Pride and Prejudice at The Rep in Milwaukee

This past weekend I went to Wisconsin to see the The Milwaukee Repertory Theater's production of Jane Austen's classic Pride and Prejudice. Having immersed myself in everything Austen (Austen works were the subject of my final 2 projects in grad school before my May 2008 graduation)I was anxious to see P&P on stage instead of the small screen. The production was beautifully staged in a "theater-in-the-round" theater which enabled the actors to move around freely and utilize multiple entrances and exits. The set was beautifully done with merely the moving of a bench, a table or chairs to represent different scenes. The costumes were absolutely gorgeous, Darcy's long coats swept the floor and the ladies gowns were simple but changed with merely the addition of beautiful wraps or jackets.
The actors were very well cast, the very young woman playing Elizabeth Bennet was the right age and showed Elizabeth's spunk while the actor cast as Mr. Darcy was everything remote and attractive. Other standouts were the actors cast as Elizabeth's parents Mr. and Mrs. Darcy as well as Mr. Bingley and Mr. Collins. I found the young woman who played Lydia Bennet to have an annoyingly bad British accent which distracted from the character and the woman cast as Lady Catherine de Bourgh had a commanding stage presence (her gorgeous costumes helped) but didn't display the moxie needed for the imposing and formidable "Lady Catherine de Bourgh". Overall the cast was wonderful and stayed true to the beloved characters of Austen's most popular novel.
Milwaukee is a short drive from Chicago (no more time than what I usually spend in traffic to the city) and a nice change to the larger Broadway productions currently popular in Chicago right now.
We ate at the most fantastic restaurant, Bartolotta's Lake Park Bistro which is situated directly on the lakefront of Lake Michigan in a city park. The views were stunning and the food was one of the best meals I have EVER enjoyed. For more information visit their website here: http://www.lakeparkbistro.com/
For information on The Rep Theater visit there website here:
http://www.milwaukeerep.com/
(The actors shown in the publicity for Pride and Prejudice are not the actors in the production)