Last night I was thrilled to be invited to the press night for Pride & Prejudice* (*Sort of) at Newcastle’s Theatre Royal. It’s rare that I go to a press night knowing what to expect, but this is actually the third time I have seen this corker of a show – and it once again lived up to my expectations.

The brainchild of award-winning writer-director Isobel McArthur – who played a very dashing Mr Darcy in the original production – this retelling of Austen’s classic romance takes a smart but very irreverent approach to its source material.

Retold from the perspective of the all-female household staff, this fast-paced romp mixes sweary humour, modern songs and a ton of physical comedy and visual jokes to great effect, while somehow managing to maintain the romance of the original (you do in fact care that Darcy and Elizabeth get together).

All of the hugely talented cast multi-role, with identities often discarded mid-scene, sometimes signified by little more than donning or discarding a jacket. Tight pacing means there isn’t a slack moment, with rapid fire jokes and catchy songs making for a great night out that doesn’t tire on reviewing – I mentioned on Facebook this was my third outing to see it and one of my friends said she was on her sixth!

I was actually lucky enough to chat to McArthur at the Northern Stage season launch (way back in those days before the pandemic) and was hugely impressed by the thought and care she’d put into the show. It’s not just an approach of ‘how can we stick a load of modern jokes and some swearing into Jane Austen’ – although the show excels at that, it’s one of the funniest things I’ve seen in ages – but genuinely thinking about how households at the time worked, how women were affected by men going off to war, how servants related to their so-called social superiors. This has the effect of making Mrs Bennet a lot more sympathetic – she is right to be genuinely terrified for the future of her daughters, even if she’s not exactly subtle or classy in how she goes about securing it – and Mr Bennet, here portrayed as an empty chair and a newspaper – a lot less so. (Donald Sutherland, they could never make me hate you!)

This is a Newcastle Theatre Royal co-production – its first for more than a decade – and the cast includes local talent Susie Barrett and Isobel Donkin, following (if I recall correctly) a call out for actors in the region. With another co-production coming hot on its heels next week (the locally focused Gerry & Sewell, which arrives after successful runs at Laurels and Live), this looks to be the start of a positive trend for the theatre, which seems to be committed to addressing how it can use its standing as one of the city’s flagship venues to be more than just a receiving house for touring productions (although there’s nothing wrong with that – Newcastle deserves its share of big touring shows). I’ve already seen this in action with the reopening of its studio space – where I went to see the production of Janet Plater’s Limelight – and I’m excited to see how this will develop.

The show runs in Newcastle till Saturday and then embarks on a tour: do yourself a favour, and catch it where you can.

Details:

Cast: Susie Barrett, Emma Rose Creaner, Rhianna McGreevy, Naomi Preston Low, Christine Steel, Isobel Donkin, Georgia May Firth.

Director: Isobel McArthur

Set & Costume: Ana Ines Jabares-Pita

Choreographer: Emily Jane Boyle

Sound Designers: Michael John McCarthy and Dylan Saberton for Autograph

Lighting Designer: Colin Greenfell