Pride and Prejudice (I don't do stars)

It's getting so that you can rely on me to review the last night of a play. That's because I'm usually still waiting for comps. Anyway, I did get to see 'P&P' before it closed and was lucky - and glad - to have done so. I also got to experience the magical mix of euphoria and melancholy that permeates the 'wrap' party of a successful production. As others have observed, it was a huge risk for the director and producers to tackle a classic like P&P, especially only a year after Hollywood had given it a good thrashing. However, it seems that closet P&P fanatics are almost as thick amongst us as closet Monty Pythonians, but that is of course yet to be put to the test. Then again, perhaps the parlous state of the real world at the minute is itself conducive to escapism, especially when the fantasy to be escaped to is a true romance from the truly Romantic period of the early 19th Century. Whatever the reason, this play was indeed a box-office smash hit by any standard. Others have attributed the success of this show to the excellent acting. Well, I agree that the acting was overall of a high standard. However, I think what we audients really engaged with was the esprit de corps among those onstage and off - all came across as totally committed to the narrative and thence their individual roles and characterisations. No, they weren't all just copies of the ever-popular BBCTV version characters, but by the same token, those who loved that version were not disappointed either. It was well done. The set was simple but versatile, the light and sound design well complemented the narrative. Melville Theatre is not the best equipped technically (especially air conditioning) but with a few more shows as successful as this one, that may all change very soon. (Guess who?)