Jane Eyre

Let me preface this post by saying how much I loved Jane Eyre when I first read it in high school for my AP English course.  I was so excited by the book that I proceeded to bring in the soundtrack from the musical of the same name. 

I love Jane Eyre because of it's darkness, suffering, complicated romance, and really difficult ending.  It's a novel in which we are rooting for Jane despite her misfortunes (and there are many).  I also love Jane Eyre because in many ways it's the antithesis to Jane Austen novels.  In my senior English class we talked about how Charlotte Bronte hated Jane Austen and mocked her shmaltzy romantic comedies with the suffering of Jane Eyre.  She also made it very clear that her title character, Jane, was a direct jab at Jane Austen.  I also feel there are so many darker layers in Jane Eyre, especially with the Bertha, Mr. Rochester's first wife.

The new movie adaptation of this novel came out this past weekend and I truly loved the film.  It was dark and the cinematography was absolutely breathtaking (it makes me miss England!).  It is shot very darkly clearly emphasizing the dreariness of the title character and the hopelessness she feels through out the novel.  I also found Mia Wasikowska to be a great pick for Jane.  I liked her interpretation of Jane as very cold, held, and pragmatic.  However, she was a bit difficult to like as my friend pointed out.  And the intimate scenes between Jane and Mr. Rochester were a little awkward.

This film is great because it doesn't shy away from the darkness of the novel.  However, I feel that with any film adaptation details are lost.  My friend had not read the novel beforehand (for shame!) and found it both frustrating and a little confusing to watch.  I, on the other hand, was waiting to see how they would interpret Bertha and how Mr. Rochester's proposal to Jane would play out.  So clearly the story was a little difficult to follow for an unfamiliar audience member.  That said, because the nature of the novel requires the narrator's voice the dialogue was also at times difficult to balance with the silence of the film.  This was a very quiet film.  There were a lot of scenic wide shots and a lot of action shots and not necessarily a lot of dialogue.  I liked this a lot because I feel it gave the sense of "reading" the film, like reading the novel.  However, because the dialogue was so heightened it contrasted with the silence and almost seemed to mock the romantic dialogue normally seen in a Jane Austen novel.  Whether or not this was intentional was difficult to pinpoint.

This film adaptation was smart.  It didn't just tell the story of Jane Eyre it also heightened the stylistic aspects of the novel by making the misery and loneliness apparent through cinematography and silence.  I like that this film made me think even though I knew the novel.  It didn't just carry you along through a nice romantic story.  You, like Jane, had to fight to feel the emotion and fulfillment at the end.  I found myself very absorbed in the film but also interpreting it intellectually much more than other films and I believe this was because the film allowed you to think for yourself.  The silence gave me time and the different styles gave me the foundation to question and make my own decision on the actions on the screen.  The film is in some ways a clash of stylistic themes, but it is also a highly enjoyable and intellectual piece of film, much like the novel.

"I am no bird; and no net ensnares me; I am a free human being with an independent will."
- Charlotte Bronte,  Jane Eyre

"Jazz Ain’t Dead" at the Joyce Soho

  Most of the professional dance performances I have seen are very well known large companies that perform in huge theatres.  This was my first time viewing a much smaller company in a smaller space.  Jazz Ain’t Dead is a dance and live music fusion group.  They pay tribute to many different jazz styles.  Their current performance at the Joyce Soho is a tribute to Gershwin’s Porgy & Bess, the classic score from the 1930s.  All in all, this was a fun night.  I felt like I wanted to get up and dance to a lot of the music and it seemed the the other audience members felt the same way too.

While there was live music and singing throughout the entire show, the emphasis was on dancing.  Most of the pieces were modern pieces in a large or small group, or in pas de duexs.  I found the large group numbers to be the cleanest, most energetic, and most skilled.  The beginning and ending numbers were upbeat leaving barely any moment of silence or stillness.  The dancers in these pieces were constantly turning, leaping, doing lifts, and switching from sequence to sequence.  I found that the choreographer’s work truly shined in these moments.  The group sequences really allowed different messages (whether it be sensuality, seduction, play, confrontation) to be portrayed while still feeding off of a large group dynamic.  In addition, I found the dancers to be most on top of the moves and most engaged in these moments.  The music was so fast and high energy that the movement required extreme precision.  There was a sense of unity and it culminated in a performance that swept me away.  I felt enticed by their movement and found that the music and their movement to be so complimentary that I wanted to get up and dance with them.

In addition to large dance numbers the night was sprinkled with duets and small group numbers.  These exuded sensuality only accentuated by the music.  One duet was absolutely breathtaking.  This female dancer, all in white, had amazing extensions but also knew how to use the music with the movement.  She was fluid and connected each movement to the next, epitomizing the sensuality of the music.  Her movement informed her acting and communicated so much more than just “sex appeal” but a feeling of loss, deep emotion, and passion.  When she was on stage, I could not take my eyes off of her. 

To me, jazz is most fun in its unpredictability.  While the dance style was mostly modern there was one tap piece.  As a tapper, I absolutely loved this piece.  I do not think that this entire number was choreographed because it seemed like a dialogue between the drummer and the tapper.  In the beginning of the piece the tapper incapsulated the rhythm of the band behind him.  By the end of the piece he was having a “stand off” with the drummer.  Both were doing a call and response with rhythm getting faster and more complicated with each challenge.  This was such fun to watch.  This tapper had been in Bring in Da Noise, Bring in Da Funk on Broadway and was using his tap dancing in a different way than the other choreography.  Tap is about making music with your dancing and this dancer found so many different rhythms and sounds with his feet.  His feet moved so fast that he even chipped the wood off of his dancing platform!

Would I recommend seeing this show?  Yes.  It’s a fun performance that makes you want to jump up and dance.  However, there are aspects of it that are a little problematic: they did have technical issues, the emcee seemed a little off, and I found some of the dancing to be unequal with the the larger group numbers.  But all in all, I had a good time and came away in a good mood.

New Beginning... Or just changing of the cycles.

This blog has existed for many purposes: keeping family up to date in my world adventures, a place to write my thoughts after seeing great works of theatre, and a way to share my feelings on friends and experiences.  I've kept silent for these past few months because I've felt I haven't had much to say.  That's of course, I've got plenty to say, it's just is it worth sharing?

I graduate very soon and am nervous about the change: I'm doubting acting and contemplating other career options.  But am I avoiding acting out of fear?  Yes.  Am I just worried about everything?  Yes.

And then, as I was walking to a coffee shop to study in California (Spring Break), I thought: "wouldn't it be cathartic and fun to SHARE my anxieties and changes as I transition into the real world?"

Then I thought, of course, who would read it?  But that's a different matter.  I've spent so many hours in my senior year WORRIED about what will happen next and if everything I felt to be true was changing.  It's hard for me to think of these things as an "adventure".  I just find it... terrifying.

So.  As this blog shifts, once again, this will be a venture into the all-too-blogged-about/all-too-familiar, documentation of a college student transitioning into the "real world".

I hope you find it humorous, endearing, annoying, and maybe even a little helpful along the way.