Emma at Rose Theatre
Emma, by Jane Austen, may have been written more than 200 years ago, but at the Rose Theatre it bursts into life once again for London audiences. Set against the backdrop of an Essex household, the story follows the obstinate Emma Woodhouse and her relentless urge to meddle in the romances of those around her. Under Christian Haydon’s direction, the evening becomes a vivid meeting point of the 19th and 21st centuries – a production where Regency manners collide with modern chaos.
The show begins in the style one might expect from a Regency-era play, but quickly takes a surprising turn into a techno-fuelled Oxford party. It’s a bold shift that reframes Emma as a restless young woman teetering between adolescence and adulthood, desperate to control everyone else’s lives while failing to navigate her own. Amelia Kenworthy captures Emma’s obstinacy with gusto, but her lack of chemistry with the wider cast – and particularly Kit Young’s George Knightley – leaves the heroine feeling more one-dimensional than she should. Emma’s character is meant to be both frustrating and endearing, and here the balance tips too far toward the former. Still, this is the production’s only real stumble in an otherwise joyful evening.
The ensemble is where the play truly shines. Their chemistry fizzes, producing moments of rip-roaring laughter that ripple through the audience. Lucy Benjamin and Nigel Lindsay are comic delights, their timing so sharp that each reappearance feels like an event in itself. Sofia Oxenham brings Harriet Smith to life with remarkable physical comedy; her ability to bend voice and movement into punchlines proves to be endlessly entertaining. Even Jessica Brindle, as Isabella Woodhouse, repeatedly steals scenes with understated wit. This is a cast whose collective calibre outshines much of what is currently on the West End stage.
All in all, this Emma feels like a breath of fresh air at a time when the world is heavy. It is theatre at its most uplifting: clever, chaotic and genuinely funny. At points, the laughter took over the theatre, to the point where it is safe to say our sides collectively hurt – and really, what higher praise is there than that?
Natallia Pearmain
Photos: Marc Brenner
Emma is at the Rose Theatre from 17th September until 11th October 2025. For further information or to book, visit the theatre’s website here.
Watch the trailer for Emma at Rose Theatre here:
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