Shake and Stir have reinvented Jane Eyre, engulfing the audience in an intense dark and chilling atmosphere with their spectacular and unmissable gothic production.
Shake and Stir are aptly named, rapidly becoming known for their ingenious and innovative adaptations of iconic plays. They are the theatrical equivalent of 4ZZZ, constantly breaking the boundaries and shattering paradigms through their novel and all-encompassing approaches to their adaptations. With 17 seasons co-produced with the QPAC over the last nine years, including ten new works, the successful synergy between the two is dynamic and contemporary.
Jane Eyre, published in 1847 under the pen name “Currer Bell” as a first-person narrative, was revolutionary at the time for it’s social commentary of feminism, religion and sexuality. Charlotte Brontë was dubbed the ”first historian of the private consciousness” due to her use of strong social criticism, as the intense heroine overcomes many trials which were common to girls and women at the time. Jane Eyre is still a popular story adapted into film, opera and television as well as numerous theatrical adaptations. Having seen, and had to endure many poor adaptations of Jane Eyre, Shake and Stir’s interpretation and execution was outstanding and by far the most superior to date!
With only a cast of four talented actors for numerous roles, Nelle Lee and Nick Skubij and their creative and production teams recreated an outstanding Gothic novel on stage oozing with a sinister and supernatural atmosphere. As in their brilliantly atmospheric 2015/17 production of Dracula, simplicity, lighting and darkness was the key.
As in every production by Shake and Stir, every factor contributing to the over all audience experience had been carefully planned and executed with Director Micheal Futcher overseeing every detail. On entering the Cremorne Theatre the audience were instantly engulfed in darkness, silence and a cloying mist which created an intense and chilling atmosphere of the supernatural.
The entire production was devoid of colour, with mostly monochrome costumes and a three-tiered intricate metallic set of platforms enveloped in darkness and smoke, an eerie and sinister designed set by Josh McIntosh. Focal points of blue and soft white lights were inventively utilised by Jason Glenwright the lighting designer, to not only highlight the actors, but to emphasise the shadows. Actors would appear to materialise on the set and lurked in dark corners, creating an intense and eerie supernatural atmosphere where the audience were constantly on the edge of their seats. Real flames were the only colour added to the monochromatic palate, in the forms of the flickering candles and a roaring domestic fireplace. The use of flames culminated in the best pyrotechnical display I have seen in a theatrical production, when Thornfield Hall is set alight by Rochester’s imprisoned deranged wife. The intense heat from the multiple levels of roaring flames enfolding the dark set further magnified the gothic supernatural atmosphere and urgency of the situation.
The four award-winning and accomplished actors were exceptional. Co-adaptor Nellie Lee (Fantastic Mr Fox, Dracula, Wuthering Heights), played the title role of Jane Eyre with grace and simplicity. Her simple expressions and timbre of voice transitioned her convincingly from an innocent maligned child to a strong and powerful woman of integrity. The other three actors played multiple roles, seamlessly moving between characters, often with a minimal costume change. Sarah McLeod, of Aria Award winning rockband The Superjesus, used her compositional skills combined with a beautiful melodious voice and talented piano playing to further enhance the poignant atmosphere of the production. She was also a spectacularly-crazed Bertha, as the nightmarish lunatic wife, ripping out her hair, chanting and hissing from the shadows.
Anthony Standish (Aquaman, Sea Patrol, Wuthering Heights), who recently performed in City of Gold with the Queensland Theatre, fulfilled the patriarchal roles with ease. As the at first allusive and troubled Mr Rochester, he became softer and more real when he seemed to melt into the arms of Jane as their love unfolded. The three female characters portrayed by Helen Howard (The Winter’s Tale, The Glass Menagerie) debuting with Shake and Stir, were mesmerising. She seemed to instantly age from one character to the next and could be both sinister and endearing. The four actors seemed to have a symbiotic collaborative relationship, enhancing each other’s supporting roles.
Shake and Stir have reinvented Jane Eyre engulfing the audience in an intense dark and chilling atmosphere with their spectacular and unmissable gothic production.
Cremorne Theatre, QPAC
18th-9th Nov 2019
Dr Gemma Regan
Photograph: David Fell