A great romance novel?

We read in the Reading Evening News about a recent student production of Polly Teale's Jane Eyre at the St Joseph's Convent School in Reading, UK: (Picture source)

Junior dramatists from Years Eight to 10 at St Joseph’s Convent School in Reading performed three sell-out performances of Polly Teale’s atmospheric adaptation of Jane Eyre.
They used physical theatre techniques – storytelling through primarily physical means – and exploring Teale’s fascination with the dual personality of Jane Eyre.
The part of Jane Eyre was shared between three pupils – Adele Trevorrow, Phoebe Leigh and Matilda Kimble Wilde – all of whom rose superbly to the challenge of portraying both the passionate and the very suppressed sides of the same character.
In the lead-up to the performances, the girls had enjoyed an exciting rehearsal period, which involved attending physical theatre workshops and taking the opportunity to direct some of the most exciting moments of the play themselves
Students from Year 11 were also involved in the production of the play, including lighting, make-up and stage management.
Laura Sutherland, drama teacher at St Joseph’s, who directed the play, said afterwards: “The play was an adventurous choice for girls as young as Year Eight but the cast performed brilliantly and all the girls should be congratulated for their excellent team work and effort.”

More information can be found on the easter 2009 newsletter of the school.

The Flyer (the student newspaper of the Lewis University) opens one of the pre-summer classics: the book recommendations for the summer vacation.

For those suffering from "Twilight" withdrawals, I have a book to get you through until the next big pop-culture hit.
"Wuthering Heights," a classic novel by Emily Bronte involves a revenge plot played out by some of the most famous love-story characters of all time: Heathcliff and Cathy.
Complete with two men fighting over one woman, and the unbelievable lengths they go to in order to have Cathy's love; the parallels between "Wuthering Heights" and "Twilight" are more than just romantic in nature. (Mariann Daniel)

And our final education-related topic, we read in The Guardian how the number of students taking GCSE in English Literature is falling:

More than a quarter of state school pupils do not take English literature GCSE, and children in the poorest parts of the country are least likely to be tested on their understanding of the classics at 16, new figures reveal.
The proportion opting to do an English literature GCSE is declining, with 72% of state school pupils doing the literature GCSE last year compared with 77% five years ago, according to figures released in parliament to the Conservatives.
Under the national curriculum, all pupils have to study at least one Shakespeare play and a selection of pre-20th century writers, including Jane Austen, William Blake and Charlotte Brontë, within the compulsory English GCSE. But the Tories say that if pupils don't have to do the literature GCSE, they will read only the bare minimum and never develop a love of literature. (Polly Curtis)

The arrival of Tamasha Theatre's Wuthering Heights to London is announced in The Londonist:

As does a new Bollywood version of Wuthering Heights from the imagination of Deepak Verma (that's EastEnders' Sanjay to me and you) at the Lyric Hammersmith. (ZoZo)

and Digital Spy:

Emily Bronte's classic novel Wuthering Heights has been given a Bollywood makeover in a new stage adaptation.
The play, which is written by former EastEnders actor Deepak Verma, transports the 19th century story of Heathcliff and Catherine to 1770s Rajasthan.
Wuthering Heights director Kristine Landon-Smith told The Times: “It's such a perfect marriage of story and genre, it seems almost obvious. When Brontë meets Bollywood, it really works.”
The adaptation, which begins its run at the Lyric Hammersmith in London next Wednesday, features an authentic Indian score that will be lip-synched on stage.
Gurinder Chadha achieved box office success with 2004 hit Bride and Prejudice, a Bollywood spin on Jane Austen's masterpiece. (Sanjay Odedra)

The Gwent Gazette announces yet another Brontë-related theatre event. The upcoming production of Gordon & Caird's Jane Eyre: The Musical in Ebbw Vale, Wales:

And Ebbw Vale Operatic and Dramatic Society have taken up the challenge of giving the story its first Welsh performance. At the Beaufort Theatre between Monday, May 11, and Saturday, May 16, audience goers will get to follow the story of young orphan Jane as she struggles to find her way in the world and to form a life with the dour Mr Rochester.
With an emphasis on costume rather than elaborate sets, directors Craig James and Rebecca Bull – who are also taking the lead roles – are hoping the dramatic interpretation will both pack the seats and wow the crowds.
Tickets for this forthcoming premiere can be obtained by ringing Pat on 01495 350179 or Joy on 01495 303794.

The Times traces the origins of Wolverine, the comic character, which is now the main character on the upcoming film X-Men Origins: Wolverine. The author of the article finds echoes of lots of nineteenth-century novels:

Wolverine Origin, which serves as the film's inspiration, is set in late 19th century and tells the story of a servant girl who befriends a frail, pampered boy from a rich family. The boy eventually turns into a rough, beer-swilling clawed killer after a series of tragedies that could come from any great novel of the period, with the plot bearing similarities to Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre and Great Expectations among others. (Owen Vaughan)

EDIT: Fluctuat.net also talks about the film and the comic:

Le début du film est symptomatique de cette option : le réalisateur démarre en copiant quasi plan à plan le Wolverine Origins de Jenkins et Kubert et ouvre sur une scène iniatique qui nous donne un aperçu de ce qu'aurait pu être un film de Wolverine victorien et inspiré des Hauts de Hurlevent (ce qui est le cas de ce chef d'oeuvre bande-dessinée). (Myosotis) (Google translation)

Other Brontë mentions and Brontëites around: students in Wrightsville Beach Magazine, movie location "set jetters" in the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, Apple Mac OS X Security advices on Palluxo!, S/F author Tony Ballantyne interviewed by Walker of Words:

Do you still find time to read, and if so anything in particular?
Oh yes, I love to read. I’m just finishing Villette by Charlotte Bronte. I rather like Victorian Fiction, I find it very familiar and different at the same time, it can give a sense of a changing world, rather like SF.

On Suite101 Samantha Markham publishes a synopsis and analysis of Jane Eyre and on Helium, Sarah Fraser publishes a review of the same novel:

As a bildungsroman, Jane Eyre follows the journey of its heroine's development from youth to intellectual maturity. As the novel progresses the theme of religion is one that takes a strong hold on Jane herself. In order to analyse the question, one must differentiate between Paganism and Christianity. (Read more)

The Albany Public Library blog Read With Me raises several questions about Wuthering Heights including one of BrontëBlog's favourite ones:

How much or how little do you agree with the assessment of Wuthering Heights as a great romance novel?

Slanted probably has a good reply to the question as she briefly comments Wuthering Heights 2009. Lara.blogja. =D posts about Wuthering Heights in Hungarian, Gypsy Tales and Shalee's Diner review Agnes Grey, Rambling On... posts several nice pictures of the Haworth moors, including Top Withins and the Brontë Bridge.

Finally, the Brussels Brontë Group publishes an account of their recent Brontë weekend events. Check it out:

On 24-26 April the Brussels Brontë Group held a Brontë weekend of events for the third consecutive year. The programme this year was ambitious, with musical settings of Emily Brontë's poems, talks by the writer Stevie Davies and by a Brussels-based academic, Philip Riley, and the guided walk which has become a fixture at these weekends. (Read more) (Helen MacEwan)

Categories: Agnes Grey, Brontëites, Brussels, Haworth, Jane Eyre, Movies-DVD-TV, Music, References, Theatre, Wuthering Heights