Overview
Synopsis
Charlotte Brontë’s classic gothic romance is brought to life in Jane Eyre. This musical adaptation follows the independent, passionate governess Jane Eyre, through her harsh childhood after being left as an orphan to an uncaring aunt, through her employment as a governess at Thornfield Hall. There, she meets the mysterious and magnetic Edward Fairfax Rochester, master of the house and warden of her pupil. Though drawn to each other, they are haunted by the ghosts of Mr. Rochester’s past, which threaten to enjoy any possibilities of a future of love or happiness for either. This Tony Award-nominated musical features a grand, sweeping score that transports the audience to a world of wild, ungovernable passion on the moors.
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Context
Jane Eyre is a musical adaptation of Charlotte Brontë’s classic gothic romance, created by playwright/director John Caird and composer/lyricist Paul Gordon. In 1995, the musical’s first workshop was presented at the Manhattan Theatre Club in New York City, followed by another workshop at the Centre Theatre in Wichita, Kansas, later that year. These workshops being well received, Jane Eyre soon had its world premiere at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in Toronto in late 1996.
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ACT ONE
The stage empty, Edward Fairfax Rochester’s voice can be heard, calling out for his lost love, Jane Eyre.
Jane enters to tell her story. She recalls her painful childhood after being left an orphan (“The Orphan”). Young Jane is sent to Gateshead Hall, to live with her unfeeling aunt, Mrs. Reed, and her children. Mrs. Reed dislikes her niece, viewing her as a useless burden, and abuses her physically and emotionally, even encouraging her children to be cruel to their cousin.
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Character Portrayals
See StageAgent members who have performed roles in Jane Eyre.
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Songs
ACT ONE
- The Orphan - Jane Eyre, Mr. Brocklehurst
- Children of God - Mr. Brocklehurst, Mrs. Reed, Miss Scatcherd, Schoolgirls
- Forgiveness - Helen Burns
- The Graveyard - Jane Eyre, Young Jane, Ensemble
- Sweet Liberty - Jane Eyre, Ensemble
- Secrets of the House - Ensemble
- Perfectly Nice - Mrs. Fairfax, Adèle, Jane Eyre
- As Good As You - Mr. Rochester
- Secret Soul - Jane Eyre, Mr. Rochester
- The Finer Things - Blanche Ingram
- The Pledge - Jane Eyre, Mr. Rochester
- Sirens - Mr. Rochester, Jane Eyre, Bertha Mason
ACT TWO
- Things Beyond This Earth - Ensemble
- Painting Her Portrait - Jane Eyre
- In the Light of the Virgin Morning - Jane Eyre and Blanche Ingram
- The Gypsy - The Gypsy
- The Proposal - Jane Eyre, Mr. Rochester
- Slip of a Girl - Mrs. Fairfax, Jane Eyre, Robert, Adèle Varens
- Sirens (Reprise) - Jane Eyre, Mr. Rochester
- Farewell, Good Angel - Mr. Rochester
- My Maker - Jane Eyre
- Rain - Woman, Ensemble
- The Voice Across the Moors - St John Rivers, Jane Eyre, Mr. Rochester
- Poor Sister - Mason, Jane Eyre
- Brave Enough for Love - Jane Eyre, Mr. Rochester, Ensemble
A song with an asterisk (*) before the title indicates a dance number; a character listed in a song with an asterisk (*) by the character's name indicates that the character exclusively serves as a dancer in this song, which is sung by other characters.
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