Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley at PTC

Since I am a huge fan of Jane Austen in general and of Pride and Prejudice in particular, I have been anticipating PTC's current production for months!  Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley takes the beloved characters we know so well and places them in a delightful drawing room comedy that is perfect for the holidays!  Mr. and Mrs. Darcy (Greg Balla and Emily Nash, respectively) invite the entire Bennet family to Pemberley for Christmas.  Mr. and Mrs. Bingley (Logan James Hall and Rachel Clausen, respectively) are expecting a baby imminently, Mrs. Wickham (Jessica Naimy) is lonely and unhappy in her marriage to Mr. Wickham, and Mary Bennet (Elizabeth Ramos) is lamenting the fact that she has been abandoned and forgotten by her sisters at Longbourn.  Mr. Darcy reveals that, since Lady Catherine de Bourgh has recently died, he has invited the new heir to Rosings, Arthur de Bourgh (Jamen Nanthakumar), to Pemberley for Christmas.  He takes an immediately liking to Mary (he likes to read as much as she does) but Mrs. Wickham flirts outrageously with him leading to a misunderstanding involving love letters.  When this is resolved, Catherine de Bourgh's daughter, Anne (Savannah Moffat), arrives declaring herself to be engaged to her cousin.  Can the former Bennet sisters get Mary and Arthur back together?  I thoroughly enjoyed this charming production!  What I liked most is that the characterizations from the novel are completely maintained.  I know these characters intimately and they are immediately recognizable.  My favorite scenes are those when Arthur asks Mr. Darcy and Mr. Bingley for advice on courting a Bennet sister (since they are such experts).  Mr. Darcy suggests writing a letter declaring his feelings and Mr. Bingley suggests that he simply ask Mary if she likes him.  So clever!  The entire cast is outstanding but Nanthakumar and Ramos are hilarious to watch as Arthur and Mary try awkwardly to declare their love to each other.  Balla and Hall are also really fun together as Darcy and Bingley contemplate their status as happily married men.  The set, filled with beautiful Regency furniture and a Christmas tree which is the source of much amusement, and the costumes, in rich and sumptuous fabrics, do much to evoke 19th century England.  Sometimes the action is quite slow but the witty banter is hilarious!  If you are a fan of Pride and Prejudice, this play is sure to delight you.  It runs through Dec. 15 (tickets may be purchased here).