As Lafayette College turns 200, Jane Austen turns 250 — perfect timing for theater professor Mary Jo Lodge to direct a college production of the 2014 adaptation of “Sense and Sensibility.” I sense that you will be sensible enough to go see the play this weekend.
The classic story follows two very different sisters, Elinor, sense, and Marianne, sensibility, after their father’s death and loss of inheritance. In their time of disarray, they must manage newfound love and the gossip that circles them.
Despite its age, the irony and comedic timing of many of the characters — specifically Johnny Raheb ‘27 as Edward Ferrars and Sonali Shah ‘26 as Marianne Dashwood — is not lost to those of us living in the 21st century. These two were very entertaining to watch, especially their interactions with other characters.
The leading women, Elinor, portrayed by Ash Baeck-Hubloux ‘26, and Shah, did a tremendous job displaying the contrasting sisters. At first, I couldn’t tell who was supposed to play sense and who was meant to be sensible, but that was quickly determined through their performances.
Raheb balanced playing both Edward Ferrars and his brother, Robert Ferrars — I’m sure a whole other play could be made about these brothers and their contrasting personalities, just as I’m certain that Raheb would be able to play both of them.
Mrs. Dashwood, played by Kelsie Bouyer ‘26, shone in portraying the emotions of her character.
Tiago Brousset ‘27, as Colonel Brandon, showed his skill by delivering an insightful and plot-important monologue, and does so extremely well. Meanwhile, Nikolai Gentes ‘27 appears on stage in a stupor as the intoxicated John Willoughby.
At the beginning of the play, I noticed that the actors spoke very fast, which can be complicated for the audience when the characters are just being introduced and the language is different from what is spoken today. However, as the play progressed, it was much easier to be able to understand and follow the storyline.
Speaking of being able to follow along, due to the lack of actors and the surplus of characters, the changing of period-piece costumes was a nice touch to be able to differentiate the characters throughout the play.
The set was also used effectively, with movable furniture and the back window set changing to signal the location of different scenes. For the changing of scenes, the lights would dim and the piano would play, acting as a good signal and being minimally disruptive to the plot for the audience.
Despite a few line mix-ups and a moment of insurmountable laughter during the dress rehearsal, the actors did an excellent job of accurately portraying their characters. At one point, the production was stopped to prevent a wardrobe malfunction, and I watched as the actors stopped acting, reverted to their regular selves, and resumed as if nothing had happened.
If you haven’t yet, you can still catch the performance on Friday or Saturday at 7:30 p.m, or Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets, available to purchase online or at the college box office, are free for students and $10 for the public.