Looking to the (Brontë) future

Keighley News has an article on the Brontë Society's plans for the building it acquired last year.

Once home to the famous literary siblings – who drew inspiration for their classic works from the neighbouring moorland – it attracts visitors from across the world, keen to see where the sisters wrote and how they lived.

But whilst the past is central to any museum, parsonage bosses are also keen to look to the future.

And the team's ambitious plans were outlined to Keighley MP Robbie Moore during a visit to the site.

He met up with museum director Rebecca Yorke, who showed him around a historic building – bought by the Brontë Society last year – in the village's West Lane.

The three derelict adjoining properties were acquired shortly before they were due to be sold at auction.

They include the former studio of photographer Fred Smith, who was caretaker of the original Brontë Museum when it was situated above the Yorkshire Penny Bank in the early 1900s.

Many of Smith's photographs, which document the Haworth of that time, are now in the Brontë Society archive and it's hoped some will be displayed in the building once renovations are complete.

The premises will also provide additional space for the society's growing archive and team, and offer opportunities for closer engagement with residents and visitors.

Following the release of the latest movie version of Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights, visitor numbers to the museum have enjoyed a boost.

Mr Moore says: "It was fantastic to meet with Rebecca and hear about the society's exciting plans for the future.

"The Brontë Parsonage is one of the most important literary sites in the country and it was great to hear about the continued success of the museum – particularly following the recent Wuthering Heights film.

"A huge 'thank you' to Rebecca and the team for the update, and tour of the newly-acquired buildings in West Lane which have massive potential. I’m looking forward to seeing the plans progress."

Rebecca says: "We were very happy to welcome Robbie to the museum and have the opportunity to update him on our recent successes and share our aims and ambitions for the future.

"We take our responsibilities as custodians of the Brontës' legacy and as a world-renowned visitor attraction very seriously, and are pleased to have our contribution to the area's cultural offer and economy recognised by our MP." (Alistair Shand)

Both BBC News and The Yorkshire Post report MP Robbie Moore's speech in Parliament against the wind farm plans at the heart oif Brontë country.

After giving Wuthering Heights 2026 a two-star review back in February, now the film it's The Guardian's pick of the week on TV.

Pick of the week

Wuthering Heights

Emerald Fennell has done a grand job dialling up the scandal over her new adaptation of Emily Brontë’s windswept novel. But aside from the casting of a white actor (Jacob Elordi) as the arguably non-white Heathcliff – and an unexpected S&M subplot – this is the bodice-ripping historical romance most fans would wish for. Margot Robbie plays Cathy as a frustrated social climber torn between a life of luxury with Shazad Latif’s Edgar and the earthy lust offered by the uncouth Heathcliff. For its look, Fennell goes full gothic, a la Guillermo del Toro, with stormy skies, unbridled sex on the moors, ludicrous costumes and often bizarre interior design, as the love story comes to a boil.

Friday 1 May, 8.25am, 8pm, Sky Cinema Premiere (Simon Wardell)

A contributor to Her Campus writes about 'Why The Backlash Of ‘Wuthering Heights’ Is So Deserved'.

ABC News has an obituary of writer David Malouf.

For many years, Malouf divided his time between Sydney and Tuscany. Later, he returned to Queensland and lived in an apartment tower overlooking the beach at Surfers Paradise, where he first read Jane Eyre as a 12-year-old on summer holidays. (Nicola Heath)

Purewow recommends the Jane Eyre retelling The Chateau On Sunset by Natasha Lester.

For those unfamiliar with the premise of Jane Eyre, the 1847 novel was written by Charlotte Brontë. (Yes, she was Emily Brontë's older sister.) The story follows the eponymous orphaned character as she enters into service as a governess at Thornfield Hall. There, she presides over the education of an orphaned French girl, Adèle Varens. Adele is the ward of Thornfield Hall's master, Edward Rochester. Despite Rochester's surly demeanor, he and Jane eventually fall in love. He proposes, she accepts—and then a haunting secret from Rochester's past emerges.

The Chateau on Sunset borrows the major storyline and transplants it into the Golden Age of Hollywood. The backdrop is none other than the famed Chateau Marmont, whose history is just as tumultuous as the lives of the rich and famous who have sequestered behind its walls. In Lester's retelling, Jane becomes Aria Jones, an orphan sent from New York to live with her aunt, the mysterious former Hollywood legend Miss Devine Ray, at the Chateau. There, Aria makes it her business to blend in, hiding herself from her aunt's drug- and alcohol- induced stupors and evading the preying, powerful men who walk the halls. Her two closest friends are up-and-coming actresses Flitter Reeve and Calliope Burns. Aria wants one thing: To escape on her 18th birthday and live by the ocean. But all that is thrown to the wind when the hotel is purchased by brooding rockstar Theo Winchester, who promptly moves into the penthouse with his daughter, Adele.

Lester captures the opulence, corruption, glamour, power, success and fear that coursed through the waning days of Hollywood's golden age, transposing characters from Jane Eyre so that the plot is familiar but the story wholly original.

Aria is a compelling character, but not just because she's a sketch of one of my favorite heroines. In the author's note, Lester made the interesting observation that one of the sticking points of Jane Eyre is Rochester and his wife, Bertha. Bertha famously sets fire to Thornfield Hall, which causes Jane to flee and seemingly break up with Rochester. When someone says Jane Eyre, it's usually associated with "crazy wife in the attic." This is where Lester does Aria a good turn.

