Pride and Prejudice

by Kate Hamill

This isn't your grandmother's Austen! Bold, surprising, boisterous, and timely, this P&P for a new era explores the absurdities and thrills of finding your perfect (or imperfect) match in life. The outspoken Lizzy Bennet is determined to never marry, despite mounting pressure from society. But can she resist love, especially when that vaguely handsome, mildly amusing, and impossibly aggravating Mr. Darcy keeps popping up at every turn?! Literature's greatest tale of latent love has never felt so theatrical, or so full of life than it does in this effervescent adaptation. Because what turns us into greater fools... than the high-stakes game of love?

Genres: Plays, Classics, Drama, Humor

100 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1956

Reviews

[Casey · Rating 2 out of 5]

This could be my personal preference as I am a self-proclaimed Austen fan, but I didn't care for this. It's touted as "based on the novel by Jane Austen"; while it does tell the same basic gist of the story, it just is watered down and feels like a strange fusion of modern retelling/contemporary additions interspersed with the essential quotes that must be included ("It is a truth universally acknowledged...", "You must allow me to tell you how ardently..."). To have the iconic quotes mixed in amidst strange new additions like Jane's garbled speech when she's sick at Netherfield "Oh, Liddy, I'm so glad youah heew[...] you dink dat because you lub me" (pages 28-29)and Lizzy's very modern "I know, but NO! [...] I KNOW, BUT NO!" response to Mr. Collins' proposal feels a bit jarring. Almost as if two separate voices are writing.

I preferred Kate Hamill's unique take on "Sense & Sensibility". Her style seemed to work much better for adapting that novel.

In condensing a dense novel like "Pride & Prejudice", one is expecting omissions of events, but rarely additions of them. For example, Darcy and Lizzy do not meet by bumping into one another and spilling punch at a party. Also, the introduction of Wickham takes place in a strange new way. It all just feels rather disjointed and rushed. Most of the action seems like it takes place in the utter chaos of the Bennet household.

Imagery and themes that are nowhere to be found in the novel are included (for example, bells dinging/ringing, whether as prize fighters in the ring, wedding bells, annoying clangings), and dogs (Bingley as a retriever, "Bingley, COME!", "GO", playing with and fetching balls, etc.).

So, if you're looking for an adaptation that is Austen-esque in voice, this is not it. If you're looking for a modern take/easily accessible production to people not used to Austen's Regency era language, etc. then this is a good choice.

[John Perine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crying in the office on a Tuesday morning

[Tori · Rating 4 out of 5]

This script has a lot of promise! It was funny, but still had some sweet moments. Occasionally I wondered if certain parts were too absurd or goofy, but sometimes those moments can play really wonderfully on stage even if they don't land quite right upon reading. I have never read the original Pride and Prejudice, so I have no context for how it compares to the original or how successful it is as an adaptation.

[Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kate I <3 you so much

[Christin · Rating 4 out of 5]

really fun retelling

[Steph Curtis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and sassy. A laugh out loud adaptation which I look forward to seeing on stage. Great script. Hilarious exaggerations of some of the characters. Really enjoyable.

[Rachel Pollock · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun stage adaptation of a familiar story.

[Adam Hellewell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenally written, amazingly performed when done well, what a wonderful show to produce!

[Katherine Cowley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kate Hamill's adaptation brings a breakneck pace and slapstick comedy to Pride and Prejudice. It becomes less about the characters and the relationships than about energy and shame and all sorts of awkward humor. Mary becomes Nosferatu--any time any character notices her, they jump and can't help but react in a negative way. Mrs. Bennet's completely inappropriate behavior is modernized--she slaps her daughters butts; Mr. Bingley literally acts like a dog; and the characters play games like Blind Man's Bluff and tag on the stage. My favorite part is Mrs. Bennet's cheerleading military chant as she leads her daughters to the ball:

Chest and bum and eyes and smiles
(echoed)
Catch that man with female wiles!
(echoed)
Chest and bum and dulcet tone
(echoed)
No one wants to die alone!
(echoed)

This play is discomfiting at various points, but that is often part of the point of slapstick comedy.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pride and Prejudice is fun until you have to play Mr. Wickham.

In front of your mother who desperately wanted you to play Lizzy.

On her birthday.

(Nevertheless, he became my favorite character! He's so evil--- Love him!)

[kaya :) · Rating 5 out of 5]

very very very very funny stage adaptation of pride and prejudice !!!!! loved the bit whenever mary comes onstage and everyone gets scared haha

[Brittany Petruzzi · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are three phases in a woman’s life of reading “Pride & Prejudice.” First, she identifies wholly and completely with Lizzie Bennet as the impossibly witty heroine of her own story; she only awaits her own perfect Darcy. Next, she rolls her eyes at everyone who thinks as she once did; Lizzie is Austen’s wish-fulfillment and Darcy is a pipe dream. Finally, she realizes that she’s exactly like Lizzie and Lizzie is not at all perfect.

