At first I found this very difficult. Cathy Marston’s ballet is really focused on Jane’s adult life, and in particular, her growth into independence and her blossoming relationship with Edward Rochester, meaning that huge passages from the book have to be condensed down into brief vignettes or excluded entirely.
This was cleverly achieved by the opening scene which is taken from an incident that happens close to the end book - Jane’s flight from Thornfield Hall leading to her collapse and subsequent rescue by the Rivers family. Jane’s story then unfolds retrospectively to provide us with the context of a child orphaned at a young age and taken in by an aunt who sees her as an inconvenient duty.
Based on the novel by: Charlotte BrontëSocially awkward and highly intelligent, Jane has no social status and therefore no protection from the negligence and mistreatment she suffers at the hands of her callous aunt and spoiled cousins. Rachel Gilespie’s young Jane has a keen sense of justice paired with a passionate and undisciplined nature. Head lowered and fists clenched, she retaliates with physical outbursts against her abusers, earning herself the label of wild and dangerous. In this interpretation, different dancers play Jane as a child and as an adult. The child Jane is a very different person from the adult she makes herself into; angry, proud, volatile and impassioned. [...]
Rochester’s magnetism physically stops Jane in her tracks - he repeatedly prevents her from leaving his presence with an imperious stretching of his leg in her direction. Sprawled in his chair, Joseph Taylor’s Rochester appears aloof and disinterested, but his attention is totally on Jane. He’s fascinated by her and frustrated by her determination to resist his pull.
Jane is aware of her relative powerlessness; her gender, class, and poverty make her vulnerable, but she is steadfast in her refusal to compromise herself. This conflict plays out so clearly with each encounter becoming a blend of push and pull, fear and yearning, falling into and running from. Jane’s instinct for self preservation means that again and again Rochester has to catch her and bring her back to him. When she gives herself to Rochester, she does so on her own terms.
As their relationship grows, a playfulness develops and we see a glimpse of what Jane would have been as a happy child. Her quickness and lightness of foot are used to trip him up, getting right into Rochester’s space, taking him by surprise and creating touching moments of tenderness and intimacy. At the same time, the stiff hands and angular shapes that characterise much of Jane’s movement start to soften as she opens herself to this new connection. Dominique Larose expresses this tension with every fibre and it was at this point that I was fully able to forget about the original text to focus completely on the music and movement.
As Jane and Rochester fall in love their different status is a minor obstacle; as a powerful and wealthy man, Rochester is able to make his choice of bride. But the frequent placing of their palms together brought to mind Romeo and Juliet’s ‘palm to palm’ - a reminder that these lovers are also from different sides of the track.
With Jane being such a powerful presence throughout there aren’t many opportunities for other characters to shine. But if you can tear your eyes away from her, you’ll see characters fully fleshed, even if they are simply schoolgirls in a classroom or guests at one of Rochester’s parties. Mrs Reed is stern and unbending, Helen Burns the epitome of grace in the face of persecution, Mrs Fairfax kindly but flustered, and Adele superficial but sweet. Amber Lewis’s Bertha Mason revels in her ability to cause destruction. She’s a figure of foreboding, and a 19th-century warning of what happens when women’s passions are not contained by social mores.
The final scene is fully focused on Jane. She might have won her man, but that’s not what the story is about; it’s not a fairytale ending. Jane has moved out of her customary shadows and is taking her place in the spotlight, looking to the future with new confidence. (Claire Clarke)
Dramatisations too often turn Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre into a straight Gothic romance. Credit to Northern Ballet’s Cathy Marston, then, for giving due attention to its central theme as a bildungsroman.
The protagonist is split into child and adult to demonstrate her development. Rachael Gillespie excels as a stubborn and angry girl, her body tense and angular, her head lowered and surly as she battles with her bullying Aunt Reed (Harriet Marden). Dominique Larose picks up the tenseness as Jane transitions into adulthood, her hands clenched at her side, but her body softens and her movements gain grace as she gains power and independence.
This is a show that’s at its best with such small detail. Mr Rochester (Joseph Taylor) casually and cruelly bars Jane’s exit from a room with a single outstretched leg as he sprawls in a chair. Rows of identical schoolgirls scribble at their desks to convey the monotonous drudgery of life at Lowood School.
It has less success in heavy handed symbolism. The “D-men,” who represent Jane’s inner demons and the patriarchal barriers to independence, confuse the story line. Bertha (Amber Lewis), Rochester’s “mad” first wife, is played as a stereotype with flaming costume and bruised limbs. Yet there are fascinating, fleeting glimpses of a more complex character when her movements echo those of Jane. This creates a bond between the two and a warning of what could happen if Jane surrendered herself totally to Rochester.
