Vivian Jiang ’27
In this year’s fall production, Pride and Prejudice, originally a novel written by Jane Austen, the Episcopal Academy’s Domino Club directed by Daniel Clay works to bring alive a world of elegance and charm surfacing social stratification and unyielding expectations, while also producing buoyant comedic elements and a modern twist. Set in a time marked by warfare, industrialization, and romanticism, Pride and Prejudice is an ode to the English customs of the regency era, from which the story of Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy is born. The adaptation of the original novel follows the four young Bennet sisters as they navigate society and marriage.
As the cast steps into regency England, they uncover the social rigidity and careful intentionality behind each action. Charlie Casey ‘27, who plays the reserved Mr. Bennet, comments, “They have customs and standards for just about everything that can even push them to such extreme degrees as declaring you a social pariah should you not follow them perfectly.” The actors have had to immerse themselves in the reality that was the early 19th century—to realize decorum in their every move. Stage manager Lydia Wright ‘27 adds, “There’s this scene when the Bennet girls all come home, this flurry of movement, and that’s been a really big movement piece where the actors really had to think objectively about their choices and really consider what the motives of their character are.” Alongside the thoughtfulness of movement and behavior, the cast must train their speech to match the accents of the English, whether it be from the poised manner of the aristocracy or the more casual accent of the lower class.
Each actor also faces their own set of individual challenges. Taking on the role of the enigmatic Mr. Darcy, Reid Lawler ‘26 explains, “Mr. Darcy is a bit of a complicated character. I think he’s very misunderstood, and it’s kind of a lot about you talking about exterior versus interior motives, kind of like what you express versus what you actually feel. Mr. Darcy kind of comes off as super standoffish and kind of petty, but in reality he’s actually a little sensitive and misunderstood.” Sam Slye ‘27, who plays Elizabeth Bennet, shares, “[Elizabeth Bennet is] an iconic character for a lot of people, and I want to bring an authentic version, my own version of the character, to the show while simultaneously giving the characters the justice that they all deserve.”
This production has presented characters that are unlike those that many of the cast are accustomed to playing. Sean Reagle ‘27, playing the awkward Mr. Collins states, “Mr. Clay says that I always play the children in every play, and I haven’t played someone that’s regarded as disgusting and a pervert in a show before, so this is very new to me.” Ellen Casey ‘27, who plays the bizarre Mary Bennet, is in a similar situation, remarking, “I really do think it’s helped me step outside of my comfort zone as to the kinds of roles I feel comfortable playing, and you know, it’s fun to be the weird character and the kind of person the audience laughs at.” Additionally, Daniel Clay, Head of the Theater Department and play director comments on the growth of the actors that he has witnessed: “I’m really excited about the new group of actors that we have for the future, about the progress that the 10th graders and 11th graders and 12th graders have made just in doing the last few shows and many of them have taken honors acting classes, other acting classes outside of school and in the summer.” Clay continues, “For them to come back after having learned so much and now applying this new stuff to what they’re doing, it’s really rewarding.”
In constructing Jane Austen’s vision within the confines of the blackbox, the tech crew works to execute a set that not only fulfills the needs of the play, but innovatively imagines the room as a storyteller of its own. Clay evaluates the physical challenges of the blackbox space: “Our casts are getting bigger and bigger, and so when you try to accommodate that number of people in the theater, it makes staging a little more challenging, because you have scenes with 28 people on stage at a time, and that can get difficult in a small space like a black box, because the audience doesn’t know where to look or who to look at.” Veronica Timmerman, ‘27, a crew member, adds, “Plays that are in the round, [meaning there are audiences on all 4 sides] are usually considered to be more immersive, and I say that’s kind of interesting and kind of difficult at the same time, because even though it is a small set, we kind of have to do really well in that small set, because there’s less of it and the audience can see more angles right of it than when they just sit in front of it.”
Moreover, the tech crew this year has been temporarily without a technical director. Timmerman expresses, “I was a little stressed before we started tech, thinking about what things would look like, how would we do things, if they’d be similar to what Ms. B[ertucci] would do, or if they’d be completely and utterly different.” Given this predicament, Ted Mathisen, Upper School science teacher and robotics supervisor, decided to offer his assistance in the interim. Mathisen reflects, “It is different, certainly something I have never done here. It’s been great working with all of the tech team, and it’s nice to be able to come in and say, ‘what do you want to do, how do you want to do it,’ and then just be the person to advise, instead of trying to make the decisions, because that’s for the tech crew to make and for Mr. Clay to make, and so I get to help other people have a vision for what they want.” With the hiring of a new technical director, Daniel Grayberg, he believes that the production is in good hands.
Despite the troubles and specificities of recreating the timeless Pride and Prejudice, the cast and crew are charged with the ambition of imparting its core messages that are sure to reach and sway the audiences of today. Ellen Casey reasons, “I think that maybe a lot of people will resonate with Lizzie, because her sister is prettier than her, and everyone says her sister is better than her in every way, and she’s like some ugly, awkward, sharp tongued little creature. I think that maybe some people will relate to feeling inadequate, especially in an environment as competitive as EA, feeling like there’s somebody that’s better than you in some way.” Further, Slye notes, “I hope that the audience feels empowered to be reflective in their own life and recognize the prejudice that they might carry with them and not even realize, and challenge themselves to break out of it, because sometimes the greatest things can come out of breaking free from the prejudice that we have.”
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