When four influential women wrote four equally influential hit novels almost two centuries ago, they couldn’t have predicted the success of their books, much less that the messages they left behind would persevere throughout history—inspiring, educating and entertaining millions of readers.
It is through this influence that “You on the Moors Now” was born. Through the mind of modern playwright Jaclyn Backhaus emerges a thoughtful tale of war, death, rejection and reflection.
The story centers on the four main characters from those four books; Cathy Earnshaw from “Wuthering Heights,” Elizabeth Bennet from “Pride and Prejudice,” Jane Eyre from “Jane Eyre,” and Jo March from Little Women, and their male counterparts from their books, Heathcliff, Mr. Darcy, Mr. Rochester, and Laurie.
If you aren’t familiar with any of the books, they all take place around the mid-1800s and are set in old, rainy and depressing England (except for “Little Women—that one’s in old, rainy and depressing Massachusetts) all revolving around female characters and the men in their lives. They reflect themes found in early feminist literature and push the idea of female independence. The inspiration for these books can actually be found reflected directly in the authors’ lives. Every author wrote under a male pen name, and most of them dealt with heavy deaths and little support for their writings.
Throughout the four books, the women are all asked practically the same question by the men, and no matter how it’s worded it ultimately comes down to whether or not the women will spend the rest of their lives with them. In all four books, however, the women reject the men (at least only at first in two of the books) and for better or worse, the men change from this decision, as they either learn and grow as people, or, in the case of one in particular, become spiteful, rageful and ill-spirited as a whole.
In “You on the Moors Now,” after the women’s harsh (but very much deserved) rejections of their respective men, Jaclyn Backhaus brings us into a world where the four women meet on the somehow space-time defying strange land of the moors. They team up to protect themselves from the entitled, enraged and salty group of men who will stop at nothing to get their women back. Characters throughout the books must choose a side as their values, strength, relationships and motives are challenged and changed.
The show is lighthearted, but with a strong message of independence and growth. “I think the most important thing is that the audience has fun with it,” said freshman cast member Joaquin Perez, who plays St. John Rivers and Edgar Linton.
Fellow freshman cast member Sammy Jain, who plays the part of Heathcliff, notes that, “The show is short, and the cast is small, but we all love the story and I think that energy will translate well into the show.” The small cast brings all the characters together and makes the show feel close and the characters familiar. Through the characters the audience can learn, mature, fight, protect and grow with them as they journey through the oddly mystical land of England’s moors.
Don’t miss ETHS’s suspenseful, electrifying and poignant take on the play! Directed by Erin Claeys with a talented and radical cast of 14, the show runs from Feb. 13th to 15th in the little theater. Tickets are $6 and can be purchased here.
