#pride and prejudice musical theater extended universe

[deep-down-in-drowsy-town]

Hey guys! While I've been away I've been working on a (very long) video essay about musical theater adaptations of Pride and Prejudice

And I wanted to share... this

Enjoy:)

[deep-down-in-drowsy-town]

Y’all I need some motivation help please?

So. Context. A little while ago I came across some cursed knowledge: there are more at least a dozen Pride and Prejudice musicals in existence. At least 12 times throughout history, someone has attempted to turn Jane Austen’s classic social problems romantic comedy into a full-length work of musical theater.

Since then I’ve been on an obsessive quest to find, watch, and review them all. The idea is to turn all of my thoughts into a long video essay, so everyone has a comprehensive gateway into the Pride and Prejudice Musical Theater Extended Universe.

The problem is, video essays are hard to make. They take a lot of time and energy. And at this point I’ve hit an impasse. So to motivate myself, I want to gauge the interest of the tumblr community. So…

Thank you all!

[deep-down-in-drowsy-town]

Okay! OMG this is like my favorite thing to talk about i'm so happy

Let's start in 1954. The first every Pride and Prejudice musical. Written by Abe Burrows (the man who wrote for Guys and Dolls), First Impressions is a landmark. It is also a fever dream shit show. Spoilers: they try to make Mrs. Bennett the main character, to...questionable results. As far as I know there is no recording, but there is a soundtrack you can listen to.

Next up. Bernard J Taylor's Pride and Prejudice: The Musical. This debuted in 1993, and it's... decent. It's kind of slow paced, the lyrics are forgettable, but it is a straightforward rendition of the story, so whatever. If you're really curious, you can listen to the soundtrack here.

Then... oh boy. OH boy. We come to Lawrence Rush's adaptation. This is... I can talk about how much I love this musical for hours. It just does EVERYTHING right, with an absolutely GORGEOUS score and a- okay, just listen to this song:

THAT'S how you write a Darcy ballad!!! god. i'm in love. Anyway, you can watch the full 54 below concert here. I highly recommend.

Next! The Rita Abrams/ Josie Brown P&P Musical. This show is incredibly fun, and was clearly written by two real fans of the novel. I especially love this comedy number, by the lovely Mrs. Bennet:

This show also contains a pretty sick Darcy ballad, which is beautifully reprised at the end...

What's next? We got Richard Croxford/ Mark Doughery's take. Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure this is lost media- all I can find are two articles referencing it. Of course I'll keep looking- if someone finds more that would be MUCH appreciated!

Then, we got Jay Richard's take. This one is another tragedy. The composer managed to release one single from the show, this incredible Jane/ Bingley duet:

And then... he ran out of money. It was never produced. Which is tragic, because judging from just this song this would have been an INCREDIBLE musical.

What we DO have is Lindsay Warren Baker/ Amanda Jacobs' adaptation. There are actually a couple of versions of this show: the old version was simply called Pride and Prejudice: The Musical, and the more recent version is called Austen's Pride. This show is, quite simply, a masterpiece. Just check this out:

The moment there is a full official soundtrack and/or proshot, I'll be all over that. For now...

But wait! There's more! Pride and Prejudice (sort of) is a very silly parody of the novel, with an all-female cast and an upbeat pop score. Pretty fun stuff.

Then we got Prejudice and Pride, formerly known as American Pride. This is one of the more unique takes on Pride and Prejudice, being a gender-swapped folk musical set in modern day rural Tennessee. It's weird, but it somehow works. Check this out:

There is also a proshot of the off-Broadway production, which you can buy directly from the creators!

Speaking of unique takes on P&P, did I mention I Love You Because? This is just barely a P&P musical- they basically invent a whole new plot- but the characters and basic themes are there, so it counts. It's also just really good, and the Lizzie character (oh yeah it's also gender-swapped) is hilarious:

(you can also watch the whole musical here!)

And FINALLY, the most recent P&P musical: the dutch lesbian one! This one is being produced at the moment, and though I don't speak dutch, I can tell its really good, because, well, LOOK AT IT:

And... that's it. As far as I know, every single P&P musical. There are a few edge cases and other things, but you'll have to wait for my video essay to see that :)

Have fun!

Hey guys! While I've been away I've been working on a (very long) video essay about musical theater adaptations of Pride and Prejudice

And I wanted to share... this

Enjoy:)

[firthbetterorfirthworse]

Omg bless you for this

I have never felt so loved

Hey guys! While I've been away I've been working on a (very long) video essay about musical theater adaptations of Pride and Prejudice

And I wanted to share... this

Enjoy:)