Review: "Pride and Prejudice" is No Ordinary High School Play
By Maggie Koenig
Woodside Priory’s fall drama production, Pride & Prejudice, is not the average high school play. That’s not just because at a runtime of over three hours long, with 37 total scenes, the show stands at a length greater than that of most professional plays. Premiering the weekend of October 9th, Pride & Prejudice exceeds expectations in nearly every aspect conceivable, bringing Jane Austen’s classic novel to the stage with enthralling talent.
The grand architect behind theater at Priory, drama teacher John Sugden prefaced Pride & Prejudice with an overview of it’s behind the scenes process. The dedicated effort of the cast and crew in the seven weeks leading up to the show, detailed by Sugden, shone through during the show itself. In preparing for the show, the cast practiced various skills, ranging from ballroom dancing to speaking in the appropriate regional British accent. The crew played an equally essential role in building the play’s world, handling its technical aspects, constructing elaborate wooden sets, and even styling the casts’ hair and makeup.
Much of Act One of Pride & Prejudice is devoted to exposition, which is greatly aided by the periodic interjections of its narrator, who assumes the identity of Jane Austen. The initial appearance of lively heroine Elizabeth Bennet, alongside her erratic parents and four sisters, quickly establishes the central plot conflict: lacking a brother to inherit the family’s property, the Bennet sisters are compelled to seek advantageous marriages for social and financial security. Kicking off the plot action, the vibrant ball scene at Netherfield introduces Elizabeth’s love interest, the wealthy yet standoffish Mr. Darcy, his companion Mr. Bingley, who becomes instantly infatuated with Elizabeth’s sister Jane, and Mr. Bingley’s two snobbish sisters, Caroline Bingley and Mrs. Hurst. Act One’s moderate pacing was tempered by its wide array of erratic characters and witty dialogue, both of which frequently provoked raucous laughter from audiences.
The production’s technical and stylistic aspects both played key roles in immersing the audience in the world of Pride & Prejudice. Besides helping to craft an authentic environment, the meticulous costume choices showcased the identities of various different characters. The sharp contrast between the Bingley sisters’ ostentatiously bejeweled gowns and the simplistic white dresses of the Bennet sisters evoked the story’s central theme of class differences throughout. The intricately designed sets made it easy to distinguish between the play’s multitudinous settings, showcasing the different characteristics of each individual environment. Occasionally, settings were showcased with notable creativity, such as when shadowed silhouettes in the background reenact the events recounted in a letter Elizabeth is simultaneously reading aloud, providing stunning visuals to accompany the otherwise still monologue.
With the onset of Act Two, the pacing rapidly quickens and the stakes escalate with Darcy’s revelations to Elizabeth, as well as her youngest sister Lydia’s elopement. While the majority of Act One’s scenes feature a large ensemble of characters, Act Two focuses on the relationship between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy, and the previously comedic mood takes on a more dramatic quality. The acting reached new levels of emotional intensity, particularly with Darcy’s melodramatic proposal to Elizabeth, and her impassioned rejection. Despite being extensively lengthy, the show remains engaging to the end, satisfyingly concluding with the unification of the two main couples, Elizabeth & Darcy and Jane & Bingley.
In every conceivable way, Pride & Prejudice wildly exceeds expectations, providing a thrilling, immersive experience that left audiences spellbound.