Jane Austen’s work is often thought of as light. Some consider Austen’s language, characters, and concerns too silly or sentimental or precious. In reality, the tentpole of British literature is witty, wise, and insightful with a canon that says as much about modern America as 18th century England.

For director Regine Vital, Austen’s genius and timelessness is laid out clearly in “Emma.” And she hopes the audience of the Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s take on “Emma” will see that.

“What we have in Emma is this woman who is incredibly educated with incredible potential who could do so much if the world would just get out of her way,” Vital told the Herald. “She’s got money, she’s got status, she’s got rank, and she still can’t do anything.”

“That fact that we live in a society where there are people who are still like, ‘I don’t know that a woman can be president. I don’t know that she can handle it,’ despite still, talent, and incredible experience,” she continued. “My heart would break if that doesn’t speak loudly to our audience about ‘Emma’s’ connection to today.”

Playwright Kate Hamill wrote the adaptation the Actors’ Shakespeare Project will be performing Nov. 14 to Dec. 15 at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge. Known for her always-excellent adaptations of lit classics including “Sense and Sensibility,” “Dracula,” and “The Scarlet Letter,” Hamill aims to find the balance between satire, social commentary, and comedy in “Emma.”

“The heart of ‘Emma,’ the wit of ‘Emma’ is still there but Hamill’s own wit and cleverness and her own really lovely way with language is there,” Vital said. “What’s great about ‘Emma’ is that Austen has clearly hit a new gear. And Hamill has also hit her stride (with this adaptation).”

As an associate producer with the Actors’ Shakespeare Project, Vital has plenty of experience with the company’s namesake. But the Project and Vital have both earned a reputation for putting on profound non-Shakespeare works — see Vital’s direction of the 2023 production of August Wilson’s “Seven Guitars.” With “Emma,” the director sees a nice overlap with Shakespeare.

“There is a heightened language in this play where you can’t drop a note, which is very much like Shakespeare,” Vital said. “For actors, Shakespeare is about, ‘Can you catch the rhythm? Can you catch the melody,’ and then it’s about how you fit yourself into the rhythm, the meter… ‘Emma’ is also about knowing how to pick up your part so that the rhythm and melody keep going.”

And in “Emma,” that rhythm can come at quite a clip.

“It’s screwball comedy, and the nature of screwball comedy is speed and precision,” Vital said. “If you’re not paying attention to when the ball is supposed to be in the air, if you let the ball drop, even for a second, the whole thing will crash. So it’s going to be a really intense exercise for everybody involved, the actors, our stage manager, our crew, to keep the thing running.”

So, while it may be light in moments, it’s also fast, funny, feminist, and so much more.

For tickets and details, visit actorsshakespeareproject.org

Josephine Moshiri Elwood, Liza Giangrande, and Jennie Israel in rehearsal for Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s production of “Emma. (Photo courtesy of Actors’ Shakespeare Project.)