Review: PRIDE & PREJUDICE PART 2: NAPOLEON AT PEMBERLY at Westport Country Playhouse

You think you know Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet? Spoiler: There’s another side to the prim and proper and perfect (well, almost) beloved characters in Jane Austen’s 1813 novel of manners, Pride and Prejudice.

Audiences will quickly see that Ken Ludwig’s imaginative play Pride & Prejudice, Part 2: Napoleon at Pemberley and Emily Mann’s exquisite direction rejuvenate the characters in the story. You will never see Jane Austen’s characters again the way you were taught in school or saw the story produced for the movies and television.

Here’s the situation. Elizabeth (Delphi Borich) and Fitzwilliam, whom she calls William (Tony Roach), have been happily married for some time and are living in Pemberley, the Darcy family home. Now it’s 1815 and the Napoleonic wars are over. No problem. Or is it? The military had to keep Napoleon Bonaparte somewhere before they sent him into exile, and they approached the lady of the house. Before she could discuss it with William, she agreed to it. When William comes home and learns about their unexpected houseguest, he is apoplectic. And then they fight, but not quietly and civilly as you would expect them to. They yell. They accuse each other for what they did and what they didn’t do. They sound like us.

William doesn’t have a choice but to agree because Major Hudson Lowe (Carson Elrod, who also plays Mr. Collins) and Lieutenant Melville (Mathias Goldstein) deposit Napoleon at Pemberley. It’s supposed to be a secret, but soon Lydia Wickham (Lucy Austin) arrives to share some exciting news with Elizabeth. Their sister, Jane, is with child. Elizabeth and Lydia jump for joy. Lydia, now a widow, gets excited to see Melville because she has a thing for men in uniforms. As you know, in the book she married the charming but deceitful George Wickham. Elizabeth steers her away from Melville. In no time she reads the situation. Then, Lady Catherine de Bourgh (Kristine Nelson) visits Pemberley with her meek daughter Anne (Allison Wick). Mr. Collins, now a widower, arrives. He announces, “The time has come for me to seek a new wife.” He is still determined to get rich.

Reg Rogers’ Napoleon is delightful. Although Napoleon voluntarily surrendered to the British, he’s not done being Emperor. Napoleon lists his admirable accomplishments and plans his escape. He changes things at Pemberley, including the menu. The cook now wants to join Napoleon in his escape because, for the first time at Pemberley, he was eating exceptional meals. Napoleon wants to have a gala, which enrages William, of course. Later he tells Napoleon sarcastically, “Oh, how wonderful! We’re having a ball!”

News of Joséphine’s declining health comes to Pemberley, and Napoleon is distraught. Elizabeth dresses in Lt. Melville’s uniform and goes to Joséphine to deliver Napoleon’s final letter to her. With his wife gone for two days, William is frantic. When she comes back, they have another fight. A gun goes off and a bullet hits William. They make up. At the end of the play, Lt. Melville and Anne announce that they practically forced Mr. Collins to marry them. The military takes Napoleon away. Elizabeth tells William that she will be busy writing speeches, running for Parliament, and writing a novel. She even started it with a famous quote that would forever become famous.

The actors were perfectly cast and delivered their lines with the right combination of seriousness and comedy. Standouts were Kristine Nielsen, Reg Rogers, and Carson Elrod. Nielsen and Rogers were properly haughty and funny yet just restrained enough as Lady Catherine and Napoleon. As Mr. Collins, Elrod flipped between smarmy and cowardly.

The dates are not always accurate. Joséphine died about a year before Napoleon’s defeat. But this is a play, not a documentary.

As funny as the play is, Ludwig treats Jane Austen’s book with respect. Mann had plenty of material and and a fabulous set design to work with, and the production was flawless. There is a scene in which Napoleon teaches Lydia how to dance the waltz. They were better than Dancing with the Stars because there was no pressure, and they gracefully navigated around the furniture on the set. Speaking of which, the prolific award-winning scenic designer Beowulf Boritt created a jaw dropping beautiful stage for this production. Think Wedgewood and Tiffany blue. (I would love to see what his home looks like. He also designs amazing costumes.) Anyway, you can see a picture of the set on Instagram (@beowulfboritt). Imagine it beautifully lit by co-lighting designers Jeff Croiter and Katy Atwell). Jennifer Von Mayrhauser’s costumes were splendid. Jane Austen would be pleased.

Pride & Prejudice Part 2: Napoleon at Pemberly runs from October 20th to November 7th at Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court, Westport. For tickets, call (203) 227-4177 or visit www.westportplayhouse.org.

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