MRS ROCHESTER:
AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY
a new musical expansion of JANE EYRE
mrs. rochester: an autobiography
is a new multi-genre musical about unearthing quiet voices and unfolding untold stories. Half Jane's well-known story of choice between facing selfish happiness and unhappy selflessness, and half Bertha's lost narrative of disillusionment and transformational healing, we embark on a journey to discover the shape and integrity of true happiness.
This piece invites the audience to a landscape of folk, jazz, pop, and classic Musical Theatre, combined to create a dreamscape of feminine love, loss, and fury. It asks: how do we put out faith in radical hope above comfortable compliance?
mrs rochester: an autobiography (formerly jane eyre: an autobiography) was a finalist for the 2021 O’Neill National Music Theatre Conference, and a recipient of the inaugural Groundbreakers Grant from 5th Floor Theatre Company.
It was originally developed as a thesis project at Playwrights Horizons Theater School, with a staged reading in 2019. When the production was cancelled due to COVID in 2020, the team created a Visual Album showcasing some of the music from the show. The Groundbreakers Grant was used to produce a concert-reading presented at P&T Knitwear Bookstore in November 2022.
a concert reading at P&T Knitwear Bookstore
MRS ROCHESTER:
AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY
TEAM
PRODUCTION
written + composed by Beth Golison
directed by Kate diRienzi
music orchestration + direction by Kyle Brenn
dramaturgy by Nile Harris
assistant direction + stage management by Max Mooney
CAST
Ali Rojek as jane
Alexis Cofield as bertha
Jake Regensburg as rochester
Jonice Bernard as tilda/bessie
Saniya Jaffer as helen/grace
Fig Regan as john/brocklehurst/graham/st john
Rachel Keteyian as Blanche/Scatcherd/Cathy
Sophia Drapeau as mrs fairfax/mrs reed
Jamie Lockhart as mary/adele/diana
Nile Harris as Swing mary/adele/diana
jane eyre
(THE VISUAL ALBUM)
music by Beth Golison
directed and edited by Kate diRienzi
featuring
Ali Rojek as Jane, Olivia Kwarm as Bertha, Jake Regensburg as Rochester, Abby Garcia as Helen, and the ensemble of jane eyre: an autobiography
music produced by Kyle Brenn, Beth Golison, Nicholas Webster, Molly Kirschenbaum
jane eyre: an autobiography
(2019 staged reading)
written + composed by Beth Golison
directed by Kate diRienzi
performed by Orla Bordeaux, Chloe Citron, Sydney Cusic, Sophia Drapeau, Sterling Gates, Giuliana Mancini, Jake Regensburg, Ali Rojek, Rutger Scott
assistant direction: Max Mooney
dramaturgy: Nile Harris
music direction: Kyle Brenn
stage management: Emory Kemph
