Kate Hamill’s adaptation, starring Toni O’Rourke, explores the psychology of what drives the much-loved protagonist, says director Claire O’Reilly
Emma, adapted by Kate Hamill for the Abbey Theatre, with Toni O'Rourke in the title role. Photograph: Patricio Cassinoniinto a dressingroom, because this interview is rowdy and raucous, with a lot of laughing. Not that it isn’t a hard-working rehearsal, but it sounds like the gang is having a blast with a reworking of Jane Austen ’s Emma, for the national theatre’s
“It’s still Jane Austen’s Emma,” says O’Reilly, “very much a literary classic in that sense”, so on the face of it quite a change for the director. She talks about tone, sensibility, sound design and visuals. “There are Regency leanings, but we have this permission to play within that.” Romance and relationships are cyclical, so while much in Austen’s world is unrecognisable to us, including “the confines and limitations imposed on women, and indeed the men.
“But I also love coming home. And to be doing this show, it feels like a great honour, on our national stage.” Somehow in interviews O’Rourke is often asked about famous friends, from Paul Mescal to Barry Keoghan. She’s very gracious, saying “it’s lovely to speak of all successes, of all people”. She’s also bemused, “I get asked a lot about the men I work with. I think a lot of us are defined by the success of the men around us.
The last time she was on a stage was for one night in Good Sex, Dead Centre’s 2022 Dublin Theatre Festival show, where two actors who didn’t know each other were fed their lines through earphones for a performance mediated by an intimacy co-ordinator . “That was such a remarkable experience. I mean, it’s the actor’s nightmare, and we turned it into the dream, because there’s no pressure” because it’s managed by an intimacy co-ordinator.
Kate Hamill Jane Austen Claire O'reilly
Ireland Latest News, Ireland Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Losses widen at Abbey Theatre even as revenue increasesNew accounts show losses rose by 17%
Read more »
Jane Godley is in 'final beats of life' says daughter in heartbreaking statementComedian Jane Godley, who found fame with her dubbed parodies of Nicola Sturgeon’s coronavirus news briefings during the pandemic, is currently receiving end-of-life care after her terminal cancer spread.
Read more »
Sad that Graham Rowntree could not script dream ending in Munster theatreGraham Rowntree brought passion to the Munster role, and there is a sadness in his abrupt departure as head coach this week
Read more »
A Brief Film History Of Jane Austen's HeroinesA Brief TV & Film History Of Pride and Prejudice A Brief TV & Film History Of Pride and Prejudice A Brief TV & Film History Of Pride
Read more »
'I saw Jane McDonald live – it was Doctor's Orders and more than I expected'Jane McDonald – the Queen of daytime TV, luxury cruising and proper good music, or at least she is for me. Wakefield's own has amassed a huge following after going viral – but what's she like live?
Read more »
Dublin Theatre Festival announces Róise Goan as new artistic directorFormer head of Dublin Fringe Festival will take over from Willie White as artistic director and chief executive in February 2025
Read more »