Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} The Belle of Amherst by William Luce The Belle of Amherst by William Luce. As tight budgets have contributed to the proliferation of the one-person play The Belle of Amherst is still regarded as a benchmark for the genre's autobiographical subset in which the subject takes on the voices of the other characters in her life. Numerous actors have undertaken the role that, in addition to its enormous text memorizing demands, is shadowed by the legacy of Julie Harris's incandescent performance. Now, for the first time since its 1976 Broadway run, The Belle. . . is on a New York Stage. The new Emily Dickinson is Jolie Richardson. She comes to the role with a respectable stage resume ( Windermere's Fan, Side Effects, Madame Melville , Ivanov ), but she's best known as a member of a theater dynasty (her mother is Vanessa Redgrave) and her part in the cable series Nip/Tuck. Since this rare revival is directed by Steve Cosson I somehow expected it to be staged with some nod to the theater world's current penchant for trendy new interpretations and staging bells and whistles. You see, Cossom is the artistic director of the The Civilians, a company known for edgy, very now productions. But surprise, surprise, the only thing new about Cosson's production is that he's directed Ms. Richardson to play Emily Dickinson with almost frantic physicality. Antje Ellermann's single set is actually less detailed than the original, the costume is still just one white dress by William Ivey Long. The quite glamorous Richardson looks appropriately plain, dark auburn hair pulled into a schoomarmish bun, almost a replica of the original get-up. And yes, she's wearing a white dress throughout. Also in place is Luce's concept for creating a portrait of Emily Dickinson's life and poetry from her letters and poems; and so is his device for maintaining a conversational tone and connecting us to Dickinson by having her enter and invite us to join her for tea and the cake she's just baked. But somehow, at least during the first act, it's only when Dickinson's often humorous confidences about her family, neighbors, teachers and friends morph into an actual poem that this production catches fire — to wit, her explanation of why a poet must carefully choose the best words: "A word is dead/When it is said,/Some say. Begins to live/That day." Richardson certainly can't be faulted for not mastering the word-heavy text and delivering it with clarity and passion. However, as the playwright allowed the narrative to fluidly move backward and forward through Dickinson's reminiscences, the way Cosson sends Richardson scurrying around the stage — at times throwing herself on the floor — makes for a too busy but not sufficiently emotionally absorbing performance. The more successful second act follows up on the previous act's finale which announced that, after an 8-year correspondence, the distinguished editor Thomas Wentworth Higginson would be coming to the Dickinson home. We probably become more engaged at this juncture because Richardson seems to have adjusted to the jumping-all-over-the place direction and because this segment has her less girlish and with more easy to relate-to material to work — such as dealing with her failed ambitions to be a recognized poet. But mostly this is because we also get to hear some of her best poems. It's Dickinson's words that make us less aware of the shortcomings of this production. That includes the words that give voice to her disappointment in Higginson's rejection of her work: "A great Hope fell/ You heard no noise/The Ruin was within. . ." There's also the soul wrenching and much quoted "Hope is the thing with feathers/That perches in the soul/And sings the tune without the words/And never stops - at all." Still the shadow of Julie Harris haunts this Belle of Amherst. Given that too much time has passed since I saw Harris for me to recall just what it was about that long-ago performance that stuck so favorably with me, I decided to check out the You Tube replay of the original. I was going to just fast forward through but found myself staying with all of it. Harris was indeed remarkable. She also moved around the set (which was much richer than the current one) but there was nothing frenzied about her movements. Director Charles Nelson Reilly gave her more touching and natural bits of business. The first act's humor hit home with its charm and naturalness, instead of feeling more forced than funny as it did at the Westside Arts Theater. The poems, while well delivered by Richardson, virtually soared when spoken by Harris. I'm a firm believer in live theater and filmed versions of stage plays as a wonderful way to introduce a wide audience to live theater. However, there's nothing like live theater. I'm nevertheless concluding this review with a link to the You Tube version of The Belle of Amherst with Julie Harris because it's a great opportunity to see the artist who made the most of William Luce's gift to her as well as a master class in evaluating the difference between a good and an incomparably superb performance. The Belle of Amherst on You Tube. If seeing the play stirs up your interest in re-reading Dickinson's poems, as it did mine, various editions are available FREE at Amazon. I agree with the review of The Belle Of Amherst I disagree with the review of The Belle Of Amherst The review made me eager to see The Belle Of Amherst. Feel free to