Written by orange• December 6, 2025• 5:02 pm• Costa Mesa, Review, Theater

Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley @ Vanguard University – Review

photo credit: Vanguard Lyceum Theater

Written by Daniella Litvak

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a beloved work of fiction will inspire countless adaptations, spinoffs, and derivative works. Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice is a prime example. Writers have used Austen’s novel of how Elizabeth “Lizzy” Bennett and Mr. Darcy overcome disastrous first impressions, embarrassing relatives and a scoundrel in order to find true love to explore such questions as what if Lizzy and Darcy were zombie hunters. What if a 21st-century woman showed up and disrupted the plot of the novel, and what would the servants at Longbourne (Lizzy’s home) think of the novel’s characters and events (fyi – not a fan of Lizzie getting mud on her petticoat).

Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley (hereinafter “Miss Bennet”) puts the spotlight on Mary Bennet (Amanda Fagan). A secondary character in the novel, Mary is the middle Bennett sister, noted for being the plainest and for preferring books over balls. Set two years after the events of Pride and Prejudice when Lizzie (Shekinah Glory Rainwater) and Darcy (Matthew Barge) invite their family to spend Christmas at Pemberley, Miss Bennett wonders what would happen if Mary tires of living an isolated existence of reading and piano playing and meets her match when an unexpected gentleman, Arthur De Bourgh (Ian Miller), comes to join in the festivities.

Story:

Is Miss Bennet for the Austen purists? It certainly takes a lot of liberties with the source material. Specific plot points from Pride and Prejudice are unconvincingly hand-waved away to make way for Miss Bennet’s story. Some of the dialogue comes across as callous if you are familiar with Pride and Prejudice. It’s also hard to get fully immersed in what is happening onstage when you are constantly having thoughts such as, “Lizzie would never say that,” or “Lydia (the youngest Bennet sister) would never act that way.”

Speaking of character changes, like other Austen-related works, Miss Bennet falls into the trap of changing the main character to be more like Lizzy. The novel’s version of Mary is an insufferable, know-nothing know-it-all – think Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory. Yes, she’s a tougher character to like. Still, I think Miss Bennet could have scored more laughs and mined more drama for the story if they had stuck to the original characterization.

Does Miss Bennet stand on its own? That’s also a tricky question because without the Pride and Prejudice connection, the story and characters can come across as underdeveloped. However, there were many things to enjoy about this show, especially what this particular cast and crew bring to it.

Acting:

I may not have liked how all the characters were written, but I liked how the cast played those roles. The actresses playing the Bennet sisters – Fagan, Rainwater, Ruth Gray as Lydia, and Giana Garcia as Jane – genuinely felt like sisters. Barge, Jordan Silva as Charles Bingley, and Miller were a total joy to watch during the scenes where Darcy and Bingley advise Arthur how to court Mary. The background acting from everyone was great. And it has become a feature of Vanguard productions to enjoy the background acting as much as the main action.

Costumes/Set Design:

The costumes highlighted the beauty of Regency era fashion. One of the joys of watching a stage show over a film or movie is that stage costumes can get away with brighter colors and more flamboyant looks, which Miss Bennet took advantage of. Mary’s final costume was a total “Wow!”

The stage is split into a drawing room and the library at Pemberley. During the second half, the set is decorated for Christmas. The Christmas decorations make a huge impact on the stage. It makes the set design grander and livelier.

Miss Benett: Christmas at Pemberley is not a perfect sequel to Pride and Prejudice, but its good humor and cheer made it an unexpected treat for the holiday season.