Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility
Jane Austen
Sense And Sensibility
by Jane Austen, Kate Hamill from Jane Austen, Kate Hamill
Off-Broadway
Highlights
120 mins 18th Century Reduced Casting (Doubling Possible) Flexible Cast Size Room for Extras Strong Role for Leading Woman (Star Vehicle) Unit Set/Multiple Settings Period Costumes British Adaptation Historical Comedy
Awards & Recognition
Drama League Award
Winner! Top 10 Plays of 2014 – The New York Times Winner! Top 10 Plays of 2014 – Huffington Post Winner! 2014 and 2016 New York Times Critic’s Pick Winner! Wall Street Journal Playwright of the Year, 2017 Winner! Off-Broadway Alliance Awards for Best Revival and Best Unique Theatrical Experience Nominee: 2016 Drama League Award for Best Revival
Synopsis
Kate Hamill's playful new adaptation of Jane Austen’s beloved 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 with a fresh female voice, the play is full of humor, emotional depth and bold theatricality.
Sense and Sensibility examines our reactions, both reasonable and ridiculous, to societal pressures.
When reputation is everything, how do you follow your heart?
Press Reviews
"One of the best things I’ve ever seen onstage."
— Ira Glass
"As adapted for the stage by Kate Hamill and directed by Eric Tucker, Sense and Sensibility might be described as Jane Austen for those who don’t usually like Jane Austen, finding her work too reserved for lively entertainment. Yet I would imagine that even fanatical Janeites, as her most devoted admirers are known, will not take offense, once they get used to this production’s audaciously high energy level."
— The New York Times
"Ms. Hamill’s scene of Fanny Dashwood going manic and pummeling Lucy Steele when she discovers that the young woman is engaged to her brother Edward was not only fun to watch, but quite original (and much too short). Opinion: If this production of Sense and Sensibility comes to a theatre near you, I am certain you will like it immensely."
— Jane Austen’s World
Characters
| Character |
|---|
| ELINOR DASHWOOD The eldest Dashwood sister; sensible |
| MARIANNE DASHWOOD The middle Dashwood sister; sensitive |
| MARGARET DASHWOOD The youngest Dashwood sister; 10-13 years old |
| MRS. DASHWOOD Mother to the Dashwood sisters |
| JOHN DASHWOOD Half-brother to the Dashwood sisters (from their father’s side; no blood relation to Mrs. Dashwood) |
| EDWARD FERRARS A gentleman; a bachelor |
| FANNY (FERRARS) DASHWOOD Wife to John Dashwood and sister to Edward; nasty |
| COLONEL BRANDON An older bachelor; over 45 years old |
| JOHN WILLOUGHBY An unusually handsome young man |
| SIR JOHN MIDDLETON A country gentleman; distant relation to Mrs. Dashwood |
| MRS. JENNINGS A good-natured, boisterous woman; mother-in-law to Sir John and a terror to the countryside |
| LADY MIDDLETON An over-bred lady |
| LUCY STEELE A young girl from no fortune |
| ANNE STEELE Lucy’s sister; indiscreet |
| ROBERT FERRARS A callow young man; Edward Ferrars’ younger brother |
| GOSSIPS 1-5 A chorus of high-society creatures |
| SERVANTS , including |
| THOMAS |
| DOCTOR |
Videos
Sense and Sensibility Trailer – Stratford Festival
Publication
Publisher Dramatists Play Service
Year 2026
Binding Paperback
Pages 100
Language English
ISBN-13 9780822233244
ISBN-10 082223324X
LCCN 2016286246
LCC PS3608.A649 S46 2016
DCC 812/.6
Sense And Sensibility is a British adaptation play written by Jane Austen and published by Dramatists Play Service (2026).
Digital editions available on Amazon Kindle .
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