Sense and Sensibility Review
Poster from UMD Department of Theatre.
Do you want to see a show that has love triangles, deception, humor and gossip, but takes place in the late 18th century? Look no further, because the UMD Theater Department is currently showing its production of “Sense and Sensibility” on Nov. 3 through Nov. 11, and I had the chance to attend.
“Sense and Sensibility” is a play written by Kate Hamill based on the novel by Jane Austen. Hamill’s 2017 adaptation of the novel follows the fortunes (and misfortunes) of the Dashwood sisters — sensible Elinor and hypersensitive Marianne — after their father’s sudden death leaves them financially destitute and socially vulnerable.
Set in gossipy late 18th-century England, the play is full of humor, emotional depth and bold theatricality. I attended the show on opening night heading into it with no prior knowledge of what the play was about.
From the start of the play, I knew I was going to enjoy its sense of humor when a fake, dead body dropped from the ceiling through a hidden trap door (sorry, spoilers). A recurring humorous aspect of the play was a group of four actors who would gossip about and watch the other main actors’ scenes as if they were an audience.
This group of actors would repeatedly whisper the word “gossip” to each other and the audience when there were intense scenes or revelations made in the plot point. At one point the “gossiper” sat at the back of the stage eating fake popcorn as they were watching one of the scenes unfold.
This 4th-wall break-like element added humor to the play. The main actors were humorous themselves, when appropriate, with their facial expressions and body language.
The plot itself was pretty easy to follow - a mother and her three daughters forced to move after the husband/father’s death; the daughters being caught up in love triangles and deception pursuing men who aren’t available to them.
Most of the actors played two to three roles, so sometimes I would temporarily be confused as to which character was in a scene, however, all the actors played each role uniquely so it didn’t take long to differentiate the characters. This element of one actor playing multiple roles came in handy, in some instances, to really add to the humor of the play.
For example, in one scene two characters played by the same actress got into a fight, so the actress would move from one side of the stage to the other and change costumes to match the character she was playing, and would talk to the other character as if she was there.
The simplicity, but creativeness of the props added to the humor of the play. In multiple scenes, the characters would sit around a table to dine together, however, instead of sitting at an actual table, the characters would just sit in chairs that were placed around a rectangular shape on the floor made by the lights above to represent a table.
The costumes, makeup, and wigs were not anything too extravagant but were perfect for reminding the audience that this play takes place in late 18th-century England.
Overall, I enjoyed the play as the actors played each character so uniquely with their own personalities. I could tell they were giving 110% into their performance. The plot of the show, along with the humor, props and costumes made it an overall enjoyable play.
I would tell you more in-depth about this play, but if you wanna know more, I highly recommend you go see it for yourself on Nov. 11, which is your last chance as it is the last production date.
I applaud all the actors, technicians, production staff, stagehands and everyone involved with this play. For information about upcoming shows at UMD, check the full season schedule on their website.