add detailed comments in the body of the email. . .also the names and emails of any friends to whom you'd like us to forward a copy of this review. The Belle of Amherst Summary William Luce. Everything you need to understand or teach The Belle of Amherst by William Luce. The Belle of Amherst Summary & Study Guide 1 Encyclopedia Article . and more. 30 The Belle of Amherst Lessons 20 Activities 180 Multiple Choice Questions 60 Short Essay Questions 20 Essay Questions Pre-Made Tests and Quizzes . and more. The Belle of Amherst Summary. The Belle of Amherst is a whimsical one-woman show based on the life of Emily Dickinson. Told in two acts, this play gives a voice to one of America's most enigmatic and eccentric poets. Drawing largely from Emily's poetry and letters, The Belle of Amherst is a breathing autobiography of a true nonconformist. For years, scholars have theorized that Emily Dickinson had some form of mental illness. This play gives Emily. “I dwell in Possibility…” Was last performed Feb. 19 – March 1, 2015 featuring talk-backs with Dickinson scholars Lynn Szabo & Judith Scholes at Roedde House Museum in Vancouver, British Columbia. Facebook: Emily Dickinson at Roedde House. “Step into the parlour for tea and town gossip with the brilliant, witty, and enigmatic 19 th century poet Emily Dickinson, The Belle of Amherst. This multi-award-winning one-woman play based on the reclusive genius’ writings and poetry features actor Renée Bucciarelli, whose work has enjoyed past praise from The New York Times. The Roedde House Museum , a special piece of local history that was home to Vancouver’s first bookbinder, provided an ideal period setting for Emily Dickinson’s seemingly fathomless exploration of words, of a vibrantly-lived inner life, and of love. Audience members of this intimate performance found themselves transported back to an elegant time, with live piano music from Miss Dickinson’s own playbook, and tea served in china cups, offered with Emily Dickinson’s famous ‘black cake’ . Emily Dickinson has inspired countless plays, novels, children’s books, contemporary poems, dances, performances, and artworks, as well as over 1,600 musical compositions, a Simon & Garfunkel song and, more recently, a chart-topping rock album by Italian singer/supermodel (and former French First Lady) Carla Bruni-Sarkozy. Of Miss Dickinson’s boundless ability “to have made all things new” renown literary critic Harold Bloom has pronounced “The Myth”–as she was called in her time–an equal to Shakespeare. “ Solo performer Renée Bucciarelli shines…deftly captures Emily’s mischievous spirit…” — Georgia Straight. “ A poignant portrait of a self-confessed social maverick…The indefatigable Renée Bucciarelli will reward your assiduity with a compelling insight into the life of this recondite and mysterious woman.” — Review Vancouver. “A superb job of transforming this legendary literary figure into flesh and feeling. …Off-kilter and earnest…Bucciarelli owns her muse’s eccentricities with every restless motion.”–Daily Hive. New York Daily News on The Belle of Amherst: “ Arresting, riveting…An overwhelming, meticulous adventure full of passion and poetry and heart.” More pictures and nice things people said on Facebook: Emily Dickinson at Roedde House. Past performances in the Vancouver, British Columbia area include with City Stage New West , Presentation House Theatre , Christ Church Cathedral , Hycroft Manor , and as a benefit for P.A.L. Vancouver . In New Hampshire: The Colonial Theatre (at the historic Mulburn Inn ), the Tillotson Center , and as a special event in memory of local poet and artist Viola Sutton , benefiting the Great North Woods Arts Center. Special thanks to Deborah Wright Houston, Melissa Haller, and Sean Allan for contributions to direction. *Renée Bucciarelli appears with the permission of Canadian Actors’ Equity Association. She is currently the Producing Artistic Director of City Stage New West, and Director/Developer of The Shakespeare Playground. ‘The Belle of Amherst’ Review: Success Is Counted Sweetest. A Florida production of William Luce’s 1976 one-woman play about Emily Dickinson paints a subtle, witty portrait of the oft-misrepresented poet. Margery Lowe as Emily Dickinson in ‘The Belle of Amherst’ Terry Teachout. Biography @terryteachout [email protected]. Emily Dickinson is not only a great poet but an artistic giant who casts a long shadow across both high and popular American culture. On the one hand, her hauntingly gnomic verses formed the basis for “Letter to the World” (1940), one of Martha Graham’s very best dances, and Aaron Copland’s “Twelve Poems of Emily Dickinson,” a song cycle of supreme sublimity. On the other hand, she cavorts wildly and ahistorically throughout “Dickinson,” the Apple TV+ comedy series in which she is transformed into a kind of proto-goth chick who takes opium and has hot sex with her brother’s fiancée. “The Belle of Amherst,” William Luce’s 1976 one-woman play about Dickinson, falls somewhere in between these distant extremes, if far closer to the former than the latter. Solidly stitched together by Luce from her poems and correspondence, it is no masterpiece by any means, but Luce tells the tale of her reclusive life with a proper regard for such verifiable facts as are known, and the result is one of the most commercially successful solo bioplays in the history of the genre. In addition to creating the role on Broadway and subsequently taking it on the