Jane Austen, Completely Zoomed
Jane Austen—Completely Zoomed is a fast-paced, witty modern take on Austen’s six classic masterpieces. Suitable for online presentation, adaptable for in-person performances, this is not your great-great-great-great grandmother’s Jane Austen.
Choose to perform the canon in its entirety for a total of one hour, or select among the novels for shorter or competition-length performances.
Middle and high school players will delight in bringing to life these relatable homework-less romps through Jane Austen’s beloved novels.
Looking for an onstage version of this play? Check out Instant Austen: Jane Austen at Warp Speed.
Recommended for High Schools and Middle Schools
At a Glance
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Performance Royalty Fees
Royalty fees apply to all performances whether or not admission is charged. Any performance in front of an audience (e.g. an invited dress rehearsal) is considered a performance for royalty purposes.
Exemption details for scenes and monologues for competition.
Cast List
Characters in this play are currently identified as male or female. Directors are welcome to assign any gender (binary or non-binary) to any character and modify pronouns accordingly.
SENSE AND SENSIBILITY
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NARRATOR 131 linesAny gender Appears in modern dress. Can be seated in a large comfy chair or at a desk in front of a bookshelf.
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HENRY DASHWOOD 2 linesMale Has physical action, appears very briefly. Accessory: jacket or coat. Color Identifier: black.
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MRS. DASHWOOD 6 linesFemale Mother, sweet and kind, emotional. Accessory: bonnet or hat. Color Identifier: cream.
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ELINOR DASHWOOD 13 linesFemale Sense. No-nonsense, practical. Accessory: plain shawl or scarf. Color Identifier: light blue.
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MARIANNE DASHWOOD 9 linesFemale Sensibility. Emotional, dramatic. Accessory: lacy shawl. Color Identifier: pink.
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EDWARD 5 linesMale Stodgy, serious, shy. Accessory: brown or blue coat. Color Identifier: blue.
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COLONEL BRANDON 9 linesMale Distinguished, serious. Accessory: red uniform coat, brass buttons if possible. Color Identifier: red.
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WILLOUGHBY 6 linesMale Charming rogue. Accessory: fancy period tie or cravat. Color Identifier: purple.
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LUCY STEELE 9 linesFemale Sugary sweet but vicious mean girl. Accessory: flashy, feathery shawl. Color Identifier: hot pink.
PRIDE AND PREJUDICE
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NARRATORAppears in modern dress. Can be seated in a large comfy chair or at a desk in front of a bookshelf.
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MRS. BENNET 11 linesFemale A very silly woman, voice can get hysterical. Accessory: a handkerchief she waves about. Color Identifier: bright, garish orange or yellow.
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MR. BENNET 0 linesAn EMPTY CHAIR, literally. (preferably a Windsor chair) next to the Narrator.
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JANE BENNET 4 linesFemale Eldest daughter. Very kind and sweet. Accessory: a pretty lace shawl or scarf. Color Identifier: a pretty pink. Set: may be seated at a desk or table to the side.
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ELIZABETH BENNET 19 linesFemale Middle daughter. Witty and lively. Accessory: a pretty flowered shawl or scarf. Color Identifier: a bold bright or royal blue.
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LYDIA BENNET 4 linesFemale Youngest daughter. Flirty and silly. Accessory: a fan can be homemade. Color Identifier: a bright red or violet.
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BINGLEY 3 linesMale Nice looking and well-mannered gentleman. Accessory: a jacket possibly with a period cravat. Color Identifier: blue-grey or silver.
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MR. DARCY 12 linesMale Stuck-up rich gentleman. Accessory: a dark jacket preferably with a period cravat. Color Identifier: gold. Set: may be seated at a desk or table to the side.
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CHARLOTTE 7 linesFemale Lizzie’s best friend. Plain and dull. Accessory: a drab or ugly colored shawl or scarf. Color Identifier: brown.
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WICKHAM 1 lineMale Handsome young army officer, quite charming. Accessory: a red coat. Color Identifier: scarlet or deep red.
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MR. COLLINS 2 linesMale The stupidest most annoying man in England. Accessory: a black coat and priests collar. Color Identifier: a deep grey or black.
MANSFIELD PARK
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NARRATORAny gender Appears in modern dress. Can be seated in a large comfy chair or at a desk in front of a bookshelf.
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FANNY PRICE 22 linesFemale Kind and sweet goody two shoes. Accessory: a plain scarf or shawl. Color Identifier: dark or rich red brown.
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JULIA BERTRAM 1 lineFemale A selfish younger sister, first appears in-person and then is represented by a doll on Henry Crawford’s set. The doll should have close to the same accessory and color identifier as Julia. Accessory: a simple feather, in a hat or handheld that you can match for the doll. Color Identifier: hot pink.
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MARIA BERTRAM 1 lineFemale A stuck up, haughty snob. First appears in-person and then is represented by a doll on Henry Crawford’s set. The doll should have close to the same accessory and color identifier as Maria. Accessory: any bright baubly jewelry that you can match for the doll. Color Identifier: bright purple.
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EDMUND BERTRAM 12 linesMale A nice, regular dude. Accessory: a dark jacket or coat. Color Identifier: a medium brown or tan.
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TOM BERTRAM 4 linesMale A man about town. More flashy and dramatic than Edmund. Entitled and selfish. Accessory: a jacket. Color Identifier: blue.
