Yesterday was the final monthly meeting this season of The Friends of Dickens New York, at which we discussed the final chapters of A Tale of Two Cities.
As I've previously blogged, A Tale of Two Cities was adapted for the stage almost immediately after it was published. After our meeting, though, many of us headed to an adaptation of a different Dickens novel, David Copperfield.
The play, adapted by Abigail Pickard Price, Sarah Gobran, and Matt Pinches, was originally produced by Guildford Shakespeare Company and is playing now at 59E59 Theaters (memorably located at 59 East 59th Street in Manhattan).
Performances last for two hours and 15 minutes, including the intermission, which means much has to be cut from the massive novel. (Barkis might have been willin' but still didn't make it into the show.) Eddy Payne plays David, while Luke Barton and Louise Beresford perform everybody else.
The costumes, designed by Neil Irish and Anett Black, help to distinguish the characters, but mostly the performers relate character through voice and body language (and occasionally through puppets). Price, who directed the play as well as being one of the adaptors, skillfully helms the production, making sure the audience keeps up with the action.
If you want to go, the play is still running until June 28th. If you're interested in The Friends of Dickens New York, we'll be taking a break for the summer, but will be meeting again in September, beginning discussions of a new novel, Hard Times.
