Northanger Abbey
Photo by Ralph Nogal
Guild Festival Theatre 2026/Northanger Abbey, based on the novel by Jane Austen, adapted and directed by Tyler J. Seguin, Greek Theatre, Guild Inn Estate, closes Aug. 28.
Guild Festival Theatre’s Gothic Girl Summer Season continues with Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey adapted and directed by Tyler J. Seguin, who loves to take a gentle, farcical approach to his stage works.
Jane Austen wrote Northanger Abbey: A Most Horrid Mystery, as a satire of what were called the Horrid Novels of the age, those Gothic romances filled with imperilled young women, mysterious goings-on, dark secrets and the threat of ravishment.
In this particular case, young Catherine Morland has filled her head with these Gothic mysteries to the point where they overtake real life. She sees the world through the lens of her romantic novels, colouring reality until they absolutely obscure the truth, including her relationship with the young man in whom she is very interested and his family,
Seguin has great fun introducing the farcical elements into his adaptation.
Georgia Findlay plays Catherine Morland completely straight, and she does so beautifully. The comedy, meanwhile, is aided and abetted by Isaiah Kolundzic, Andrew Prashad and Kiana Woo who form the ensemble who have to switch characters on a dime or become props in the most surprising manner.
They wonderfully overplay their characters, which is exactly what is required because each of the myriad personalities has to be instantly distinct.
Woo, for example, has to make Henry Tilney’s sister Eleanor completely different from Catherine’s new friend in Bath, Isabella Thorpe, and different again from Mrs. Morland, Catherine’s mother and, yet again, from the other women she portrays. The same challenge faces Kolundzic and Prashad with their multiple male roles.
It is to Seguin’s credit, and to the considerable skill of his ensemble, that all the memorable characters of Jane Austen’s novel are brought so brilliantly to life.
This is the type of production where you have a big smile on your face right from the very beginning because the use of the three chorus members is so clever. Simply by turning two small table sideways, they become the wheels of a coach. By donning a coat or adding a moustache, they change characters in an instant, one actor playing two different brothers for examples. It is very amusing watching them switch characters and the theatricality suits the heightened style of the prose.
Northanger Abbey
Photo by Raph Nogal
At the centre of all this inspired foolishness is poor Catherine who goes through life with her highly romantic view of the world until she is finally brought down to earth with a crash.
The production is beautifully period-specific, while Honey Hoseiny manages to light the Greek Theatre in Guild Park to great effect. The costumes by Alex Amini and production design by Elisia Evans contribute to the period atmosphere and the playful theatricality.
The greatest praise, however, belongs to Tyler J. Seguin for his loving adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel, and particularly for the brilliance of having one prominent actor playing Catherine Morland while the three-member ensemble becomes every other character as needed, as well as scenery, props and, when required, introducing the odd puppet (courtesy Em Evans) to hilarious effect.
Seguin struck gold in casting Kolundzic, Prashad and Woo as his ensemble because in them he found actors willing to go out on a limb to enter the world of farce and all that the word entails. In Findlay, he found the perfect straight-man, so to speak.
Northanger Abbey is an utterly charming production, and I use that word in the true sense of its meaning. It is a delightful show, completely in the spirit of Jane Austen’s light but loving satiric touch.
