PHFR: The "Emma" Extravaganza!

All last week was taken up with play things and this week I am trying to catch up on sleep.  We have finished our year of drama with the lovely story of "Emma" based on Jane Austen's novel.  It was very, very fun.  

Pretty

Costumes.  The Regency Era had the most beautiful dresses and men's styles.  My costumer mom has a particular penchant for those marvelous cravats that the men sported.  Whenever she sees one she "swoons".  

Emma Woodhouse

John Knightly, Mr. Knightly's brother

Miss Jane Austen, the Narrator of our Story

Miss Bates

Miss Austen at her writing desk

Mr. Frank Churchill

Mr. and Mrs. Weston

Mr. Elton

Mr. Knightly declares his love and is accepted

Mrs. Elton descends upon the Woodhouse home

Mr. Woodhouse...always worried about catching cold, you see........

Jane Fairfax gets her man at last

Happy 

Drama Kids.  Love them to pieces. Granted, there are times when the sound level reaches Seismic levels and they leave cups and costume pieces and scripts in their wake, but I just love their enthusiasm, their joy, their diving deep into the whole drama experience.  We laugh together and we cry together when it is all over.  Lovely.  

Funny

This is a very "Guerrilla" type theater department.  We boast of absolutely nothing "state of the art".    I have dads who come in and hand build the stage for every play and then take it down a week later. 

We improvise EVERYTHING.  For Emma we needed a carriage for that all important and hilarious "declaration of love" scene between Emma and Mr. Elton.  So we played it on the steps!  Complete with carriage drivers and reins. 

 It turned out pretty great and really, really funny.  Doing our theater is somewhat like flying a prop plane as opposed to a jet.  It's a pretty wild ride through all kinds of obstacles and we manage to land it to a screeching halt.  But we always seem to say almost right away,  "Let's do another one!" when it is all over.  

Real

Another year of drama over..and my seniors are graduating (sniff) and other kids are rising to take their places on the stage. It was a great year of theater!