education system in Canada, and the lack of Bronte-appreciation:

The first area of expertise was very specific: theatre lighting. While this in itself did not seem very strange to me, the fact that he was teaching me English literature did. It turns out, the reason that he was teaching outside his element is because he doesn't actually have an element anymore: Apparently there have been many recent advancements in the area of lighting technology, and as a result my professor's knowledge and skill have become completely obsolete. That's right, he has joined the ranks of horse-drawn carriages, video cassettes, and cell phones with no camera feature! And just as jamming a cassette into a DVD player because you're too cheap to update your technology doesn't work, this man was not successful in his English-teaching endeavor. We would be talking about 19th Century literature, and then he would suddenly go off on some abstract tangent and start talking about the weather (that's an actual example, I didn't just make it up). One time he played a Rolling Stones song during a lecture because he claimed it had enormous relevance to what we were doing, although he never did manage to adequately explain the connection between rock music and Jane Eyre.

Well, actually there is a rock band called 'Jane Eyre' but somehow I don't think that's what he was getting at... Hmn. This could be why some of my professors are so fond of tangents... I had a philosophy teacher for one of my early literature courses. "Just read the damn thing! [Paradise Lost]" and "this isn't a satanic mass, you know! Honest!" and "Grendel eats people because Grendel is Grendel!" (fabulous bit of insight there), and lastly he demanded that all 130 of us 'howl' at him; we did not. The poor man. He was teaching English lit from Caedmon to the Enlightenment when he violently detested anything written before the 20th century and... wasn't an English professor.

Polly Teale's Jane Eyre is reviewed again here. I haven't seen the production but the reviews are having the effect of disappointing me. This one is a little strange. Why does the critic not seem concerned that an actor is playing Pilot? And that this actor also plays Mr Brocklehurst? I had heard, in other reviews that the doubling is actually Pilot and St.John Rivers. The production is hailed as 'one of the most searching stage adaptations' the critic has ever seen. Well, I guess so... And here's another review. It sounds a bit like they are taking the approach that Jane is neurotic from repressing her emotions- which of course she does a lot in the novel...

Myriam Acharki’s Bertha occasionally emerges to tug at the skirts or to wrap herself round the body of Monica Dolan’s Jane, but mostly she’s stuck in her jagged eyrie, writhing and wailing, screeching and banging at moments of special emotion. But this doesn’t mean that Dolan herself must become totally mask-like when her innards are smouldering in the presence of James Clyde’s wild, raffish Rochester. Her cheeks twitch, her eyes pucker and squint, her hands nervously scratch at her face or knead each other. Again and again you see the stress of a woman who has, in effect, locked fierce and fiery passions in her personal attic to survive.
Does Teale somewhat labour the point? Well, there were moments of such emotional pressure that both Bertha and Jane looked as if they themselves might go into labour. But that would be a serious objection only if the result were to sully or distort the narrative. As it is, the Shared Experience style — pacy, informal, inventive, physically expressive — keeps you gripped by what’s still Jane Eyre.

The American premiere of Michael Berkeley's opera 'Jane Eyre' for this summer.

It seems that every time Jane Eyre: The Musical is produced it is a 'premiere' this time, the Baltimore-Area premiere!

The South African production of Wuthering Heights is reviewed here.

Wuthering Heights is also rather strangely drawn into a religious debate over The Da Vinci Code, of all things. The argument boils down to this: that the idea of unbounded secular love was once (in the 12th century) a greater threat to Christianity than the idea that Christ was not divine, and that 'today, few Christians will be found violently protesting the idea of secular love, even of the passionate, all-consuming, defiant (of heaven or hell) variety, although many of them will still be found violently protesting that kind of love between people of the same sex.' [...] 'But Christianity and “Wuthering Heights” are no longer oil and water, vampire and crucifix. They are, well, lovers.'

Jane Eyre 1957 With Joan Elam and Patrick McNee

We're all in for a treat today! Thisbeciel has found the 1957 Jane Eyre with Joan Elam as Jane Eyre and Patrick McNee as Mr Rochester, and it is really very 'interesting' and... interesting. Yes, I think interesting or 'scary' might describe this well if not just plain funny. Here are a few selected screencaps:

Our plain heroine arrives at Thornfield and hears a terrible scream. ha! Crazy wind you have here, Mrs. Fairfax! Sometime later Mr Rochester gets drunk and frisky.

Missing his Boy Scout days, he built a little campfire on his bed then fell asleep.

And Jane is so devastated here, being preferred to Blanche at the party and all- oh, and she is so sad about being plain.
Mr Mason stumbles down with a knife but it's okay, absolutely nothing is going on.

I know how you all must be anxious to see this version. Thankfully Thisbeciel also uploaded a clip from the scary little second interview (when Rochester gets drunk and frisky).

A look at the new Lowood

This article from Yorkshire Today has very very little news about the new BBC production of Jane Eyre, but we do have one new location and another image to share. This is an image of The Riding House at Bolsover Castle, serving as the interior of Lowood School. We also have one new cast member to add: Hester Rodgers will play Helen Burns.

Now the BBC has lined up another all-star cast to take the gothic romance to the next generation.Part of the four-part drama, to be screened on BBC-1 in the autumn, has been shot in north Derbyshire.The crew were at Bolsover Castle, near Chesterfield, where they transformed the Riding House into the interior of Lowood School, complete with false floor and dressed with furniture and wall hangings from the period.The filming at Bolsover Castle features the young Jane's life at Lowood School.Ten-year-old Georgie Henley, of Ilkley, who recently starred in the Christmas blockbuster The Chronicles of Narnia, plays young Jane and Hester Rodgers her best friend Helen Burns.Children from the Ripley Academy in Derbyshire play other Lowood pupils.

The production will be filming in Derbyshire until June.

Feb. 16th, 1850, writing to one of her friends, Charlotte Bronte wrote:

'A few days since, a little incident happened which curiously touched me. Papa put into my hands a little packet of letters and papers, telling me that they were mamma's, and that I might read them. I did read them, in a frame of mind I cannot describe. The papers were yellow with time, all having been written before I was born. It was strange now to peruse, for the first time, the records of a mind whence my own sprang; and most strange, and at once sad and sweet, to find that mind of a truly fine, pure, and elevated order. They were written to papa before they were married. There is a rectitude, a refinement, a constancy, a modesty, a sense, a gentleness about them indescribable. I wish she had lived, and that I had known her.'

