|
Regional Reviews: St. Louis Emma
And then there's Emma, a broadly comical stage adaptation of Austen's 1815 comic novel, penned by Kate Hamill, now at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis. But far from inviting first or second or third impressions, to hardly know any of Ms. Hamill's characters is to know them quite well. We are presented with an exhibit of braying facial contortionists at least until the final twenty minutes, under the direction of Tracy Brigden. And while it's not Shakespeare, this Emma does boast a lot of outrageous fools and misguided lovers. And while it is not Oscar Wilde either, it also seems proud of its exaggerated British manners, set in fanciful British manors. The play was first presented at the Guthrie Theater in 2022. But the fact of the matter is, this new staging most closely resembles the old Carol Burnett TV show in its famous movie spoofs from the 1970s as actors step in and out of character for an easy laugh. This Emma is transformed into a lampoon of reason, which is probably valid given the exceedingly comic tone of the script. Just don't go in expecting Pride and Prejudice. Only in the last twenty minutes does the magic of Austen finally come to life on stage. Adelin Phelps (mostly delightful and seemingly inexhaustible as the title character) goes running through a maze of shocking revelations, as a slew of hard truths chases her down like a pack of wild dogs in the final scenes. Two hours before all that, however, you may want to load up on the booze. Or arrive two hours late, and you'll be fine. Otherwise it's theatre for idiots which, most emphatically, is not the typical Austen fan. Nevertheless, Louis Reyes McWilliams is quite splendid within the constraints of the style at hand, as Emma's childhood friend Mr. Knightley, and Lize Lewy relentlessly reinforces the comic tone of the play as Emma's matchmaking victim Harriet before evolving quite dramatically late in the show. Till then, you could easily forget that any of these characters can actually read or write. Highly versatile Nancy Bell plays Miss Bates, who runs a school for girls. Ms. Phelps' Emma denounces her in act two in a startling, modernized tirade that left my head spinning (in a great way). Esteemed actor Michael James Reed plays Emma's father, and Kathryn A. Bentley is charming as her former nursemaid. Jack Dryden is perfect as another of Austen's comical clergymen, and Maggie Newstead-Adams is highly admirable as Emma's social rival, Jane Fairfax. Ryan Omar Stack acquits himself very naturalistically as one of the marriageable young men (Mr. Churchill), and Olivia Balicki is very fine as the giggling Mrs. Elton. The wonderful dancing in the background near the end of all of Emma's final, mind-bending realizations is choreographed by Sam Gaitsch. The lovely set is by Margery Spack and Peter Spack. Ms. Austen was born on December 16, 1775, 250 years ago. And no doubt she'd be pleasantly surprised by the audience reaction here. Though she surely would not have recognized the tone of her own work. Emma runs through December 21, 2025, at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, 130 Edgar Rd., St. Louis MO. For tickets and information, please visit www.repstl.org. Cast: Understudies: Production Staff: Additional Production Staff: * Denotes Member, Actors' Equity Association ** Denotes Member, USA-829 |
