ADELPHAE

An original Roman comedy by Aloysius Aeschliman

Music composed by R.W. Enoch for the Roman tibiae

Based on the novel Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

Adelphae by Aloysius Aeschliman is, to our knowledge, the first Neo-Latin work to observe all the iambo-trochaic metrical phenomena of the ancient playwrights discovered by Post-Wolfian philologists (e.g. Meyer's Law, Ritschl's Law, Hermann's Law, the loci Iacobsohniani, etc.) as well as the norms of metrical vicissitude described by Timothy Moore in his monumental Music in Roman Comedy. It also retains the diction of the classical comics--in fact, the play contains allusions to every extant play of both Terence and Plautus (as well as one line from a fragment of a play of Ennius)--and several Cantica modeled on Plautus (and one original polymetric Canticum modeled on a Latin poem of Michael von Albrecht). Some intentional reminiscences of Neo-Latin playwrights, namely Cornelius Schonaeus and Abraham Crowley, can also be found.

What is more, original music has been composed by R.W. Enoch for the reconstructed ancient tibiae based, in part, on his original research into the ancient modes (published through Brill in Greek and Roman Musical Studies). R.W. Enoch also has the special distinction of being, in all likelihood, the most proficient player of the ancient tibiae to have lived these past thousand years.

The play is an adaptation of Jane Austen's beloved Sense and Sensibility, overlayed with the theme of modern philology vs. Humanism and thematically connected to Terence's Adelphoe--for which reason it is titled Adelphae.

The premiere performance took place in Braga, Portugal in August 2026 at the international competition Thalia. We are now seeking opportunities to present it to other audiences, in full or in part, at conferences or elsewhere. Please write to patriciaetalois@gmail.com if you have questions or suggestions for another performance venue.

Full performance video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSOR7IdZJAc