Here is one of them:

TO REV. PATRICK BRONTE, A.B. HARTSHEAD.
'Wood House GROVE, September 18, 1812.

'How readily do I comply with my dear Mr. B's request! You see, you have only to express your wishes and as far as my power extends I hesitate not to fulfil them. My heart tells me that it will always be my pride and pleasure to contribute to your happiness, nor do I fear that this will ever be inconsistent with my duty as a Christian. My esteem for you and my confidence in you is so great, that I firmly believe you will never exact anything from me which I could not conscientiously perform. I shall in future look to you for assistance and instruction whenever I may need them, and hope you will never withhold from me any advice or caution you may see necessary.
'For some years I have been perfectly my own mistress, subject to no control whatever-- so far from it, that my sisters who are many years older than myself, and even my dear mother, used to consult me in every case of importance, and scarcely ever doubted the propriety of my opinions and actions. Perhaps you will be ready to accuse me of vanity in mentioning this, but you must consider that I do not boast of it, I have many times felt it a disadvantage; and although, I thank God, it never led me into error, yet in circumstances of perplexity and doubt, I have deeply felt the want of a guide and instructor.
'At such times I have seen and felt the necessity of supernatural aid, and by fervent applications to the throne of grace I have experienced that my heavenly Father is able and willing to supply the place of every earthly friend. I shall now no longer feel this want, this sense of helpless weakness, for I believe a kind Providence has intended that I shall find in you ever earthly friend united; nor do I fear to trust myself under your protection, or shrink from your control. It is pleasant to be subject to those we love, especially when they never exert their authority but for the good of the subject. How few would write in this way! But I do not fear that you will make a bad use of it. You tell me to write my thoughts, and thus as they occur I freely let my pen run away with them.
'Sat. Morn. -- I do not know whether you dare show your face here again or not after the blunder you have committed. When we got to the house on Thursday evening, even before we were within doors, we found that Mr. and Mrs. Bedford had been there, and that they had requested you to mention their intention of coming-- a single hint of which you never gave! Poor I too came in for a share in the had words which were bestowed upon you, for they all agreed that I was the cause of it. Mr. Fennell said you were certainly mazed, and talked of sending you to York, etc. And even I begin to think that this, together with the note, bears some marks of insanity! However, I shall suspend my judgement until I hear what excuse you can make for yourself, I suppose you will be quite ready to make one of some kind or another.
'Yesterday I performed a difficult and yet pleasing task in writing to my sisters. I thought I never should accomplish the end for which the letter was designed; but after a good deal of perambulation I gave them to understand the nature of my engagement with you, with the motives and inducements which led me to form such an engagement, and that in consequence of it I should not see them again so soon as I had intended. I concluded by expressing a hope that they would not be less pleased with the information than wew my friends here. I think they will not suspect me to have made a wrong step, their partiality for me is so great. And their affection for me will lead them to rejoice in my welfare, even though it should diminish somewhat of their own. I shall think the time tedious till I hear from you, and must beg you will write as soon as possible. Pardon me, my dear friend, if I again caution you against giving way to a weakness of which I have heard you complain. When you find your heart oppressed and your thoughts too much engrossed by one subject, let prayer be your refuge-- this you no doubt know by experience to be a sure remedy, and a relief from every care and error. Oh, that we had more of the spirit in prayer! I feel that I need it much.
'Breakfast time is near, I must bid you farewell for the time, but rest assured you will always share in the prayers and heart of your own
MARIA.
'Mr. Fennell has crossed my letter to my sisters. With his usual goodness he has supplied my deficiencies and spoken of me in terms of commendation of which I wish I were more worthy. Your character he has likewise displayed in the most favourable light; and I am sure they will not fail to love and esteem you though unknown.
'All here unite in kind regards. Adieu.'

Tons of Bronte News

It is all over the place. To start with, there is this fascinating article on mother-daughter psychology, Sins of the Mother, which references the Brontes as well as briefly mentioning Jane Austen and... 'chick lit':

The difficulties of falling in love, and falling out of love, can be similarly uncomfortable for daughters to hear about: "I tried to tell my daughter how it felt when someone important fell out of love with me. She was sympathetic, but I think she felt it wasn't something that a mother should be sharing. Daughters want parents to be coping and to be bulwarks against the world rather than people who will fall apart when something happens."
On the other hand, in Kirkman's study there was a woman who blamed her teenage promiscuity on the fact that her mother did not talk to her about sex or relationships and failed to educate her "that you don't just throw yourself into a sexual relationship without thinking of the consequences".
In the world of classic "chick lit" - Jane Austen, the Brontes, even the light-hearted Regency romances of Georgette Heyer - it has always been the task of the mother to guide a daughter in the proprieties and protect her from sexual predations. Often in these authors' stories the mother is absent or inadequate (a contrivance to give their heroines greater trials and greater freedoms), but even then, she symbolises protection or restraint. In her book, Beyond the Myths: Mother-Daughter Relationships in Psychology, History, Literature and Everyday Life, Sydney researcher and psychologist Shelley Phillips points out that when Rochester begs Jane Eyre to be his mistress, it is the ghost of her long-dead mother who tells her to flee temptation and leave Rochester and Thornfield.

Jane Eyre is opening today in London. The London production is Polly Teale's adaptation. From the trailer, provided by siansaska, I'd say it ought to be titled 'Bertha Mason' rather than 'Jane Eyre'. At least that's the impression I get from the captions and the images.

Wuthering Heights (by 'Emily Brente') is opening today in Muizenberg South Africa: Adapted for the stage by Charles Vance, opens at the Masque Theatre, Muizenberg, tomorrow. As Wuthering Heights is a school setwork and special rates are offered for block bookings. Tickets: R45 evenings; R35 matinees (Masque Theatre Club members get R5 discount). To book call 021-788-1898.

