SISTER ACT
Overlooked sister from “Pride and Prejudice” at center of “Christmas at Pemberley” play
Overlooked sister from “Pride and Prejudice” at center of “Christmas at Pemberley” play.
For local fans of Jane Austen, holiday tidings arrive early this year with “Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley.” The new play continues the story of “Pride and Prejudice” with the same kind of plot twists and romantic charm as the original. It’s a classy holiday gift in two acts, with a cast of nine and live incidental music, all compliments of Capital Repertory Theater. Previews start on Friday and the opening is Tuesday, Nov. 27, with performances continuing through Dec. 23.
A large Christmas tree will dominate the Regency Era set but at the real center of the action is the Bennets’ previously overlooked middle daughter, Mary. Perhaps fate will finally shine a benevolent light on her. And maybe, just maybe, it will be her turn to find love.
In “Pride and Prejudice” Mary is the bookish one, not as graceful or clever as her more showy sisters. In the two years since the end of the novel, she kept up her piano studies and now shows real musical flair. Though
Mary still isn’t much of a singer, she’s no longer shunned at parties. All that reading has also paid off, as she’s able to hold her own in
some intellectual discourse with the gentlemen caller Arthur de Bourgh.
It’s a familiar Austen plot device, the sudden appearance of eligible bachelors. This Mr. De Bourgh comes by way of Oxford, so he’s got plenty of brains. But, in a possible nod to today’s geek culture, he’s awkward and not terribly streetwise. Nevertheless, it doesn’t take long to see that he could be a good match for Mary. In the Austen tradition, the characters must first go through some trials before finding love.
“The writers understand Jane Austen and are able to mirror her entanglements and plot devices,” says director Maggie Mancinellicahill. “Even if you don’t know the prior story at all, you can totally get what’s going on.”
Maggie Mancinelli-cahill says her staging relies upon grace and fluidity. That’s why she’s brought in a pianist and violinist.
“If I had a signature as a director I’d say I like a sense of choreography and melody in a comedy,” she says. “It’s in how people move and the charm and festivity.”
“Miss Benett” was written by Lauren Gunderson and Margot Melcon and debuted two years ago. As Mancinelli-cahill says it, Gunderson is “the most successful playwright you’ve never heard of.” The 36-year-old writer is the most-performed living American playwright working today. In recent seasons, local audiences have experienced two of her works — “The Taming” (Shakespeare & Company, 2016) and “Emilie: La Marquise Du Chatelet Defends Her Life Tonight” (WAM Theatre, 2017).
Gunderson and Melon’s efforts to extend the Austen classic can be considered a professional version of what’s become known as “fan fiction.” The two women first started riffing on the continued plight of certain characters as they shared an extended road trip out West. When they realized they were on to something, they jotted down their ideas on Starbucks napkins.
Their efforts continue, as “Miss Bennet” is the first of a trilogy. Next up is “The Wickhams: Christmas at Pemberley,” which debuts this week in the San Francisco Bay Area’s Marin Theatre Company, where Gunderson is playwright-inresidence. The world premiere production is being directed by Megan Sandberg-zakian, who was just at The Rep staging the boxing drama “The Royale.”
Mancinellicahill says she’ll be headed to California to see what the playwrights offer as the next chapter. So perhaps more of the Bennet family’s ongoing tale will be coming to Albany.
When it comes to selecting a show for the holidays,
The Rep’s producing artistic director knows what she likes, and it’s not necessarily something that’s a musical or bears a recognizable name. It’s more about getting the right theme and sentiments.
“I like a play or musical that allows us to lead with our hearts, rather than curtailing or stopping our heart with logic,” says Mancinelli-cahill. “I love plays where there’s romance and love. Love is what matters. I don’t always do plays that have that message but this time of year I like people to come together and remember that.”
As Mancinelli-cahill considers what plays will be part of the coming seasons, a part of her thinking is that The Rep will soon have a new home. In March of this year the company and its affiliate organization, Proctors, announced the purchase and planned renovation of a building at 251 N. Pearl St. on Livingston Square. The new house was projected to open in December 2019. Mancinelli-cahill says that they’re now looking at an opening in spring 2020, about 18 months from now.
“It’s a blink of an eye when you’re talking about construction and getting things done,” she says. “When you start building, putting shovels in the ground or taking columns out of a building as we’ll do, you’ve already worked for two and a half years to get to that point.”
At the time of the announcement, more than half of the $8 million project budget was already in place through grants and pledges. According to
“The writers understand Jane Austen and are able to mirror her entanglements and plot devices. Even if you don’t know the prior story at all, you can totally get what’s going on.” Director Maggie Mancinelli-cahill
Mancinelli-cahill fundraising continues apace. “People want Cap Rep to succeed and they would like us to be in a nicer facility,” she says, adding that figures will be released when the public phase of fundraising begins.
Clearly gifts are on Mancinelli-cahill’s mind. A holiday tradition for her is asking audiences what their wish list is for the theater. Their answer is always the same: more bathrooms.
“I tell them we are going to give you your Christmas wish in our new space,” she says. “My own wish is always world peace. So now, it’s world peace and bathrooms for Capital Rep.”