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A Full-Cast BBC Radio Dramatisation

The Awakening & more

A full-cast adaptation of America’s most influential 19th century feminist writer - plus a bonus selection of short stories. 
 
Best known for her narratives about the inner lives of sensitive, daring women, Kate Chopin is a vital American author of short stories and novels. She is considered by scholars to have been a forerunner of American 20th century feminist authors, paving the way for the likes of Zelda Fitzgerald. Best known for her 1899 novel The Awakening, Chopin shocked the readers of her day by showing a woman fulfilled by throwing off the ties of marriage and children. 
 
The Awakening, brought to life by a full cast in this adaptation, is Kate Chopin's seminal tale of one woman's pursuit of moral and sexual freedom in turn-of-the-century New Orleans. Unsatisfied with societal expectations, Edna Pontellier falls in love with the dapper Robert Lebrun. Lebrun's flirtations rejuvenate Edna's sense of freedom and independence. However, Edna also has a taste of the danger that comes from living outside of social convention. Trapped between the life she is expected to live and the one she longs to lead, Edna is propelled on a course that frees, consumes and eventually destroys her. Starring Briony Glassco, William Dufris and Lorelei King. 
 
This stunning collection also contains five of Chopin’s short stories, exquisitely read by Carolyn Pickles and Claire Corbett, and available together here for the first time. 
 
‘Ma'ame Pelagie’ is the portrait of a woman on a plantation adjusting to life after the American Civil War. 
 
In ‘A Respectable Woman’, Mrs Baroda, the wife of a sugar planter, finds herself confused and ambivalent when an old friend of her husband’s comes to stay in this cleverly observed story. 
 
In ‘The Story of an Hour’, some supposedly bad news leaves a woman feeling strangely free. But has there been a mistake? 
 
‘The Kiss’ is the story of a woman scheming to marry a wealthy man and maintain a young lover. 
 
Finally, in 'A Pair of Silk Stockings', a woman spends a windfall on herself, instead of her children – but what are the consequences… 
 
This is the perfect immersive listen for any fan of classic storytelling with a twist. Discover an author whose work has echoed down the centuries and inspired writers for generations. 
 
©2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

A full-cast adaptation of America’s most influential 19th century feminist writer - plus a bonus selection of short stories. 
 
Best known for her narratives about the inner lives of sensitive, daring women, Kate Chopin is a vital American author of short stories and novels. She is considered by scholars to have been a forerunner of American 20th century feminist authors, paving the way for the likes of Zelda Fitzgerald. Best known for her 1899 novel The Awakening, Chopin shocked the readers of her day by showing a woman fulfilled by throwing off the ties of marriage and children. 
 
The Awakening, brought to life by a full cast in this adaptation, is Kate Chopin's seminal tale of one woman's pursuit of moral and sexual freedom in turn-of-the-century New Orleans. Unsatisfied with societal expectations, Edna Pontellier falls in love with the dapper Robert Lebrun. Lebrun's flirtations rejuvenate Edna's sense of freedom and independence. However, Edna also has a taste of the danger that comes from living outside of social convention. Trapped between the life she is expected to live and the one she longs to lead, Edna is propelled on a course that frees, consumes and eventually destroys her. Starring Briony Glassco, William Dufris and Lorelei King. 
 
This stunning collection also contains five of Chopin’s short stories, exquisitely read by Carolyn Pickles and Claire Corbett, and available together here for the first time. 
 
‘Ma'ame Pelagie’ is the portrait of a woman on a plantation adjusting to life after the American Civil War. 
 
In ‘A Respectable Woman’, Mrs Baroda, the wife of a sugar planter, finds herself confused and ambivalent when an old friend of her husband’s comes to stay in this cleverly observed story. 
 
In ‘The Story of an Hour’, some supposedly bad news leaves a woman feeling strangely free. But has there been a mistake? 
 
‘The Kiss’ is the story of a woman scheming to marry a wealthy man and maintain a young lover. 
 
Finally, in 'A Pair of Silk Stockings', a woman spends a windfall on herself, instead of her children – but what are the consequences… 
 
This is the perfect immersive listen for any fan of classic storytelling with a twist. Discover an author whose work has echoed down the centuries and inspired writers for generations. 
 
©2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Mark Twain

Herman Melville

F. Scott Fitzgerald

Washington Irving

Henry David Thoreau

Kate Chopin

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Edith Wharton

Harriet Jacobs

Walter White

Andrew Scott

Lorelei King

Karl Johnson

Andrew Buchan

Deborah Findley

Maureen Lipman

Amaka Okafor

Bryan Dick

Full Cast

22 Full-Cast BBC Radio Dramatisations

A large collection of full-cast dramatisations of classic American novels that helped define American Literature 
 
The United States is young by global standards, yet it boasts a vast and rich cultural heritage that belies its brief timeline. In the years since the Declaration of Independence, the nation has become a literary superpower, producing countless masterpieces that have transcended borders and inspired readers and listeners throughout the world. 
 
This wide-ranging collection comprises dramatisations of milestone works, encompassing ‘Great American Novels’, a Pulitzer Prize-winning play and seminal titles from every genre. Discover mythic portrayals of the Wild West, philosophical meditations on nature and landscape, a groundbreaking narrative about the Black American experience and a first-hand account of slavery – and immerse yoursef in rip-roaring adventure yarns, ghost stories, modern fairytales, and tales of love, sex, family and the fallibility of the American dream. With settings ranging from New York to New Orleans, and from the Mississippi River to the freezing Alaskan borderlands, these gripping dramas showcase the breadth and vision of American writing. 
 
Included are: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Walden by Henry David Thoreau, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving, Moby Dick by Herman Melville, The Awakening by Kate Chopin, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Flight by Walter White, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs, The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton, The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, The Affair at Grover Station by Willa Cather, The Call of the Wild by Jack London, The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, The Coast of Maine by Sarah Orne Jewett, Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey, The Virginian by Owen Wister and Anna Christie by Eugene O’Neill. 
 
Among the accomplished cast are Andrew Scott, Matthew Needham, Andrew Buchan, Garrick Hagon, Lorelei King, Deborah Findlay, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Harmony Rose Bremner, Amaka Okafor, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Adjoa Andoh, David Schofield, Mark Caven, Cecilia Noble, Kerry Shale, Stuart Milligan, Susannah York, Ryan McCluskey, Maureen Lipman, Parker Sayers, Susan Jameson, Shelley Thompson, Karl Johnson and David Threlfall. 
 
 
NB: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl and Flight contain strong and discriminatory language and behaviour that some listeners may find offensive. 
 
Production credits 
 
The Great Gatsby 
Written by F. Scott Fitzgerald 
 
Walden 
Written by Henry David Thoreau 
 
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow 
Written by Washington Irving 
 
Moby Dick 
Written by Herman Melville 
 
The Awakening 
Written by Kate Chopin 
 
The Scarlet Letter 
Written by Nathaniel Hawthorne 
 
Flight 
Written by Walter White 
 
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn 
Written by Mark Twain 
 
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl 
Written by Harriet Jacobs 
 
The Age of Innocence 
Written by Edith Wharton 
 
The Yellow Wallpaper 
Written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman 
 
The Affair at Grover Station 
Based on a story by Willa Cather 
 
The Call of the Wild 
Written by Jack London 
 
The Wizard of Oz 
Written by L. Frank Baum 
 
The Coast of Maine 
Written by Sarah Orne Jewett 
 
Riders of the Purple Sage 
Written by Zane Grey 
 
The Virginian 
Written by Owen Wister 
 
Anna Christie 
Written by Eugene O’Neill 
 
© 2027 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2027 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

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