A young woman, Susan Holle, is lauded today for overcoming prejudice and attaining her goals despite her cerebral palsy. She has always been quite capable, contrary to what the education system may have thought, and one example of her capability sited here is her childhood voracious reading habits:

When she started school as a child, her parents said, they had to have her tested to prove she should be placed in mainstream classes rather than in the school's special education program. Holle always has been a voracious reader, her sister said. She was reading Jane Eyre in elementary school and always loved Shakespeare.

There is a brief article here about Sophie Worsley who will be playing Adele in Jane Eyre playing at the Blackpool Grand Theatre. Although...

Sophie is currently combining her studies with twice weekly rehearsals for the Premier Theatre Company production of Jane Eyre, as the spoilt daughter of James Rochester.

Jane Eyre: The Musical is playing Washington State at Edmonds Homeschool Resource Center, 7 p.m. May 18 through 20, 2 p.m. May 20 and 21, $4. 23200 100th Ave. W., Edmonds; 425-670-7840.

The India Times has a thorough travel guide article to Bronte Country.

Wuthering Heights is opening at the Crewe Lyceum next week. This articles has interiews with the actress playing Catherine Earnshaw. Wuthering Heights is playing from Monday, May 15-Saturday, May 20 call 01270 537 333. Tickets from £7.50-15.50.

Image is of Sophie Worsley.

Michelle Williams will star in Angela Workman's biopic: 'Bronte' ?

Where once we heard for several months that Lynn Collins would be playing Charlotte Bronte, now another source is claiming Michelle Williams will be playing CB, the 'title character' in 'Bronte'. The article is short so I will repost it here:

Oscar-nominated actress Michelle Williams (Brokeback Mountain) is set to play the title character in Angela Workman's Bronte, according to Production Weekly.The big screen biopic will be based upon the life of Charlotte Bronte, author of the classic novel 'Jane Eyre'. The cast also includes Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Imelda Staunton, Brian Cox and Ben Chaplin. Workman has already written the screenplay and is set to direct the film, which is slated to begin filming later this year.

I believe this information has already been circulating from the project's main page, but the casting of this project has been an issue for some time. I'll wait and see on this one.

Orson Welles and some Housekeeping

I was stranded at the university today. So after the committee meeting I fixed many of the index links on the side bar. All of the links will now, hopefully, take you to pages in the archives. There is a big 'however', however. I still have not made considerable progress in indexing all of the posts so many of the pages still only contain a handful of posts. Give it some time and I'll be up to date... but it will take a considerable amount of time to tag hundreds of posts. If anyone notices a broken link please inform me as soon as possible.

And, now for something familiar. As thisbeciel says, 'Orson Welles will play Mr Rochester at the drop of a hat' for, indeed, we now have at least four versions of Jane Eyre starring Mr. Welles: one film, and three radio adaptations. Here are two of them:

Campbell Playhouse
Mercury Summer Theater

Campbell Playhouse is an hour long production of Jane Eyre, the Mercury Summer Theater production is half an hour. At the beginning of the first one he has some sorry comments on Patrick Bronte, alas. These are both courtesy of Thisbeciel.

ETA: AppleJax writes that there is another, lost, radio adaptation of Jane Eyre with Orson Welles: Mercury Theatre on the Air, which aired September 18, 1938.

The Folly of Adaptation?

Still enjoying the bliss. I asked a favour of Thisbeciel, and it was granted. She has provided this screencap of the filmographies main screen, featuring a great moment from the volume 1 DVD of the BBC's Jane Eyre 1973:


Only now did I realise that unfortunately, it looks like they have grafted Mr Rochester's head onto Lord Ingram's body... just behind Blanche. Oh dear.

So far the folk reviews of the production are very positive. We have young men 'enthralled', older married gentlemen in tears, older ladies in giggles (my mom responding to the repartee, which she had me play over again), and several young ladies in stages of excitement and joy (myself included).

In my search for more news on Jane Eyre 2006 today I came across several very interesting discussion threads. When it first became definate that there would be a new production, the reaction was largely positive with only a slight inital disappointment that it wasn't one of the other novels, one which has not been adapted yet- like Shirley- or one whose adaptation will probably never again see the light of day- such as Villette. I would like to know, now, what you think. How do you feel about another remake of Jane Eyre? Secondly, one of the opinions I came across was not in favour of another adaptation on the grounds that the novel had 'long since outlived its time' meaning the modern world has moved on in some way, that Jane Eyre no longer works or speaks to modern human beings. What are your thoughts on this?

JE '73 Scans

I've scanned the covers and an insert from the US edition DVDs of Jane Eyre 1973 for you all. It is much easier for me than transcribing it, for on the back of each case there is a synopsis for each episode. The synopses are amusing because it is clear they are trying very hard to avoid letting several important plot points out. This leads to some strange wording such as this from episodes 2 and 3:

Part Two: Jane discovers that the prickly fallen horseman she helped on the road is none other than the master of the house. She thinks him even stranger after he quizzes her bluntly and blames her for spooking his horse. But strangest of all, Jane begins to hear maniac laughter and scratching noises that seem to be coming from the upper recesses of the house.

Part Three: Jane awakens the morning after the fire...

Wait, fire? What fire? ;) If you click on the images in this post you can see them full-sized and read each for yourself.

On the cover design: My first thought was that I know some people won't even buy this because it looks like Jane has red hair. This is ridiculous, but I think some of my readers know what I am talking about. In any case, Sorcha Cusack doesn't have red hair either, but they've decided to play with the saturation levels on her image for some reason (although Michael Jayston is as he should be). The power of this piece is still working its charm in my house. My mother, who refuses to read the book, and finds all of the adaptations difficult to concentrate on came over to watch some of it during the first episode. When John Reed confronts Jane she turned from across the room and kept saying: "What did he do? What is he doing?"

The inset images are of Jane meeting Mr Brocklehurst, Jane trying to sneak away before Mr Rochester sees her in the garden, and Jane with St. John Rivers.

Ma boite! Ma boite!