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HENRY CRAWFORD 8 linesMale An independently wealthy rake (he says so himself). Quite charming and a little bit sleazy. Accessory: a fancy tie. Color Identifier: teal or turquoise.
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MARY CRAWFORD 8 linesFemale Charming and well-mannered, sophisticated, but scheming. Playful and witty. Accessory: a fancy patterned scarf. Color Identifier: teal or turquoise.
EMMA
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NARRATORAny gender Appears in modern dress. Can be seated in a large comfy chair or at a desk in front of a bookshelf.
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EMMA WOODHOUSE 23 linesFemale Handsome, clever, and rich. Not your typical Jane Austen heroine. Even though she thinks she knows everything, she’s kindhearted so she should not be played like a mean girl. She genuinely thinks she’s helping. Accessory: a fancy scarf or hat. Color Identifier: gold.
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HARRIET SMITH 9 linesFemale Emma’s less fortunate friend. She’s lived in a boarding school her whole life and is very naïve and clueless. She speaks in an airy, empty-headed kind of way. She’s very sweet and sincere, though. Accessory: a shawl or lace handkerchief. Color Identifier: pink.
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MR. KNIGHTLEY 13 linesMale Emma’s sister’s husband’s brother. Kind of like an older brother to Emma. He is full of advice all the time and just like Emma, thinks he knows everything. Only he does. Except when it comes to his own heart. Accessory: a tie or cravat, not fancy. Color Identifier: brown or beige.
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MR. WOODHOUSE 5 linesMale Emma’s elderly father. He seems sweet and a little dithering, but he is also anxious and controlling in his own way. Accessory: a winter scarf or blanket. Color Identifier: grey or light blue.
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MR. ELTON 3 linesMale The local clergyman, a young, handsome bachelor. Friendly and hero-like, until he turns out to be a snob. Accessory: a black and white clergy collar. Color Identifier: black.
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FRANK CHURCHILL 3 linesMale The son of a neighbor who comes back for the first time in years and years. Handsome and charming. Is he all that he seems? A big flirt. Smirks a lot. Accessory: a fancy jacket or tie. Color Identifier: peacock or teal.
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JANE FAIRFAX 3 linesFemale Elegant, accomplished (which means she’s got talent), lovely in every way. Quite reserved and soft-spoken. Accessory: a pretty shawl or simple but elegant hat. Color Identifier: turquoise or aqua.
NORTHANGER ABBEY & PERSUASION
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NARRATORAny gender Appears in modern dress. Can be seated in a large comfy chair or at a desk in front of a bookshelf. Holds index cards like an old timey game show host reading about contestants. Switches between a serious narrator voice and a game show host voice.
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CATHERINE MORLAND 16 linesFemale The heroine of Northanger Abbey. Seventeen years old and naïve. Reads a lot of Gothic romance novels, bodice ripper type things, and is always expecting melodrama. She is steady and loyal, though, and has a strong moral compass. Accessory: a romance novel. Color Identifier: a pale peach or pink.
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ANNE ELLIOT 7 linesFemale The heroine of Persuasion. Twenty eight when the novel begins. She was in love with a nobody when she was nineteen and her family and friends persuaded to break off her engagement to him. She’s never loved anyone else. She’s intelligent, wise, and calm. Not at all like the other vain snobs in her family. Accessory: a book of poetry. Color Identifier: a medium or light blue.
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CAPTAIN WENTWORTH 4 linesMale Anne’s former fiancé. A swashbuckling hero of the Navy. After Anne broke off her engagement, he made a fortune and returns to Anne’s circle of family and friends (too complicated to explain here). Resentful at first, he soon realizes he’s still in love with her. Accessory: a captain’s spyglass made from paper towel cardboard and toilet paper cardboard in successive sizes wrapped with black paper or painted and striped with gold or a rolled up chart or map. Color Identifier: navy blue.
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LADY RUSSELL 5 linesFemale Stand-in mom to Anne Elliot. Elegant, haughty and competitive. Accessory: a flowery or elegant scarf. Color Identifier: deep yellow or gold.
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MRS. ALLEN 6 linesFemale Wealthy older neighbor of Catherine Morland’s who invites her on a trip to Bath, England. Not as elegant as Lady Russell, and a bit silly. Into dresses and shopping and girlie things more than books or reading. Can even be giggly. Accessory: a lacy, gaudy scarf or shawl. Color Identifier: a bright yellow or gold.
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HENRY TILNEY 4 linesMale The witty hero of Northanger Abbey. He’s not silly, but he is wry. Great off the wall sense of humor. Accessory: a priestly collar. Color Identifier: black, or a deep brown or blue.
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MR. ELLIOT 3 linesMale Anne’s cousin. The most villainous villain ever because he appears charming and soft-spoken. He’s duplicitous and sneaky. Accessory: a fancy bow-tie or cravat. Color Identifier: mustard or brown-orange.
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JOHN THORPE 3 linesMale Friend of Catherine’s. A far more obvious villain. Loud and obnoxious. Accessory: a dark jacket or coat. Color Identifier: lime green or olive.
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From the Drama Teacher Learning Centre
Theatrefolk Featured Play – Jane Austen, Completely Zoomed by Treanor Baring
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