Romance, scheming and mistaken intentions, Jane Austen’s original romantic comedy Emma, brought to life in many on-screen adaptations, finds a new incarnation in a sparkling new stage adaptation by acclaimed writer Tim Luscombe (Northanger Abbey, Mansfield Park and Persuasion).

Young, bright and beautiful, Emma Woodhouse has the world at her feet, or at least the small part of Surrey in which she lives. When the dashing Mr Elton comes to town she decides to take it on herself to perform the role of matchmaker to her new friend Harriet Smith. But to Emma’s great surprise, the more she tries to manipulate the destinies of others, the less success she has, until she herself, determined never to wed, is forced to face her own feelings and perhaps even dare to love another…

Keeping faithfully to the original, Luscombe relates Austen’s story with verve and style, transporting her famous characters vividly to the stage, including the dashing Mr Knightley, the comic hypochondriac Mr Woodhouse and the sublimely verbose Miss Bates!

Luscombe has been described as theatre’s ‘Austen champion’ with his previous partnership with Colin Blumenau on Mansfield Park being acclaimed as ‘a riveting adaptation… utterly absorbing… created with much love, affection and, above all, intelligence’.

Emma will be at Malvern Theatres from Tuesday, June 27 to Saturday, July 1. To book, call the box office on 01684 892277 or visit malvern-theatres.co.uk