My copy of Jane Eyre 1973 has finally arrived- and much sooner than anticipated! Maybe the company is aware of how much business I send their way. ;) I have not looked at the programme yet, but I have the full back cover synopsis for you all:

Faithfulness to the novel and a perfect cast make this BBC adaptation the ONE

AFTER A CHILDHOOD THAT WOULD HAVE BROKEN WEAKER GIRLS, Jane Eyre finds a respectable position as governess to the ward of the enigmatic Mr. Rochester. Twenty years her senior, brusque, and hardened by loss, Mr. Rochester finds his spirited new employee strangely bewitching. Despite the social chasm that divides them, they are drawn to each other as equals and contemplate true happiness at last. But there is an impediment to their love that tests Jane's integrity and strength almost beyond endurance.
Considered by many to be the best adaptation of Charlotte Bronte's romantic classics, this BBC miniseries is true to the original story, with dialogue taken directly from the novel. Best of all is the perfect casting and chemistry of the unlikely lovers, with Sorcha Cusack (Casualty) as Jane and Michael Jayston (Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy) as Mr. Rochester.

DVD Special Features Include bio of Charlotte Brontë and cast filmographies.
Approx. 248 min. 4:3 full screen
color British Drama

Due to the age of these programs and the improved resolution that DVD provides, you may notice occasional flaws in the image and audio on this DVD presentation that were beyond our our ability to correct from the original materials.

Thisbeciel, who has already seen her copy, notes that the biography of Charlotte was taken from the Brontë Parsonage Website (hopefully credited!)

This is the US edition. The UK edition may also include a picture gallery. The US edition may be ordered from Acorn Media, the UK edition is available for preorders from the BBC as well as Play.com, sendit.com, and Choices Direct.

Additional note: Some readers may have noticed changes to the index on the sidebar. I am still working on completing organisation of the archives but this is taking a long time. Please be patient in the meantime.

Bronte family helps launch book

Thank you, if you're still reading along, Kate Bower, for sending us the news about this book last year! Kate, a descendent of Alice McClory, mother of Patrick Bronte and grandmother of the Bronte sisters, had first tipped us off that Imelda Marsden was writing this book. Kate also shared her story and thoughts on Rose Ann Heslip, cousin of the Bronte sisters in a special Brontëana post here.

From dewsbury today:

DESCENDANTS of the Bronte family helped launch a book about the literary sisters' father written by a former Dewsbury Reporter editor.

The Father of the Brontes was written by WW Yates in 1897, and has been out of print for decades. But Mirfield Bronte enthusiast and Spen Valley Civic Society member Imelda Marsden has resurrected the book, complete with new material from her own research.

The book was launched at the Healds Hall Hotel in Liversedge – a suitable venue for the occasion as it featured in Charlotte's novel Shirley as the home of the Rev Matthew Helstone.Among the guests were Carol Bronte and Margaret Thompson – both Bronte descendants who travelled from their home in Northern Ireland for the occasion. Carol brought along an array of crafts which are being produced by Brontes in the 21st century. Imelda said the launch had gone really well with copies now gracing the shelves of universities in Japan and America.

"We've even got one at Harvard!" she said.

"We're really pleased with it and it all helps put North Kirklees on the Bronte map. So much of the Bronte story is naturally about Haworth, but this area is steeped in Bronte history as well and we want to shout about it."

Imelda said that during the launch event, the idea of twinning North Kirklees with the Emdale and Newry area of Northern Ireland, where the Brontes came from, had been mooted.

Copies of The Father of the Brontes are available from the Spenborough Guardian office at 1 Market Street, Cleckheaton, the Dewsbury Reporter office in Wellington Road, Red House Museum in Gomersal and Oakwell Hall in Birstall. They cost £14.99 with profits going to Holly Bank School, Mirfield.Do you think a twinning scheme would be beneficial to North Kirklees? Contact the Spenborough Guardian at margaret.heward@ywng.co.uk and we will pass your views on to Imelda.

Today's Bronte News

Renown literary critic, Zoe Dumitrescu-Busulenga, author of The Bronte Sisters Critical Approach (1967) died yesterday at age 86.

There is an interview with Dame Darcy, whose Illustrated Jane Eyre is coming out this fall. There is more information about the project in the archives, which are are trying to arrange at the moment... (only 218 posts to go!)

What is your latest project about? Gasoline is about a family of witches that live in a utopian society after the apocalypse. They are in a darkwave band. They travel in search for gasoline for their car. The message of this movie is about technology working with nature and the earth and magic taking over the industrial age. It's also about how fairies and Native Americans really believe the same thing. It will have live action and animation.

Also, I am making Dame Darcy.com into a Meat Cake wonderland of multi media extravaganza while preparing for Putnam Penguin to release my new book, The Illustrated Jane Eyre, this fall. I am booking shows on the East Coast during the last two weeks of October 2006 and the West Coast the first 2 weeks of November. Putnam is going to link book signings to my show dates for my band Death By Doll.

More on Polly Teale's Jane Eyre in London.

Jane Eyre is one of the 10 best books to read out loud! Believe me, this is true.

And this poor fellow is taking the first line of Jane Eyre a little hard. Cheer up! The rain clears up eventually (okay, so there's some lightning later and a few fires but then everything is lovely!).

In Talahasse, Florida, the Thomasville Entertainment Foundation's 2006-'07 Concert Series includes a performance of Jane Eyre:

The Series A package is $70 and includes performances by Trio Con Brio Copenhagen, mezzo soprano Frederica von Stade with bass vocalist Samuel Raney and the Australian Chamber Orchestra with cellist Pieter Wispelwey. The Series B package is $70 and features Maureen McGovern, Chris Brubeck's Triple Play and the Acting Company performing Charlotte Bronte's "Jane Eyre." The Series C package is $130 and include all six concerts. To order, call (229) 226-7404 or e-mail tef@rose.net .

Explore Yorkshire from a Bronteboat!

And the annual 1940s reenactment invades Haworth.

ETA: Fixed broken link.

