A cast of F.P. Walshe school students will perform Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice at the Empress Theatre on Dec. 12-14 at 7 p.m. in conjunction with the Empress Theatre Society.
Based on the 1813 novel, Pride and Prejudice is about Elizabeth Bennet, a middle-class woman, and Fitzwilliam Darcy, a wealthy aristocrat, who must overcome their pride and prejudice to fall in love and marry.
The students performing in the play are “particularly committed and talented,” according to Graham MacBean, the play director and drama teacher at F.P. Walshe school.
“I always choose the best play for the actors I have,” MacBean said. “I was able to push them with quite a challenging play. When working at a small school I always strive to find a play with roles that are just on the edge of what every student can rise to achieve.”
The cast includes Zoe Nelson as Miss Elizabeth Bennet; Hope Gouchie as Mrs. Bennet; Tyson Hearn as Mr. Bennet; Rylee Stedman as Miss Lydia Bennet; Sarah Duffy as Miss Catherine (Kitty) Bennet; Jasmine Asuchak as Miss Jane Bennet; Alexi Lemke as Miss Mary Bennet; Tacey Rabbit as Lady Lucas; Ryan Gray as Sir William Lucas; Isis Featherstone as Miss Charlotte Lucas; Joshua Sharpe as Captain Denney; Kaleb Shaw as Mr. Charles Bingley; Katheryn Orr as Miss Caroline Bingley; Corban Many Chief as Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy; Chris Jeong as Mr. William Collins; Olivia Lybbert as Lady Catherine de Bourgh; Alyvia Baker as Miss Anne de Bourgh; Miles Poytress as Ensign George Wickham; Migs Duran as Colonel Fitzwilliam; Sophie Many Chief as Miss Georgiana Darcy; Abbie Bisschop as Mrs. Gardiner; and Janita Marsh as Ms. Reynolds.
Noah Austin is in charge of lights and sound, Tessa Van Hierden is assistant director and Joshua Sharpe is stage manager.
MacBean said the play is faithful to the spirit of the book, and he has tried to capture that with great attention to detail in terms of costume, movement, manners, and nuance particular to the time.
“I feel the themes are more relevant today than when they were written,” MacBean said. “In Austen’s era, society was divided cleanly along the boundaries of class, but in our time, people are divided not just by wealth, but politics, faith, gender, education, and a host of other issues.”
“I think now, more than ever, we need to put aside our pride and our prejudices to find love for those we see as ‘other’.”
This year, 23 students are involved in the performance.
Audiences who have attended previous F.P. Walshe shows will see that every student who performed in The Velveteen Rabbit in Grade 9 has returned to the stage during their final year of high school.
“My students are a great group of young men and women, and it is a joy to discover little moments in the play with them and find out who these characters are together,” MacBean said. “When working with rich sources like this, there is always something to discover in every moment.”
Tickets are at www.macleodempress.com, 403-553-4404 or at the Box Office on Main Street.
