Theatre Company Two Bit Classics set themselves a frightening challenge this year – to perform the entirety of Pride and Prejudice with only two actors playing the more than twenty roles in the most famous of Jane Austen’s much-loved satirical novels. Together, the highly talented and experienced actors Joannah Tincey and Nick Underwood played every one of the characters – and to brilliant effect. Their fantastic characterisation made the piece a joy to watch, making what might otherwise have been dizzyingly quick character changes very easy to follow; and were very much true to the original work, with often hilarious results. The directorship was sharp throughout, and far from struggling with the tiny cast, this performance truly made the most of it, and the actors seemed to relish those moments where many characters were needed on stage at once, as yet another source of humour.
The piece was brilliantly written, lifting its lines directly from the novel while retaining its own quick humour. The play stayed fast-paced throughout, and was full of sharp acting, bringing Austen’s words to life, and became more and more gripping as it progressed. It also succeeded in being very accessible – you did not need a scholarship to understand this performance; and, although some minor knowledge of the plot beforehand would be a bonus, it was not essential to enjoy the play. The script also made use of the novel’s famous prose, using lines of third-person narrative lifted from the text addressed to the audience in character. The fantastic performers squeezed the most out of the language, picking up on every opportunity to have us in stitches. Indeed, the audience were laughing from the second line in, and this continued until the very end. As the story progressed, the lengthy letters in the later part of the story proved a challenge, but even here we were not often lost, as the director managed to keep an intense atmosphere throughout that kept us fixed on their every word, and the wonderful energy of the performance was maintained throughout.
The play benefited much from its excellent production style. The set was minimal (perhaps in keeping with the tiny cast) but was all that was needed to create a sense of atmosphere, and transformed easily into any setting needed. The same kind of precise, careful attention was put into the costumes, which were excellently designed, giving the chameleon-like actors the ability to change character rapidly – often causing more laughter as well. Sound was also used masterfully, with a great use of music to provide a solid atmosphere, and it was also used creatively several times to represent characters and running jokes. The piece was a fantastically quick-witted masterpiece, and I think the only mistake made was not to book them for a second night!