Filming on Location for Jane Eyre 2006


Last week the BBC were busy filming scenes at Belton House for their new production of Jane Eyre. While this article has very little in new information- it deals almost exclusively with the impact of filming on the house and what a bother it all is- but there are these fabulous new images from the production including a behind the scenes picture, and a trivia note about the Red Room:

Although Belton House has its own red room, opened in March 2004 after two years of restoration work, the red room where Mrs Reed locks Jane is actually being created at Sudbury Hall while Belton's red room is transformed into the grand salon at Gateshead.


Like Belton House, location for Gateshead but also Rosings Park in Pride and Prejudice, Sudbury Hall was also used for interiors in the same 1995 production of Jane Austen's novel.

Today's Brontë News

The following items really don't seem to naturally be on the same page with one another, I think you will agree...

Wuthering Heights gets a mention in an article on why people should read the Kama Sutra:

The pundit Vatsyayana, who wrote the Kama Sutra, is blessedly free of physical disgust, but he isn't naïve. He understands lust; he depicts the stages of erotic obsession in great detail. For example, he gives the stages of romance: making eye contact, exchanging longing glances, having erotic images come to mind that won't go away, followed by thinking of the beloved all the time, losing sleep, making excuses to meet, and finally culminating - if sexual contact is denied - with falling sick and dying.

The whole history of the romantic novel is written in those few observations. If you smile at the notion that sexual desire can make someone grow sick and die, you may be correct medically, but millions have wept over the death of Catherine Earnshaw pining for Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights, not to mention a thousand knights languishing for love in medieval romances.

From the Kama Sutra to...

The hometown of the Rev. Patrick Brontë is one of the stops on musican Eliza Gilkyson's tour of the UK and Ireland:

Tue 9. Bronte Centre Churchill Road Drumballyroney Near Rathfriland, N Ireland. BT32 5IX Box Office 02406 23322 TP £12.00 DO 8.30 p.m.

There's more information on the Centre and the town's Brontë-related sites here.

Bronte Homeland Picnic Site, Knockiveagh:The picnic site at Knockiveagh is an ideal place to stop and see the rolling hills where Patrick Bronte grew up and the mountains of Mourne in the background. The picnic area occupies the ruins of a former shebeen - an illicit drinking house.

Alice McClory's Cottage:This cottage was the childhood home of Patrick's mother, Alice McClory. Alice and Hugh used to court secretly and some say they eloped to their wedding in Magherally Church, near Banbridge.

The Birthplace Cottage:Little now remains of the family's two-roomed cottage in the fairy glen at Emdale. The remains have been in the care of the Bronte Homeland Trust since 1956.

Glascar School:Patrick taught here in the 1790's, although the original schoolhouse was replaced by this more modern building in 1844. He is said to have used enlightened teaching methods to bring out the best in his pupils. He was later dismissed for forming a romantic attachment with one of them.

Lastly, tulips and Brontë fan art at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park.

Image is of the Mourne Mountains as seen from near Rathfriland.

Resource Update- 'artist B' Jane Eyre illustrations


There was a slight problem with the last batch of illustrations- I didn't post the correct link to the proposal illustration. That is now fixed. And there's another batch of illustrations! No, I don't think I will be finished posting illustrations anytime soon. I still have the other novels to get to and I still have several sets of Jane Eyre to scan let alone the ones I have waiting to be uploaded. One of the editions I have yet to finish scanning has some of the most beautiful and interesting illustrations of all but there are illustrations on so many of the pages there must be dozens.

Anyway, these are also from Anna in Australia, and are also anonymous black and white line drawings. Like the others, they are very beautifully done. Like the others there are one or two surprises- this illustration being one of them. I have not come across another illustration of this scene in my travels. The other, Jane looks suspiciously like William Makepeace Thackeray's own illustrations of Becky Sharp...

Illustrations available here.

Resource Update: Jane Eyre Illustrations


I noticed that the host for the Bronteana resource site will not allow me to have pages which are more than a certain number of characters, and this is why the last batch of illustrations did not post properly. And so, I have had to make another page. This makes the layout of the site a bit confusing at the moment, but I hope to remedy this if I can. To make amends, here at the last batch of illustrations of Jane Eyre plus some new ones. These are also anonymous black and white line drawings donated by Anna in Australia. These can be found on this page.

"Faithfulness to the novel and a perfect cast make this BBC adaptation the ONE"

-From the DVD for Jane Eyre 1973.

About a dozen readers have now recieved their copies of the BBC's 1973 Jane Eyre out on DVD. This is the American edition, of course, although the UK edition should be along shortly. I think we have answers to all of our questions now. The slight time difference might be the result of there being no photo gallery in the US edition. The 'lost' first episode, however, is all there. This is all coming in now from reader reports, since my copy is probably on a nice week-long trip to Toronto at the moment. The smaller edits also have been restored, so those who saw the tape which was run in Canada and New York will still have a treat seeing these deleted bits, like the slightly extended Hay Lane scene.

Thisbeciel has made screencaps from the DVD's filmographies. It looks beautiful! If you click on the images you can see them full-sized.*

*I have removed the images because the demand was so great that Thisbeciel's website crashed a few times today.

Reader, I Married Him by Michèle Roberts

Review from Monsters and Critics:

Echoes of Brontë and du Maurier reverberate in this black comedy from prolific Franco-British novelist Roberts (The Mistressclass, 2003, etc.) about a thrice-widowed British woman visiting Italy. Aurora, a 50-year-old lapsed Catholic, has bad luck with husbands. Her first died while traveling with a rock band in the 1960s. Her second, an architectural historian, drowned in the Grand Canal. She`s just buried her third, a devoutly Catholic tax collector who fell off a cliff.

After spending a few stultifying days with her overbearing stepmother Maude (who insists on calling her Dawn), Aurora decides to visit her Italian friend Leonora. When they met 20 years earlier, Leonora was a feminist activist. She is now the abbess of a convent in Padenza, but not like any abbess the Church wants to claim. At Leonora`s request, Aurora brings to Italy the pistol her father bought her mother for protection 50 years ago. (The ease with which she gets it through customs is scary.)

Maude also ends up in Padenza with members of her parish, including the disconcertingly handsome Father Michael, a proponent of Jungian synchronicity who plans to attend a conference Leonora has organized. Because there is no room for her at the convent, Aurora stays in an apartment run by another old friend, Frederico, whom she has always assumed is gay.