road, Julie Harris appeared in a PBS version of the play taped at a 1976 Los Angeles performance, and that telecast (which can be streamed on Amazon Prime) has caused her to be indissolubly identified with part and play alike. While “The Belle of Amherst” continues to be performed by regional theater companies all over the U.S. and was revived off Broadway in 2014, nobody ever writes about it without making mention of Harris’s delicate, subdued performance, which is widely regarded as definitive. You’d think such a play would have been taken up as soon as the Covid-19 pandemic closed American theaters and forced them to resort to streaming video, not least because as a one-hander it presents none of the logistical challenges of an ensemble production. But Palm Beach Dramaworks’ new online version of “The Belle of Amherst,” starring Margery Lowe, jointly produced with Coral Gables’ Actors’ Playhouse and taped without an audience in PBD’s 218-seat theater, appears to be the first one to be webcast since the start of the lockdown. It is also PBD’s first fully staged webcast production, and the company is hoping to make its future shows available online after America’s theaters reopen. If that comes to pass, “The Belle of Amherst” will have made for an auspicious start. Not only is this one of the best theatrical webcasts I’ve seen in the past year, exactly comparable in artistic quality and production values to Undermain Theatre’s “St. Nicholas” and the Wilma Theater’s “Heroes of the Fourth Turning,” but Ms. Lowe’s performance is superior in certain important ways to that of Julie Harris. Heresy? Perhaps, but Harris’s Dickinson was too closely tied to the outmoded view of the poetess (a loaded word I use deliberately in this context) as a tremulous recluse. Ms. Lowe doesn’t play her that way at all: Her Dickinson is witty, occasionally peppery and more than a little bit sly. She makes no bones about being amused to think of her puzzled neighbors regarding her as “Squire Edward Dickinson’s half-cracked daughter,” and you can tell that, like Jane Austen, she has everybody’s number. The Belle of Amherst. Joely Richardson stars in the revival of this one-woman bio-play about poet Emily Dickinson. If a lifetime of disappointment packed into a poetry-laden two hours is your idea of a great night at the theater, then the off-Broadway revival of William Luce's The Belle of Amherst at the Westside Theatre is the show for you. For everyone else, you might want to coffee up before attending a performance. The Belle of Amherst is a curious play to revive off-Broadway. Luce originally wrote this one-woman play about 19th-century American poet and recluse Emily Dickinson as a showcase for legendary stage actress Julie Harris. After a summer of Broadway performances in 1976, Harris claimed her fifth Tony Award for the production. Since then, it has been frequently presented at regional and subscription-based theaters owing to its relatively low production costs and recognizable subject matter: Following her death in 1886, Dickinson has gone on to become one of the most popular poets in American literature. Audiences wait with bated breath for their favorite Dickinson poems in the same way they anticipate "Hey Jude" in a Beatles tribute concert. Of course, it wasn't always so. Luce sets his play in 1883, with Dickinson living in total obscurity as an old spinster in her family home in Amherst, Massachusetts. She greets us with a blackened cake before introducing us to her secluded life of routine and letters, guiding us through her many heartbreaks and professional setbacks, while peppering her anecdotes with her own poetry. English actress Joely Richardson (of the theatrical Redgrave clan) sensitively portrays Dickinson with a special mix of humor and grief. Her childlike delivery speaks to the arrested development that inevitably comes from never leaving the house, but her nuanced and colorful readings of Dickinson's poems make one thing abundantly clear: She's far more than a crazy old maid. Richardson gives a quietly sad recitation of "I Was the Slightest in the House" (a poem about Dickinson's meek lifestyle) before turning to the audience and asking, "Do you read The Atlantic Monthly ?" Over the course of the play, she also shares her cake recipe and talks about birdlife in her garden. This simultaneously personal, informative, and melancholic style makes Dickinson feel an awful lot like Mister Rogers for depressed and gifted children. In fact, the austere whimsy of Antje Ellermann's set looks positively camera-ready. Simple wooden furniture is set against a backdrop of Mackintosh-style wallpaper featuring birds and climbing vines. A break in the upstage wall reveals a row of hedges in the garden beyond. David Weiner's hyperactive lighting design presents a constantly shifting plot of incandescent hues and moody shades, seemingly calibrated to catch the eye's attention. None of this can overcome the fact that the play itself is kind of boring. The manic exposition of the first act gives way to a constant stream of depression in the second. All the while, very little actually happens: Everything is presented through Dickinson's memories. While director Steve Cosson works hard to illuminate these recollections through blocking and design, the story mostly blends together indiscernibly. You'll have a much better time if you go into this event expecting a dramatized poetry reading, rather than a play about a poet.