Charlotte Bront’s Jane Eyre has seen many adaptations, but Paul Gordon and John Caird turned it into a musical in 1996, eventually bringing it to Broadway in 2000. The libretto follows the familiar story of the orphaned Jane, who finally gets a chance to leave the hardship of charity school when she finds work as a governess in forbidding Thornfield Hall. There she encounters the brooding master of the house, Edward Rochester, and feelings develop between them. But dark secrets threaten the possibility of their happiness.
A dual cast alternates performances for this little-known, but intriguing, musical that was nominated for five 2000 Tony Awards. The classic tale gets the lush, operatic treatment it seems was always there waiting.
Spotlight Productions’ Jane Eyre: The Musical @ Rose Wagner Center Black Box Theatre, 138 W. 300 South, 801-355-ARTS, June 17–26, $10 - $12. ArtTix.org