by Zoe Cooper
after the novel by Jane Austen
a Minack Theatre Production
Friendship is certainly the finest balm for the pangs of disappointed love. Northanger Abbey, Jane Austen
Jane Austen’s lightest novel gets a 21st century makeover in this lively, irreverent satire on imagination and gothic romance.
Performed by just 3 actors, laughs are never far away in this tangled story of loves desired and unexpected. In this version, Cath’s story is given a fresh perspective that is fast moving and exuberantly playful, while asking big questions about personal freedom and choice.
Country-bred Catherine Morland knows little of the world, but who needs experience when you have novels to guide you? Seizing her chance to escape her claustrophobic family for the glamour of Bath, she meets sophisticated Isabella Thorpe, Iz to her friends, and soon Cath becomes the heroine of her very own adventure.
Zoe Cooper’s stage version of Northanger Abbey was premiered in 2024 at the Orange Tree Theatre, London, before touring to Octagon Theatre, Bolton, Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, and Theatre by the Lake, Keswick.