While Aurora battles mosquitoes and other inconveniences (there is no hot water), intrigues ensue concerning convent relics, Church politics and secrets of both sex and identity. Aurora finds herself in bed with Father Michael, who may not be a priest, and romantically pursued by Frederico, who may not be gay. How she finds her happy ending is a bit of a shock. Aurora is not to be trusted as a narrator, but she is mordantly funny.
Junk food for spiritually oriented intellectuals.

I think I've missed the echoes. You may purchase the book from Amazon.com, here.

Brontë News

Jane Eyre is playing London: "Jane Eyre'' plays from May 9 through July 9 at Trafalgar Studios. Tel. (44) (870) 060-6632 or click http://www.theambassadors.com.

'Bookslut' has another review of The Brontë Project: A Novel of Passion, Desire, and Good PR.

This is probably a better idea than encouraging your children to write fictional thank you letters for fictional gifts of Jane Eyre: a mother-daughter book club!

The Chocolate War, The Outsiders, and The Secret Life of Bees are novels written by contemporary writers, but the group has tackled classics that include A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and Jane Eyre, as well.

"It's not hard to read a book each month," said Katie [aged 11], "but Jane Eyre was so long."

Author Sara Paretsky talks about her attraction to a certain breed of heroine: Women like Jo March of "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott and the title characters of "Anne of Green Gables" by Lucy Maud Montgomery and Charlotte Bronte's "Jane Eyre"
"Heroines who engage me had to suffer before they succeeded," said Paretsky.

And lastly, Yorkshire has the dubious destinction of being #4 on a list of places to avoid visiting...
Lovely scenery, but there are people in the West Riding who have lived there since 1106 but are still not accepted as true Yorkshiremen because rumour has it that their mother bought clogs from a pedlar who had a cousin in Prestbury, thereby blighting the bloodline forever. They make Londoners look like Hawaiian greeter girls. Plus you can't stray within 50 miles of Haworth sodding Parsonage without being assailed on all sides by Bronte bilge. The Branwell Tea Shoppe. The Helen Burns Sunbed Centre. Mr Rochester Opticians. Grace Moon Loft Conversions. What a load of Wuthering Shite.

I cannot but laugh at the thought: who the deuce is 'Grace Moon'? They... did at least inadvertently promote two other places associated with the Brontës: The Peak District, home to at least one of the halls said to have inspired Charlotte's description of Thornfield, not to mention the location for now two version of Jane Eyre. Also, the Mourne Mountains, in Northern Ireland. Visible from Patrick Brontë's birthplace. So, it's not all so bad? ...

ETA: These this a better link for the London Jane Eyre production: http://www.theambassadors.com/trafalgarstudios/sp_p2702.html

Adapted and Directed by Polly Tealefrom the novel by Charlotte Bronte. Jane Eyre is poor, plain and unloved. But locked up in the attic of her imagination lives a woman so passionate and so full of longing she must be guarded night and day for fear of the havoc she would wreck. Who is this woman who threatens to destroy Janes's orderly world? A world where Jane has, for the first time, fallen in love.

Last seen in the West End with its award winning play After Mrs Rochester, Shared Experience is one of the country's most successful and inventive theatre companies, making a long awaited return to London with its heartbreaking, utterly compelling and unique interpretation of a great novel.

'You feel you are looking into the heart of Bronte herself' The Times
'Brilliant. A big, stormy play' Sunday Times
'Keeps making me cry in the street. Startling intelligence, passion and humour.' Daily Telegraph

Jane Eyre 1973 Run Times and US Update

Thanks to Mark for catching that the run times on the US and UK versions of the BBC's 1973 Jane Eyre have been changed on the BBC's website to be almost equivalent, when you factor in the speed of the two versions. So as he says they kept the 'slicing and dicing' to a minimum.

In any case, we will soon find out. Today I learn that my copy has been shipped and Bronteana reader Elfie is the first person I know of to actually get their copies in the mail already. I cannot explain it, but getting them several months ahead of schedule is a nice surprise. I hope the UK edition is not far behind!

Stitching Wuthering Heights

For those of you thinking about joining in on Knit the Classics' reading of Wuthering Heights next month, I bring you some useful links that have turned up which might give you some ideas for your needlework project.

Victoriana.com might be a good place to start, and get some general ideas.

These are a few illustrations from The Beeton's Book of Needlework, published in 1870, showing a few Victorian embroidery stitches. Wuthering Heights is a great book from an embroiderer's point of view, because you might choose to work with older 18th and 17th century styles- which are a lot more fun in my opinion! Such embroidery is known as Jacobean or Crewel embroidery. This is also the kind of embroidery Jane Eyre probably saw, the 'strange' birds and people on the hangings tucked away on the third floor. I would suggest photocopying instructions from books at the library, or try going to used bookstores for comprehensive guides. I learned through some wonderful books I picked up second hand. Then, get a hoop a needle and some embroidery floss.

So, you can guess what I'll be doing this June!

Today's Brontë News

Emily Brontë will be one of the authors of works available from Spoken Network audiobooks.

Emily Brontë's favourite flower, the bluebell, is under threat of hybridisation with commercial and Spanish varieties of the flower.

We have another use of the term 'Bronte-esque' (we are compiling the uses of this term, and maybe someday it will end up in the OED):

By 15, I had already penned an 800-page tome of Bronte-esque proportions, and I don’t mean that in a good way. It smacked of Jackie Collins and Danielle Steele, although I hadn’t (and still haven’t, to this day) ever read a word they‘d written.

Jane Eyre is part of the 'essentials of British and World literature' in new school textbooks.


And Humboldt Light Opera Company's production of Jane Eyre: The Musical is reviewed here. Possibly the production doesn't work entirely on a small stage?

Although “Jane Eyre” may not translate well from 19th century gothic novel to 21st century musical production -- at least, not on the small stage -- Humboldt Light Opera Company continues its tradition of not settling for the easy out. They continue to take on challenges and provide pleasurable and entertaining theater-going experiences for the North Coast.