Similarly to actual historical events, Chateau Marmont does indeed go up in flames—but what happens next is a story that puts the girl front and center. Instead of simply running back to Theo, Aria must decide who she is going to become. And, more importantly, who she wants to become. A wallflower content with operating behind the scenes and being invisible must realize that she's worthy of the spotlight. Lester's book is powerful to me because of the fact that Theo and his ex are the afterthought. The events that lead to the conclusion of Aria's story are unexpected, taking her far from the confines of LA and exploring how satisfaction isn't so much falling in love with another person as it is falling in love with herself. (Marissa Wu)

The Bark features the 'innovative set design' used for Bearden theatre's production of Jane Eyre.

The Bearden theatre has taken on the production of Jane Eyre, a literary staple highlighting the internal struggles of a young woman set in early 19th century England.

The play follows Jane as she navigates religious and moral hardships stemming from her relationships and conflicting setting. 

A towering chestnut tree roots the audience into the set. The tree is commonly interpreted as a symbol of Jane’s suffering due to Rochester’s villainous wife Bertha; however, Bearden theatre added a layer of emotion in the designing process. 

“In a lot of ways, the tree is also a point of safety for Jane…it’s more of a comforting place for her,” said senior and production manager Addison Pratt. [...]

Altering their own production of Jane Eyre from 2005, the set crew believed introducing the tree could augment an already impressive production. Visually, the set piece adds a realistic element to the stage, framing Jane’s relationship with her setting. The chestnut tree will act as one of many interactive elements within the play. 

“This was a new edition that we added and I think it adds a lot,” Pratt said. 

The set will go beyond traditional physical props moved on and off the stage. Working closely with the theatre department at UT, the crew was able to utilize projection mapping within the show. This technical feature will allow certain visual effects to be precisely projected onto the set, heightening the emotion of the play.

“We worked closely with the Clarence Brown Theatre downtown and have borrowed some projectors from them,” senior and set crew member Alex Mair said. “We’ve used some programs to projection map creative elements onto the stage for certain scenes. 

Added Pratt: “Our team has spent a lot of time really figuring out the different programs that we can use and finding a way to make the projections work really well on our stage, and it looks really cool.”

The theatre department will step away from traditional auditorium seating for the show, as on stage seating deepens the audience-cast connection simply from their proximity to the stage. Both cast and crew look forward to the creative elements that will be in high definition for spectators.

“While I think that traditional auditorium seating is great for big, flashier shows, you just feel so much more involved with the characters [through on stage seating],” Mair said. “You can see every single movement that’s happening, every single little detail, and it makes the story feel a lot more interactive.”

Added Pratt: “It’s definitely a much more intimate experience, which I think is really cool.”

Senior Caitlin Stout appreciates the creative liberty given to the crew throughout the production. Stout believes that as a member of set crew, it was her role to not only produce impressive design elements, but to aid the cast in their presentation. What turned into yet another showing of Bearden’s standard for creative set design first began with simple features for the cast to make their own. 

“We wanted the set to be a canvas for the actors to take on and not have to work around designs within the set,” she said. (Max Mead)

15WMTV featured another high school production: Edgewood High School and their take on You on the Moors Now.

Students from Edgewood High School are presenting “You on the Moors Now” for an upcoming performance.

“You on the Moors Now” is about four women from the 19th century novels that turn down marriage proposals.

The performance tracks Jo March from “Little Women,” Elizabeth Bennet from “Pride and Prejudice,” Catherine Earnshaw from “Wuthering Heights” and Jane Eyre from “Jane Eyre” and follows them figuring out their romantic ideologies.

“It’s really great to bring classic literature back to the stage in a modern retelling of it,” Bella Baldo, who plays Earnshaw, said. “Being able to bring themes from modern culture into classic literature and really they have been there all along.”

Along with Baldo, Daphne Conner is casted as March, Ellie O’Day plays Jane Eyre and Ruthie Brenner plays the role of Bennet.

“I’m really excited for them to see the battle scene because it’s really chaotic and obscured, but it’s also really funny at the same time,” O’Day said. “We have a lot of cool weapons.” (Calahan Steed)

Church News lists '15 times Church leaders quoted classic literature in general conference' including

Charlotte Brontë

“One of my favorite books is the British classic ‘Jane Eyre,’ written by Charlotte Brontë and published in 1847. The main character, Jane Eyre, is a penniless, teenage orphan who exemplifies what it means to be true. In this fictional account, a man, Mr. Rochester, loves Miss Eyre but is unable to marry her. Instead, he begs Miss Eyre to live with him without the benefit of marriage. Miss Eyre loves Mr. Rochester as well, and for a moment she is tempted, asking herself, ‘Who in the world cares for you? Or who will be injured by what you do?’

“Quickly Jane’s conscience answers: ‘I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself. I will keep the law given by God. … Laws and principles are not for the times when there is no temptation: they are for such moments as this. … If at my individual convenience I might break them, what would be their worth? They have a worth — so I have always believed. … Preconceived opinions, foregone determinations, are all I have at this hour to stand by: there I plant my foot.’

“In a desperate moment of temptation, Jane Eyre was true to her beliefs, she trusted in the law given by God, and she planted her foot in resistance to temptation.”

— Sister Ann M. Dibb, then the second counselor in the Young Women general presidency, April 2011 general conference, “I Believe in Being Honest and True” (Kaitlyn Bancroft)

La Tinta de Almansa (Spain) has an article on a local exhibition which shines the spotlight on women writers who used pseudonyms.