Laura Wade’s adaptation of unfinished Jane Austen novel THE WATSONS is coming to the West End.
The transfer follows critically acclaimed runs at Chichester Festival Theatre and the Menier Chocolate Factory.
“A beautifully bold, clear production… a stunning play.” – The Guardian ★★★★★
“Gleefully unruly and caustically self-mocking.” – Time Out ★★★★
“Beautifully acted, this is a play that keeps you guessing until the last second.” – The Times ★★★★
In the play, directed by Samuel West, Wade takes inspiration from the start of Austen’s early novel. But what happens when the writer loses the plot?
Emma Watson is nineteen and new in town. She’s been cut off by her rich aunt and dumped back in the family home. Emma and her sisters must marry, fast. If not, they face poverty, spinsterhood, or worse: an eternity with their boorish brother and his awful wife.
Luckily there are plenty of potential suitors to dance with, from flirtatious Tom Musgrave to castle-owning Lord Osborne, who’s as awkward as he is rich.
So far so familiar. But there’s a problem: Jane Austen didn’t finish the story. Who will write Emma’s happy ending now?
Based on her incomplete novel, this sparklingly witty play looks under the bonnet of Jane Austen and asks: what can characters do when their author abandons them?
Laura Wade’s play HOME I’M DARLING (Theatr Clwyd, National Theatre, West End & UK tour) won the Olivier Award for Best Comedy. Her hit play POSH transferred to the West End from the Royal Court, and then onto the big screen as THE RIOT CLUB. Recent work includes the adaptation of TIPPING THE VELVET (Lyric Hammersmith and Edinburgh).
Wade told the Standard in an interview that she “wanted to do something around the idea of what happens to the characters once the author goes away”.
The cast is yet to be announced for the transfer. Grace Molony, who is playing Emma at the Menier Chocolate Factory until November 16, has been nominated for the Emerging Talent Award, in partnership with Access Entertainment, at this year’s Evening Standard Theatre Awards for her performance.
The creative team comprises of designer Ben Stones, lighting by Richard Howell, sound by Gregory Clarke, movement by Mike Ashcroft and music by Isobel Waller-Bridge.
THE WATSONS is on in The Menier Chocolate Factory until the 16th of Nov. (SOLD OUT!) and will start its West End run at the Harold Pinter Theatre from May 19 – September 26 2020. Public booking opens on November 15.