As always with Northern Ballet, the company scenes shimmer with colour and gorgeous costumes, designed by Patrick Kinmonth. Here, a party thrown by Rochester combines drama — a servant being injured off-stage by Bertha — with jealousy — a despondent Jane feeling inferior to socialite Blanche Ingram. The scene is subtly supported by Philip Feeney’s score, combining original and 19th-century music.
This is nonetheless Jane’s story rather than an ensemble piece. Larose convinces in both her angry and tender moments, and especially in the final scenes when she duets with a humbled Rochester. It’s somewhat of a masterstroke that Marston doesn’t close with the lovers but with Jane alone, independent and confidentially staring into the audience. (Susan Darlington)
Created for the company by internationally renowned award-winning choreographer Cathy Marston in 2016, the ballet went on to be nominated for a South Bank Sky Arts Award and a National Dance Award. It was revived by Northern Ballet in 2018, with a national tour and a spell at Sadlers Wells in London, and has since also been performed by American Ballet Theatre in New York and Chicago’s Joffrey Ballet.
“Every time the ballet is staged I am still interested in these characters,” says Marston who has been working with the Northern Ballet dancers in preparation for this new touring production. When the company’s then artistic director David Nixon first approached her nine years ago with the idea of an adaptation of Charlotte Brontë’s classic novel, she was thrilled. “What I love is storytelling through ballet and I love the Brontës – my parents were both English teachers so those books have been in my life for a very long time. I really like strong, rebellious women and I love the Romantic period – it is full of angst and drama and love. The Brontës’ stories are so inspiring to translate into dance because of the intense emotional journeys of the protagonists, and the backdrop of the landscape and elemental forces serve to intensify those emotions.”
The process of adapting a novel into another art form is a complex one requiring a delicate balancing act between being faithful to the text and allowing for creative imagination and originality. In dance a particular challenge is to externalize all those inner thoughts and feelings that a reader is privy to. “My process is that initially I will create a scenario and work with the composer and designer on that,” says Marston. “For Jane Eyre I worked with Philip Feeney who composed and arranged the music which combines original composition and existing work, it is anchored in the work of Fanny Mendelssohn – she was a contemporary of Charlotte’s and she felt like an appropriate voice – and Patrick Kinmouth who created a wonderful abstract, evocative set based on the landscape and the novel’s interior spaces. Then I come into the studio with the dancers – at that point I’m really clear on what has to be achieved narratively and in each scene; what I don’t know are any of the movements.”
With the dancers Marston then begins workshopping movements for each character. “I like each character to have a unique vocabulary. I will give the dancers a list of adjectives to describe each character or sometimes images from the book. Together we make movement that’s prompted by those words and we create little leitmotifs. In this adaptation there is a young Jane and an older Jane so we need to have a physical vocabulary that links them. All those things develop at the beginning of the process, then once we have that physical language the dancers are much more able to make movements. Sometimes we will read relevant bits of the book together and I always encourage them to read the book or watch the films.”
Marston has enjoyed working with the Northern Ballet dancers again and is full of praise for them. “They are really wonderful,” she says. “There will be around 50 performances of the ballet around the country with four different casts. I have worked with several Janes and Rochesters and it has been lovely to have the time to spend with each of them. They all bring something unique to the roles and I love that the ballet stands up and is strong enough for those different interpretations by different dancers. That is so exciting for me.”
Part of the enduring appeal of Jane Eyre is the character of Jane herself and Marston says she wanted to make sure that, while the love story with Rochester is a key element, central to ballet is Jane’s own journey. “Jane has this strength but vulnerability and ambition that is thwarted so many times, but ultimately she does find herself. I do also love that mixture of gruffness and sensitivity in Rochester which is very compelling and attractive. In the end it is a story of a young woman who faces her struggles, finds her power and has it recognized – that is so inspiring. I hope audiences will be moved and enthralled by the journey they go on with her.”
Romance
Romantic books can be classical, contemporary, historical or compelling characters with strong chemistry, a believable plot with engaging conflict, emotional depth, and a satisfying happy ending, These types of books pair well with a bottle of Rosé Champagne as it’s pretty, elegant and the ultimate romantic wine.
Book suggestions:
The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
Funny Story by Emily Henry [...]
Classics
A classic novel is a book that has stood the test of time because it’s so good. They are known for their strong characters and well-crafted storytelling. They are known for their lasting influence on culture, which is still relevant today. This type of story needs a strong classic pairing of a bottle of Vintage Champagne. This type of Champagne will be rich and complex in flavours and aromas, smooth, creamy and persistent, which stands the test of time.
Book suggestions:
Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
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