My heart swells with pride and ardent admiration at the close of this Show Weekend. Pride & Prejudice was a beloved, but challenging story to tell with 2 hours of dialogue and about a million lines for Ella to learn as she never left the stage. When it was announced last year that P&P was slated to be her final show, Ella set her eyes on the Lizzie Bennet part-- one of her all time favorite characters. She got the part and played her with all the poise, effervesce, feistiness and expression that Lizzie needed for Mr. Darcy and the audience to fall in love with her! We could not be more impressed and proud! Delia got the part she wanted too! Appropriately, as Lizzie's younger sister Kitty, a character who Delia loved! She's silly, flirty, and giggly and Delia also endeared herself to everyone portraying Kitty.
There were countless special things about this show, one of them being the show poster/program! Ella's good friend Ansley drew these portraits of Ella and Nick, the friend who plays Darcy, and the likenesses are astonishing! We'll treasure this art forever.
As always, Erica, our director's daughter blesses us by taking pictures of the production during dress rehearsals. Here are a few favorite from a few key scenes. Above, the lovely Bennet sisters-- Mary, Kitty, Lizzie, Jane and Lydia. Below, the Bennet family, including their high-strung, hysterical mother and dry, cynical, hilarious father.
"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife." Ella's iconic line opens the show as she elegantly stands on stage while the curtain opens.
Boy-crazy Kitty and Lydia are ecstatic about the idea of an assembly (dance)!
"My dance card is filled for the evening! And they are all handsome! And charming!"
At the ball, Lizzie first meets the smoldering Mr. Darcy who insults her pride by calling her "tolerable" in comparison to her beautiful sister Jane.
But, it is the incessantly talkative, exhausting Mr. Collins who takes a liking to Lizzie...and proposes! (A funny scene that is perfectly played and one of my favorites!)
Lydia and Kitty cook up a dozen ways to find and flirt with the officers. These two brought the levity to a dialogue-heavy story and they were just delightful!
While visiting her best friend Charlotte (who is willing to accept Mr. Collins' desperate search for a wife), Lizzie gets a few visitors of her own. Lady Catherine De Bourgh, played expertly snotty by good friend Ruth, to insult Lizzie and tell her she and her family aren't worthy. And Mr. Darcy who has been brooding in his feelings for Elizabeth and declares his ardent love and admiration for her. But of course, she cannot accept him because he has mistreated her friend Mr. Wickham and separated her dear sister Jane from her true love, Darcy's best friend Mr. Bingley.
A long letter of explanation makes it all clear to Lizzie. She was quite mistaken in her prejudice for Mr. Darcy. And what's more, he's used his own fortune and influence to rescue her silly sister Lydia from a shameful marriage to the scandalous Mr. Wickham!
As she tours his home in Pemberley, she uncovers her own feelings for the complicated Mr. Darcy.
Lizzie confesses her family will be astonished to discover how deeply she loves him...just as she was.
Anyone who loves the book or movie Pride & Prejudice had their expectations met in this stage version. Everything was recognizable, most lines taken straight from the book, and each beloved character played with familiarity. The line memorization was impressive, but the acting even more so. Ella could not have brought her acting career to a more perfect close than with this story she loves, this character she completely owned, and this cast she'll call lifelong friends.
1 comment:
We loved that we were able to see the girls in Pride & Prejudice, especially since this was Ella's last high school play. Poise is definitely what we said about Ella. Dad and I were amazed at all of the lines that Ella memorized. Not only was she the main character, but the narrator as well. Both Ella and Delia did an amazing job. It was fun to watch Delia's expressions. She conveyed a lot even without saying anything. We could tell that dancing was Delia's favorite part! Such talented girls!
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