Pride & Prejudice (* sort of)

It is a fact universally acknowledged that Jane Austen’s second novel Pride and Prejudice (first published back when God was a lad in 1813) is a stonking good yarn. There have been roughly umpteen million adaptations of the story for the stage and screen over the years, and many of the nation’s youth have studied it for GCSE and A Level (myself included). It tells the story of the five Bennet sisters, each in search of a husband at a time in our history when marrying well was pretty much make or break for a young woman of a certain class. The unique element in this adaptation however, lies in the words in parenthesis – ‘*sort of.’ For here, we are promised a sideways glance at the story as told by five female servants working understairs at the Longbourn Estate. The production began life back in 2018 at the Glasgow Tron and has since reached stratospheric heights, including a triumphant run in London’s West End and an Olivier award for Best Comedy. This piece is billed as ‘a unique and audacious retelling’ of this most iconic love story. It is back on the road for a third national tour and this week it is here in Nottingham.

As we arrive in the auditorium the five actors are already amongst us, pottering around in the aisles in character and chatting with people as they take their seats. Thus the production begins before it begins, with no time wasted. It is fun to watch the amusement and bemusement on the faces of others arriving. Once we’re all in, the show takes off with alarming alacrity, and these servant girls begin to tell us the story of the goings on upstairs. It is a clever conceit that we never actually meet the characters of the novel but only their portrayals by their staff. The whole thing is pulled off with double-quick costume changes and minimal props which allow the servants to bring to life the characters we know and love – from the Bennets to the Bingleys and everyone in between. Ana Ines Jabares-Pita’s set and costume design really is sublime, because it is simple and unfussy yet highly versatile – no stretch of the imagination is too far. I especially love that Mr Bennet is only ever portrayed as an empty chair with a newspaper.

Four of the five actors portray a multitude of characters, making subtle changes to their accent, costume and gait that it genuinely feels like a much larger cast than it is. They pop off stage left as one individual and as if by magic (and changed afresh) they arrive stage right as another altogether.
Susie Barrett invests each of her characterisations with a precise comic individuality – from the hilariously goofy Mary, to the exquisitely dull Mr Collins.

Emma Rose Creaner is hilarious as the Bingley siblings (who look nothing alike of course!) – and as Charlotte Lucas in a cheeky and foppishly delicious performance that steals many a scene. Rhianna McGreevy shows her versatility portraying sharp and shrieking Mrs Bennett (desperate to do what it takes to get her daughters married off so that she doesn’t end up destitute) and the brooding and yet terribly dull Mr Darcy (not a wet shirt in sight!).

A personal highlight for me is Christine Steel’s Lady Catherine, emerging from the darkness with terrifying ferocity and enjoying the De Burgh number ‘Lady in Red’. It really has to be seen to be believed.

The heroine of the evening is Naomi Preston Low as feisty and fierce Elizabeth Bennett – we are really rooting for her throughout. What a showcase of talent! It really is a masterclass in the art of performance. And as if the acting was not enough, whenever a performer is not leading the action, they are moving furniture or playing musical instruments – glockenspiel, piano, recorder, harp amongst others I have probably missed. Phenomenal!

Credit must go to writer-director Isobel McArthur because the staging is completely wonderful – I love that the fourth wall is frequently breached to hilarious effect. Choreography by Emily Jane Boyle is perfect, each character placed carefully upon the stage creating many a hilarious tableau.

Song is also used, much to the delight of this opening night audience. The characters take turns at the microphone, karaoke style, giving us renditions of the likes of Bonnie Tyler’s ‘Holding Out For A Hero’ and Carly Simon’s ‘You’re So Vain’ (sung at Mr Darcy no less). It is all so joyously silly and yet completely works in the context of the plot. I can’t help but feel that Jane Austen would have approved as I tap my toe to the beat.

Two hours fly past in the company of these most excellent performers. I leave the theatre wishing the show had existed way back when I was studying the text at school – it would have given me a sense of the freshness of the themes and brought the whole thing to life in a way that many other self-important and reverential adaptations fail to do. I really enjoyed it – I think you will too. Get yourself a ticket and head for an evening of joy at the Theatre Royal Nottingham.

Pride and Prejudice (* sort of) plays at Nottingham Theatre Royal until Saturday 26th October 2024.