See Pride & Prejudice 40s Style

By Carol Attia

The San Leandro Players, a local theater company, is currently performing Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen.  

The director, Hallie Lewis Hunt, also adapted the story for the stage and updated the setting from the very early 1800's to the 1940's.  In an effort to be true to the original novel, Ms. Hunt's script has many short scenes, each involving a set change, which the actors themselves perform with admirable alacrity.  These are clearly performers who work well together and have spent untold hours in rehearsal, otherwise they would not have been able to achieve the rapid, yet smooth set changes that transpired.

The production is very high-energy, especially in the scenes at the Bennet home. Because the venue is an intimate one, and the script demands the traditional dramatic presentation of maintaining the fourth wall (meaning the audience views the action as if they were observing real events), too much energy, on the part of the performers, can cross the line from believability to overdone.  Nonetheless, the five daughters maintain their characters' credibility amid the chaos that pervades their family interactions.

The costumes were delightful, almost like a fashion show from the 1940's, right down to the seams on the girls' stockings.

I was delighted to see, in the actors' biographies, how many of the young performers are students at our local junior colleges, state colleges, universities, and professional schools.  Included are Chabot, Cal-State, East Bay, California College of the Arts, Ruth Asawa School of the Arts, U.C., Berkeley, and the American Conservatory Theatre.  Kudos to The San Leandro Players for putting our local talent on their stage.

Thirty minutes before the show begins, there is a vocal presentation of love songs from the 1940's.  It is a great way to bring the audience into the era and the mood of the production.

The play runs through May 13, Saturdays at 8:00 P.M. and Sundays at 2:00 P.M.  It is playing at the Casa Peralta Museum Auditorium, 320 West Estudillo Avenue, in San Leandro.  Parking is close and free.  Tickets are $20 general admission, $15 for seniors and children 12 and under.  For more information, go to the website: www.slplayers.org, or call (510) 895-2573.

Support your community theatre. Go see the show!

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