Kate Hamill has clearly been on this journey and wrote herself into the role of Lizzie with the sort of wit and humor that should rightly make every modern playwright seethe with jealousy. While I have some quibbles with her take on Austen’s tale here and there, this is the sort of adaptation I wish there were m ore of, in general. If your going to make a classic into a play, make it into a PLAY. Don’e just transcribe the text.

Hamill does what Laurents, Bernstein, ann Sondheim did with “West Side Story,” but also made it hysterically funny. She has shaped a well-loved tale to suit a new medium, a task only possibly when you know and love the original medium and material as much as you know and love the new medium. She makes bold decisions unapologetically and sticks with them and proves as as masterful with plots, theme, and pacing as Austen herself. Bravo!

[zoe · Rating 3 out of 5]

i played elizabeth bennet in THIS adaptation of pride and prejudice during my senior year of high school and, as i've been delving into reading more plays recently, i wanted to revisit this for both nostalgia's sake and for the sake of being able to draw a better opinion on it as someone who is no longer acting in it.

as an adaptation of p&p for those already familiar with it, it is okay. my biggest gripe with all of it is the fact that kate hamill's sense of humor feels like one big inside joke...that only she is truly in on. performing this live- it was very hard to get all of her chaotic and often brutally suggestive remarks to fully land.

the chaos of all of this is honestly my least favorite aspect of this p&p. it is SO chaotic (in terms of dialogue AND staging) and i found myself cringing frequently. hamill mixes modern tone with vital quotes ripped straight from the novel, and it results in the dialogue sounding awfully all over the place tonally.

that being said, i DO think the lizzy and darcy moments end up feeling very heartfelt and enjoyable! i find this to be one of the redeeming qualities of this specific script.

i want to check out the rest of hamill's adaptations out of sheer curiosity to see what she boldly does with other classic stories.

[Ceci Touzon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I expected far too much from this play. It was fine, but I felt it was too shallow for it’s own good at times.
The play really put an emphasis on the satirical part of Pride and Prejudice, but sometimes the comedy felt incredibly forced. Specifically Mrs. Bennet’s characters.
But, I do think seeing this production would be a lot more enjoyable than just reading it. It is also different enough from the book that the audience wouldn’t know exactly what was happening at all times. I do see potential within it which is why I gave it 3 stars. But I simply expected more from it.

[snot · Rating 4 out of 5]

I stage managed this show, so I got to re-read and re-watch it many many times. It has some beautiful emotional moments and some really silly jokes (Mary as a whole is hilarious and heartbreaking at the same time). It reads as a book rather than a play, with some stage directions just being descriptions rather than directions. If you cut out some of the stage directions it would probably 5/5, they just made it more difficult to work with (and just sort of cheesy).

[Misha Mond · Rating 5 out of 5]

was sent this the same day and read it in an afternoon. very witty, love the embedded greek tragedy troupes and how austen’s words are transposed to the stage in a way that can be adapted to any time period. appreciated the idea behind the blind man’s bluff game in regency era society. the ending was very sweet and let darcy and lizzy literally get swept off their feet. a very enjoyable winter read.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crazy. Entertaining. Gender- and age-bending. Requires lots of imagination in casting, staging, costuming, set design. Very funny. First laugh at the character breakdown, where one character is described (and acts) like "almost literally a dog." Lesleyann saw this in Vermont (it's her script); written by the same playwright as SENSE AND SENSIBILITY that I saw in Ashland, which was more chaotic than anything. Even this one might have to be toned down a little, to make it more accessible for our audience. Sets morph seamlessly into different scenes so that would require some onstage hints (maybe different color drapes?) But definitely do-able for the right cast.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Convened a meeting of the Kate Hamill Book Club for a reading of this and it was even better than I remembered from the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival production. A perfect mix of the familiar and the unexpected. Laugh out loud funny throughout to the point where we had to stop reading to catch our breath.

[By The Cover · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute! Fine, goofy adaptation. I have not read the original. I have read Pride by Ibi Zoboi and recently seen the Pride and Prejudice film. I thought this was fun.

[madelyn tax · Rating 5 out of 5]

cant wait to start rehearsing. 🤗 adding this to my books read because this read through was just for funsies. :)

[Samantha Daynes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone should see this play.

[Carolina · Rating 4 out of 5]

with good actors, this performs really well on stage :)

[Scott Hendricks · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was alright. I read it with an open mind. It was cleverly done on a remade classic. Period pieces like this are just. simply not my cup of tea.

[kayla michelle pisano ✮ · Rating 4 out of 5]

SHE LOCKED ME IN A CLOSET

[Janice · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was done 3 times in my area in the last year and I wasn't able to get to any of the performances. My loss. What a FUN play.

[Miriam · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[FEEFERS · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really good, and a hilarious adaptation

[Kiara Pillai · Rating 4 out of 5]

Takes the good parts of the book and makes it HYSTERICAL I love it

[Courtney :) · Rating 5 out of 5]

such a fun adaptation!! would love to be in this one day!

[Siouxsie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun and fast-paced! Definitely on my “to direct”
list.