Sense and Sensibility: 1976

Columbia University Players

Date: November 14, 2022

Types of Queerness: Social Class and Race

Summary:

follows the young Dashwood sisters Elinor, Marianne, and Margaret as they are forced out of their home and inheritance by their older brother, John, and his wife Fanny, after the death of their father. Elinor (Anja Vasa, BC ‘25) finds herself falling for Jimmy Carter campaign manager and brother-in-law Edward Ferrars (Frankie DeGiorgio, BC ‘24), who is plagued by his own romantic commitments. Marianne (Elsa Chung, CC ‘23) has to choose between charming Willoughby (Jasmine Richards, BC ‘26) and older Vietnam veteran Colonel Brandon (José Tallaj, CC ‘26). Taking liberty from the original novel, Ramakrishnan chose to introduce themes of immigration-related prejudice as well as the conflict between familial obligation and career desires. This gave the text a fresh and modernized perspective, depicting the urban immigrant experience and portraying women with lives existing outside of their relations with men.