Review: Bedlam's SENSE & SENSIBILITY Flies onto Portland Center Stage (Warning: May Cause Dizziness)

Even if you only occasionally pay attention to theatre news, you've probably heard of Kate Hamill's brilliant new adaptation of Jane Austen's SENSE & SENSIBILITY. It was a 2016 NYT Critic's Pick, and Ben Brantley's review of the original Off-Broadway production was, in a word, effusive. You may even have seen it -- OSF and Clackamas Repertory Theatre staged productions last year, both of which I enjoyed immensely. SENSE & SENSIBILITY was one of the Top 10 most-produced plays in 2017-2018, and Hamill is currently one of the Top 5 most-produced playwrights.

Directed by Eric Tucker and with sets by John McDermott, the production now playing at Portland Center Stage is the Bedlam original, or at least something close to it. It features a fabulous cast headed by Danea C. Osseni (who was Nettie in last fall's The Color Purple at PCS) as the sensible Elinor Dashwood and Quinlan Fitzgerald as the romantic Margaret Dashwood.

In short, there's every reason to love this production. And, yet, I admit that I didn't.

Hamill's script is a lively and hilarious adaptation of the classic. One main difference between this and other adaptations you might have seen is the addition of ever-present gossips. The characters can hardly take a step without a gaggle of people speculating about where they're going and who they might be meeting. In many ways, gossip, or at least the threat of it, determines the characters' decisions and shapes their lives. It's an excellent adaptation, one that should please both Austen purists and those who consider her work less-than-exciting.

The staging is equally lively. There are no fixed set pieces -- everything is on casters, so chairs, tables, sofas, and even doors are rolled across the stage, usually by the actors themselves. Between the rolling set and the fact that the actors are forever changing (and sometimes exchanging) characters, there is constant motion. The choreography is incredible, and the cast executes it perfectly, but the incessant movement frequently overshadows everything else. It's almost impossible to follow the story, watch the set pieces, and keep up with who's playing who in what scene, without getting dizzy. I was right there with it through about the first half of Act 1, and then it became too much.

Given the previous (and, at least from what I've seen, unanimous) rave reviews, I've been wondering what the difference is between this production and the original. The only thing I've been able to hit on is the run time. The production is far from slow, but somewhere between Bedlam and Portland, it gained 30-45 minutes.

Since I didn't see the original, this is pure speculation, but I wonder if those extra minutes went to the lengthening of some scenes for comedic effect, which also felt like too much and more for the amusement of the actors than the audience. For example, Jamie Smithson is an excellent Edward Ferrars, but I didn't see a reason for his over-the-top, fourth-wall-breaking characterization of Edward's cottage-obsessed brother, Robert. And while Lauren Modica gave the standout best performance of the evening as Mrs. Jennings, the only purpose I could see for the raunchy possibly-ad-libbed monologue she delivered to Colonel Brandon was to make Ryan Quinn laugh (it made me laugh too -- Modica is incredible -- but I'm pretty sure Jane Austen rolled over in her grave).

Overall, I do love this play, and I did think the production funny and the stagecraft outstanding. But, for my taste, it was overdone. I'm by no means a purist, but I would have liked to have seen a little more of Austen's aesthetic poke through.

SENSE & SENSIBILITY runs through February 10. More details and tickets here.

Photo: Members of the cast of Bedlam's "Sense & Sensibility" at The Armory

Photo credit: Patrick Weishampel/blankeye.tv courtesy of Portland Center Stage at The Armory

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