Jane Eyre 1952 and 1934

Thisbeciel posted these quite some time ago, but I have been putting off posting them here. It is a good time to add these to the other footage and screencap posts from a few months ago (one more). The 1952 production is extremely rare. The production stars Katherine Bard as Jane Eyre and Kevin McCarthy as Mr Rochester. For my thoughts on this production see the posts here.

She has also uploaded all of Jane Eyre 1934 with Virginia Bruce as Jane Eyre and Colin Clive as Mr Rochester. This production is currently in the public domain. It is the acknowledged failure of all Jane Eyre adaptations, but I think it does have some charm even though it often only barely resembles the story at all. Mr Rochester has a faux air of Mr Darcy, I think, and Adele sings and falls into vases. See? It isn't all bad! It is often quite funny, actually.

Jane Eyre 1952: The First Interview
Jane Eyre 1952: The Second Interview
Jane Eyre 1934: Part One
Jane Eyre 1934: Part Two

Image is of Katherine Bard and Kevin McCarthy in Westinghouse Summer Theater One's Jane Eyre from 1952.

ETA: I have corrected some of the dates. When I first posted this, I wrote '1943' each time I meant '1934'. Thanks to an anonymous reader caught the error.

Resources Update: Jane Eyre Illustrations


In between trying to manage the Brontëana archives, I did find the time to post the links to a few more Jane Eyre illustrations I uploaded yesterday to the Brontëana Resource Site. These black and white illustrations were donated by Anna, a friend of mine in Australia. I do not know the name of the artist, so I am asking anyone reading this that if they recognise the work email me about them at bronteanaDOTblogATgmailDOTcom.

Housekeeping

Just a brief notice for all of my readers. At last, I have found a really effecient way to manage the Brontëana archives! I am in the middle of rearranging, tagging, and sorting several hundred posts. So far I think I have... 5 posts indexed. But when I have completed my work, it will take seconds to find anything you ever wanted to know about the Brontes (and a few more things besides). The links for the new catagories will be posted in the side bar whenever I get through all of the posts. I hope to keep working on it throughout the week now that I have the time.

Today's Brontë News


Today we have, thanks to Austenblog, some news about a very creative blog called Knit the Classics, where members read a classic novel for the month and make needlework (of any variety- crochet, knitting, embroidery etc...) inspired by the work! this month's novel is Pride and Prejudice, and for June the novel will be Wuthering Heights. I think this is a marvellous idea, and not just because embroidery is one of my hobbies.

Here's another article about those Bed Books- books designed for reading in bed. Their assortment includes Brontë titles, such as Wuthering Heights.

There's a wrestling racoon named Jane Eyre...

Emily Brontë is a 'spinner who did Yorkshire a good turn.'

Emily Brontë's poetry is also a challenge for a poetry recital contest.

I'm not sure what to make of this: For $1.50, there is Madeleine L'Engle's "Circle of Quiet," a biography in which she tells of days when she feels like Emily Bronte or Jane Austen or Elizabeth Barrett Browning. On those days, she signs her checks with their names, and never once has the bank returned one as fraudulent.

And an article on Justine Picardie's My Mother's Wedding Dress: The Life and Afterlife of Clothes, a book which features a discussion of Jane Eyre's 'shades of grey.'

And lastly, communities in Northern Ireland are hoping that Patrick Brontë can help to bring people together, and hope there may eventually be 'a Bronte Day.' This movement is being promoted by relatives of the Brontes. In a previous post, such a relative of the Brontes wrote in to Brontëana and posted her story here.

Two More Clips for Musical Fans

Thanks again to Thisbeciel, here are two clips from promotions for Jane Eyre: The Musical. One is the performance of the song 'Secret Soul' from the Rosie O'Donnel show, and the other is a performance of the same song from Bway on Bway. Enjoy!

Caution: Books Ahead

This article is delightful.

Some books, perhaps, should come equipped with warnings.“Caution: This text could change your life.” “Attention: Reading can be hazardous to entrenched opinions.”Or maybe just a simple, “Warning: Do not try this at home.”

“Dear Mr. Lewis,Closet walls hurt. I'm not sure whether there is any significant difference between the pliability of the back of your wardrobe and the back of my closet, but I can personally attest to the immovability of my closet's walls. I learned this after throwing my 8-year-old body full force against this rigid impediment, hoping that velocity would somehow allow me to break out into Narnia.”

What young Calli Strellnauer failed to appreciate was that she needn't crash into closets to reach Narnia. No, all she had to do was pick up a book and turn the page.It is something the high schooler has done countless times over the decade or so since she first explored that closet full force. But no matter how many pages she's turned, Calli cannot forget the impact author C.S. Lewis had on her young life.

And what does Narnia have to do with the Brontës? Aside from Georgie Henley playing Young Jane Eyre in the new BBC production? Well, that, my friends, will have to wait for another post...

In the five years Montana has been participating in Letters About Literature, they've been responding to J.K. Rowling of Harry Potter fame, to Montana writer Ben Mikaelsen, to Dr. Seuss and to outdoor-adventure writer Gary Paulsen.

But they've also responded to the likes of Charlotte Bronte, who, were she still living, would have received a letter this spring from Kalispell's McKenzie Javorka, a letter that earned her second place among Montana's seventh- and eighth-graders.

Her parents were going through a rough patch when McKenzie found Bronte, she wrote, and her big sister was heading off to college.

“I found myself alone, anxious and unhappy.”

Then along came “Jane Eyre,” and “as I finally closed the (book) and turned out my light, I felt an emotion I had thought was lost to me forever: peacefulness.”

Jane Eyre the Musical: Irving, Texas Fan Review

Brontëana reader, Rinabeana, has taken the time to write her impressions of the production now playing in Irving Texas (details here). This is a long excerpt from her review at the League of the Extraordinarily Rochester Obsessed, which explains some of the short cuts here. If possible I will post the rest in a convenient way.

