Stephanie Dorius, Judah Hoobler, Katie Anthony, Tom Howley, Andrea Spitz, Katherine Leiden, Imaan Khan, and Amanda Dullin-Jones in “Pride and Prejudice.” Photo by Brian Knapp.
Movie and literature buffs are often very much alike in their opinions on source material. A good adaptation is always appreciated when it marries elements pulled directly from the original work to brand new ideas. The program for Silver Spring Stage’s “Pride and Prejudice,” adapted for the stage by Christina Calvit in 1986, contains a note about the playwright. The program talks about her theatre background and quotes Calvit, who describes her writing process “usually starts with a book [she] like[s].” Subsequently, she begins to structure her adaptation, presumably taking into account the cultural context of the play and components she’d like to tailor or highlight.
…a joyous rendition of the classic…With dynamic performances, a gorgeous set, and good direction, Silver Spring Stage’s ‘Pride and Prejudice’ is a gem.
Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” is not easily altered for the stage. Austen was a master of semantic layering, stuffing her character’s quotes chock-full of double meanings and wry humor. It always takes a moment to unravel her sentences, making many of her creations ill-suited for script work. Essential, too, is her imagery. The way she describes a blush or an austere gaze, a lush garden or a cold marble stairway is difficult to capture. Unfortunately, Calvit’s script is not strong enough to stand on it’s own as an effective reconstruction of Austen’s masterpiece. Pulling much of the dialogue directly from the book and including most, if not all, plot lines, Calvit failed to center the action of the play and left it primarily up to the director and cast to create focus. Luckily, the cast and crew of Silver Spring Stage are more than up to the task and deliver a joyous rendition of the classic.
The set is marvelous. It is one structure throughout the entirety of the show and anchors us in the early 1800s with a period specific sitting room. Most of the set dressing is confined to locations upstage and major kudos must be given to set designer Brigid Kelly Burge and crew for managing to seal the audience into a time capsule for the duration of the show. The wallpaper is particularly lovely, depicting a dreamy forest background one can almost imagine Elizabeth and Darcy frequenting. Candles adorn the walls anchored by candleholders which cast a warm glow onto the white furniture as it moves on and off the stage, carried by the actors.
Actors take care of all scene changes and this is executed beautifully—a good choice by director Madeleine Smith. Scene transitions are tight and professional, and actors Amanda Jones and Cali Izzi waste no time as they move on and offstage. White was a brave choice for the furniture and each piece shines like a pearl under the candlelight. The furniture is clearly well cared for. However, the set and set dressing add a air of refinement that is sometimes inflexible. The trash talking townspeople fail to convince us that the Bennets can be so ill thought of with so lovely a sitting room.
Though beautifully crafted, the set doesn’t always lend itself to location. Belief is easily suspended as we transition from the Bennet’s sitting room to the Bingley’s home, considering they are in the same social circles. More difficult to accept is the transition from town square to living room in the opening scene. Characters mingle as they walk onstage to convey a bustling town square, ripe for gossip. Staging doesn’t quite shake out as desired as there is not enough of a lighting or set transition to successfully convey an entirely different outdoor location. Each character acts as a narrator or object of narration in the opening scene and the actors come straight downstage-center to deliver lines. These moments are always solid due to the cast’s very strong chops and specificity. Later in the show, possibly due to the space, we occasionally lose lines during more intimate moments when the actors are not cheating out.
Scenes are usually placed upstage center, downstage left and downstage right. Swift entrances and exits lend a farcical element to the show buoyed by dynamic staging, another excellent choice from director Madeleine Smith. A slight tweak in lighting might make all the difference here. Scenes are told in vignette form and narration is sometimes used on stage left (for example) to describe what is happening on stage right. This is compelling, but focus is easily lost when both sides of the stage are similarly lit.
One of the strongest directorial choices is the use of narration and the way the narrators are implemented. Sprinkled throughout the play like forest sprites, they regale us with their perspectives. Cali Izzi gives an exceedingly strong performance as narrator, townsperson, servant, and Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy’s gardener. Izzi is joined by actor Amanda Jones, who plays a townsperson and is wonderful to watch. The show’s narrators have the difficult task of creating the social environment in which the events of “Pride and Prejudice” take place, as well as weaving a web of possible social faux pas our protagonists must pick their way through. There is something to be said for actors who have to essentially create their characters from scratch and both Izzi and Jones gleefully deliver.
The cascade of brilliant acting moments come in the form of the family unit. Tom Howley and Andrea Spitz give show-stopping performances as Mr. Bennet and Mrs. Bennet, respectively. Both actors are so smart with their comedic timing and so thoughtful in crafting their relationship with each other and their children. No matter how ridiculous Spitz’s Mrs. Bennet is, you can’t help but love her. Spitz does an excellent job of towing the line between full on diva and a mother hen looking after her little chicks. One iota too far in one direction or the other could paint a very different picture of Mrs. Bennet’s priorities, but Spitz clearly did the work here. Her Mrs. Bennet shines. The other side of the coin is Mr. Bennet, who puts on a great show of being constantly bombarded by his wife’s marriage schemes. It’s all an act though, and Howley’s Mr. Bennet values his wife as a partner and as a human being in equal measure. Howley’s strongest moment is with his daughter Elizabeth when he professes that he does not wish to see her marry someone she doesn’t love. His thought process is strong and clear during this moment and his relief was incredibly moving. “Pride and Prejudice” shows us many versions of romantic partnerships, but not much credence is given to the idea that maybe the elder Bennets’ relationship is the one to be desired after all.
Katherine Leiden and Nicholas Temple as Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy were a perfectly suited acting team. They kept the audience engaged throughout the show with their furious and emotional tennis match. Their happiness was rightfully earned by the end of the show and audience applause during their onstage kiss shows how invested Leiden and Temple kept us. It is difficult to translate comedic moments from period pieces to modern day audiences, but the cast had no issue with that thanks to stellar performances from Amanda Dullin-Jones as the incorrigible Lydia Bennet and Hart Wood as Mr. Collins. Wood gave Mr. Collin’s a wonderful nasal drawl which lent to his off-putting mannerisms.
Silver Spring Stage had a lot to overcome these past three years. Madeleine Smith’s directorial endeavor was abruptly cut off due to the pandemic, and the company’s usual home is currently under construction to replace the sidewalk in front of the building. The Writer’s Center was a good choice for a substitute venues. Black boxes are a wonderful gift and add so much elasticity to a production. It is clear a lot of care was given to the technical elements to the show and a shoutout must be given to the costume department helmed by Nathaniel Cavin, Nora Galil, and James Carey. Over fifty garments were handmade for the actors and the results were stunning. This union of technicians who love the craft and a director with a respect for the story’s bones is a match made in heaven. With dynamic performances, a gorgeous set and good direction, “Pride and Prejudice” by Silver Spring Stage is a gem.
Running Time: Two hours and 30 minutes, including one intermission.
“Pride and Prejudice” runs through May 14, 2023, presented by Silver Spring Stage at The Writer’s Center in Bethesda, 4508 Walsh Street, Bethesda MD, 20815. For more information and tickets, call the Box Office at (301) 593-6036 or go online. Face masks are required in the black box theater for the duration of the run.
