Program copy for Persuasion is due, so I've written a director's note. The show runs April 14-19 in the Pasant Theatre at MSU (https://www.whartoncenter.com/events/detail/jane-austens-persuasion)
Director's Note
This is my third opportunity to direct a Jane Austen adaptation at MSU, having previously worked on Pride and Prejudice in the Fairchild Theatre and Sense and Sensibility for Summer Circle. Persuasion tends to be a favored title for devoted Janeites, and many chapters of JASNA (The Jane Austen Society of North America) are hosting reading groups featuring the novel in 2026 in preparation for that organization’s annual meeting focused on the novels that take place in and around Bath (Persuasion and Northanger Abbey). Austen’s last novel, published posthumously, Persuasion is the story of Anne Elliot, convinced in her youth to break off an engagement to Frederick Wentworth due to his uncertain prospects. The novel begins in the summer of 1814 as Frederick returns from the Napoleonic Wars having made his fortune as a Captain in the British Navy, and concludes in February or March 1815 just prior to Napoleon’s return from exile.
Melissa Leilani Larson’s inventive adaptation features memories of Young Anne and Young Frederick, as Anne and Wentworth recall the summer of 1806 and the events of their courtship. I have wanted to direct this script since I first read it via the New Play Exchange because it beautifully captures Austen’s themes of patience, second chances, and maturity without sacrificing the satirical portrayals of Anne’s superficial and supercilious family members. This production leans into some of the script’s cinematic qualities: with 79 scenes (by my count), it is important to maintain a constant flow. While the story remains grounded in its historical period, we have explored some contemporary resonances. Captain Benwick “mansplains” Byron’s poetry to Anne, rendering him less desirable to her as a suitor. Because Austen gives us birth dates for the Elliots on the first page of the novel, we were able to identify astrological signs for Sir Walter (Pisces), Elizabeth (Gemini), Anne (Leo, perhaps surprisingly), and Mary (Scorpio). Water is an important element in the play, with naval ships, the seaside town of Lyme Regis, and discussion of “taking the waters” in Bath. But other elements also resonate: the airy Elliots contrast with the earthy Musgroves (often falling from high places).Benwick and Louisa demonstrate a mutable fluidity that frustrates the more fixed and grounded Captain Harville and baffles fiery Wentworth. Anne is attracted to Wentworth’s fire.
“And how should a woman in my position find happiness?” asks Anne near the beginning of the play. This is a central dramatic question. Though Anne initially rejects Frederick’s advice to see the world, her later travels away from Kellynch Hall allow her to develop new perspectives. As she becomes increasingly disillusioned with her family’s values related to social hierarchy, her definition of “home” changes from a house to a feeling of love and security.