The prelude is a backlit stage with Rochester calling Jane, Jane, Jane across the moors. I was about to have a heart attack thirty seconds into the show I was so excited! The basic set was a large ramp platform, with additional ramps leading to each side of the stage. The large central ramp was tilted to the side so one side of the front end had a step and the other went down to the stage. They lowered windows and doors and moved furniture often to set the different scenes. It was fairly sparse, but you could definitely get the idea. If I recall correctly, the original production had a giant circular rotating stage, but that was definitely not the case here. Much lower budget, I imagine.

I don't know how many of you have seen the show, but I was absolutely SHOCKED at how much music was not included in the original cast recording. I'd say that at least half of the songs were new to me. I marked all the new material with stars on the program (which I scanned and included below) and it's a lot! Plus, there is quite a bit of dialogue without music. I was overjoyed that much of that was straight out of the text! Imagine my glee when Rochester referred to Jane's "fairy ring" and the "men in green"! Pretty much all of Mrs. Fairfax's additional songs were to the tunes of Perfectly Nice and Slip of a Girl. In fact, I didn't hear a lot of new music, just lots of new lyrics. They definitely put the most important songs on the original cast recording. WHY COULDN'T THEY INCLUDE IT ALL, THOUGH??? I was sold at the scene after Hay Lane when Rochester sings Captive Bird while inspecting Jane (by sort of gimping around her) and it was positively smoldering! WHEW! Also, if you aren't familiar with the story (which doesn't apply to anyone here of course), it's quite choppy to go from Perfectly Nice to As Good As You. I love the in between stuff!

I think one of my favorite parts with Jane is definitely Painting Her Portrait. I know this is a community for the Rochester love, and I do like his and his and Jane's songs the best, but I still adore Jane. Painting Her Portrait so perfectly encapsulates her passion and inner turmoil. It's perfect that no one else is involved in the scene at all because she rarely lets anyone else see her emotion. The actress did a great job fiercely drawing and then tearing the pictures when she was done. My poor Jane!

The Gypsy scene cracked me up! I definitely got a feel for how it would be staged from listening to the original cast recording, but it's so fun to see Rochester in his woolen shawl and floppy hat mocking all the snippy girls! They certainly played up their parts, huffing away when he insulted them. Blanche nearly had a temper tantrum, which was fabulous! And who couldn't love the part when he reveals his identity to Jane? I did think it kind of went too far when he asked her how Blanche reacted and Jane told him that she flounced off looking upset. Our smart Jane would have realized that he was playing a trick on her and not been quite so incredulous at the proposal. It was funny, though.

I already mentioned the St. John part, but I can't stress enough how much I disliked the set-up. That's really my only major complaint with the show. Jane NEVER fell for him and he certainly didn't love her! The implication was that she had given up on Edward and was all set to go to India as a wife. There was no psychological manipulation and then the twit tells her she's formed for labour and everyone is on to his game. I think that's why everyone laughed, since the set-up was so incongruous with the denouement in that scene. Of course everyone was rooting for Rochester, even if they didn't know the story! The Voice Across the Moors always gives me chills anyway. I wanted to shove St. John off the stage because he's so extraneous there! HEE!

The return to Thornfield was amazing. After Fairfax explained what had happened, Robert helped the blind (and disfigured!) Rochester to a little bench. That nearly broke my heart. Though Jane didn't sit on his lap (pooh!) the chemistry between them in this scene was wonderful! I totally lost it when Rochester sang to the baby, too! Of course, after that the baby got whisked off stage (through Jane, then Adele, then the maid/nurse) right quick! If it wasn't for Jane's ridiculous huge puffy sleeved dress, that scene would have been perfect!

From the program it also looks like severals songs were renamed. Before Jane leaves Thornfield, the song 'Sirens reprise' has been renamed 'Sail Away' which sounds like an '80's pop tune... Other items from the review: the audience appears to be aware of Bertha before Jane is. The audience sees Bertha attack her brother, but it is the butler not Jane who tends Mr Mason. There was also an unwise blending of the characters of Miss Scatcherd and Miss Temple- not a doubling, a blending, and St.John was unappealing but vaguely a love-interest (which disturbs this fan and others in the audience who burst out laughing at him).

ETA: Ah, also, Rinabeana reports that Mr Rochester (Greg Dulcie) is 'a giant bear of a man', at least a foot and a half taller than Jane. From the program I see that he indeed has played Goliath in a play King David. His credits also include: "costarred with a streaking sheep in the number one ranked Super Bowl commercial for Budweiser." Did he tackle it?

T. H. Robinson Shirley Illustrations


I have been quite busy this morning uploading a lot of illustrations at the Bronteana Resource Site. It will take me some time to actually get all of them linked, but I hope to have each artist catalogued over the next few days. For now, something a little different. There are 8 full-colour illustrations of Charlotte Bronte's Shirley available here. I have scanned them from my own edition so I have a few things to say about the volume. It is a Collins Clear Type Press edition, although not one of their lovely palm-sized books. This one is very large by comparison (I have the Collins Clear Type Press editions of Jane Eyre and Villette as well- their illustrations will be scanned in eventually...). Also, since these are from my own edition, I have them in 100 dpi, but they are also available in a much higher resolution upon request.

New Locations for Jane Eyre 2006


Fast on the heels of our casting news, comes new faces for familiar places. We already know that Haddon Hall is the location for Thornfield Hall. Belton House is the new location for Gateshead Hall, home of the Reeds. Learn more about Belton House here. Among other things, it should look familiar... it appeared as a location in the BBC's Pride and Prejudice.

Several other properties owned by the National Trust will be used as locations in the production:

Dovedale is one of the most famous areas of the Peak District, and has already, like Haddon Hall, played a part in the 1996 film of Jane Eyre. Ilam is a village in the Peak District National Park (this place will likely be on the Jane Eyre touring trail eventually, what with all of its associations genial and pleasurable!). There is also a hall at Ilam, which one might imagine to be Ferndean.

And lastly, we have further confirmation that the production will air this autumn in the UK.

More Cast for Jane Eyre 2006

Andrew Buchan is confirmed as our St. John Rivers, according to the productions imdb page, and Bertha Mason will be played by Claudia Coulter, according to M.


If this is the same Andrew Buchan, he has done extensive work with the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and you can listen to his voice here.