Austen under cover

Busselton Fringe will host the dark comedy of mystery and mayhem Jane Austen: Private Eye at 6.30pm on Sunday, March 3 at the Esplanade Hotel.

At the moment of her death, Miss Austen is flung across time and space, and finds herself embroiled in an eerie murder mystery. The solo performance by writer/director Jessica Messenger has received critical acclaim and sold out shows at Perth Fringe and booked a place at Adelaide Fringe.

“It’s a play that joins Pride and Prejudice with Sherlock Holmes, Heartbeat and even Mad Max,” Messenger said. “It has the same feel as 90s British television and delivers that black. fish-out-of- water comedy.”

The play was written by Messenger in October, leaving only months for her to rehearse the actions required to bring the classic Austen wordplay to life.

“I think I lull the audience into a false sense of security before it turns into a quite intense crime thriller,” she said.

She will also perform in the Jane Austen improvisational performance Sense and Spontaneity at the Esplanade Hotel earlier that day at 4pm.

“You don’t have to be a Jane Austen fan, the shows are a lot of fun, thrilling and unexpected,” Messenger said.