Retellings and 'what if's'

The Prairie News reviews the stage production of You on the Moors Now at the Branding Iron Theatre on the West Texas A&M University campus.

Classic characters are set on a modern stage in order to set a message about female empowerment. The characters must get married, but they do not want to. The classic stories of Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, and Little Women are written in a new way that showcases the modern age while retaining the essence of the past.

The playwright, Jaclyn Backhaus, blends the classic stories of Charlotte Brontë, Emily Brontë, Jane Austen and Louisa May Alcott together. Backhaus imbued the play with an ingenious mix of the past and present to create a funny, but serious, story about women and the nature of a woman’s power. [...]

Audience members who have enjoyed adaptations of Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice or the Little Women will find these stories within the play, but within a background of female empowerment set against the many possibilities for women today, beyond the realm of marriage. (Victoria Fatiregun)

And more 'What if's' as Slate features So Many Beginnings by Bethany C. Morrow, which wonders how Little Women would change if the March women were Black.

The premise of the series is deceptively simple: What if the protagonists of classic works of literature like Treasure Island, Wuthering Heights, and Robin Hood weren’t white? In April of 2020, Feiwel and Friends, a young adult subdivision of Macmillan, announced the launch of a new project called Remixed Classics. (Rachelle Hampton)

Wuthering Heights is expected to be released in July 2022 as What Souls Are Made Of: A Wuthering Heights Remix by Tasha Suri.

And more retellings too as BuzzFeed News recommends '26 New Science Fiction And Fantasy Books To Read This Fall' including

Within These Wicked Walls by Lauren Blackwood (Wednesday Books; Oct. 19)

This mesmerizing Ethiopian-inspired gothic reimagines Jane Eyre in a fantasy setting. Andromeda was trained as a debtera — an exorcist who cleanses houses of evil spirits — though her mentor refuses to license her officially. She’s barely making a living when the wealthy Magnus Rochester hires her to rid his castle of its evil spirits. When she arrives, she’s shocked by what she finds. Deadly manifestations fill the castle beginning at 10 p.m. and continue throughout the night. She’s never seen such a multitude of evil spirits all in one place and never this deadly. She’s unsure if she’ll be successful at ridding the castle of its hauntings, but, desperate for money and finding herself somewhat attracted to the handsome Mr. Rochester, she agrees to take the job. (Margaret Kingsbury)

In the southern hemisphere, Jornal Cruzeiro do Sul (Brazil) recommends reading Wuthering Heights during springtime.

Wharfedale Observer features

Elizabeth-Rose Sandhu, 17, [who] penned a poem, inspired by her love of nature to win the award at the Ilkley Literary Festival. [...]

Her passion for the subject was sparked by teachers at Harrogate Ladies’ College who helped develop her love of Sylvia Plath and the Brontë sisters. [...]

The school is planning a number of trips for literary students this year, including a trip to Wordsworth’s Lake District and the Brontë’s home in Haworth. (Claire Lomax)

Slash Film ranks 'Orson Welles' Directed Films [from] Worst To Best'. One of them is Macbeth which

suited Welles' stated intent that the film's setting should be "a perfect cross between Wuthering Heights and Bride of Frankenstein," (Kirk Boxleitner)

The blunder of the day comes courtesy of La marea (Spain):

En 1847 se publicó Cumbres Borrascosas como obra anónima. Pero, tras obtener cierto éxito, el editor decidió publicar una segunda edición tres años después. Fue entonces cuando se descubrió la verdadera identidad de su autor. Pero resultó que se trataba de una autora, Charlotte Brontë. Desde entonces la crítica de la época enfocó el libro desde una óptica distinta; comenzó a tratar la obra como una simple “novela romántica”. La que había sido considerada una “obra poderosa” y “realista”, pasó a ser un producto literario edulcorado y rosa; una obra escrita por una mujer, algo que para ellos resultaba un sacrilegio o que incumplía las reglas no escritas de la novela. (Mario Crespo) (Translation)

Finally, Dewsbury Reporter on the events at Hartshead church on Heritage Open Days last weekend.

The historic St Peter’s Church, in Hartshead, opened its registers to the public to share details of births, marriages and deaths since the late 17th century.

David Pinder (Rev Hammond Roberson), Imelda Marsden (Charlotte Brontë's teacher Margaret Wooler) and John Wallace-Jones (Patrick Brontë) (Source)

Among its more noted characters was Patrick Brontë, father of the famed literary sisters, who served as curate here in 1811, while one of the church’s most famous tales is of how he reportedly turned a blind eye to Luddite supporters burying their fallen in a corner of the graveyard, while later vicars were vehemently opposed.

Imelda Marsden, a life member of the Brontë Society who helped organise the open weekend, said it had proved a huge success with one descendent of his family among those in attendance.

Carole Fox, a cousin of Patrick’s sister Sarah, was among those who travelled to see the original registers.

“We had a super day,” said Mrs Marsden, who joined the present vicar and a number of visitors in dressing for the occasion.