I have a slightly unreasonable amount of affection for Pride and Prejudice. I collect different editions of the book, largely because apparently owning the same story in multiple covers is a hobby now, and I will happily stop to inspect a particularly good Darcy on a bookshelf. So when I heard about Pride and Prejudice (*sort of), a new take on Austen’s most beloved romantic comedy, I arrived at QPAC with equal parts excitement and hesitation.
The production tells Jane Austen’s story through the servants who work around the Bennet family, with the five performers taking on multiple roles across the story. It is a clever theatrical device, and it gives the cast plenty of opportunity to play with the characters and the mechanics of storytelling.
The production is playful, the cast commits wholeheartedly to the comedy and there are some genuinely terrific performances. I laughed a lot, particularly when the actors lean into the absurdity of Austen’s characters. At the same time, the central idea didn’t quite give me as much as I had hoped it would, which is a tricky thing to admit when you have spent years happily consuming every possible version of this story.
What I kept waiting for was a deeper sense of what seeing the Bennets through the servants’ eyes might actually reveal. The perspective is an intriguing starting point, particularly given the rigid class structure of Austen’s world, but the production doesn’t always make that perspective feel like the point. Instead, it becomes more of a framework for the performers to move between characters and keep the action racing along.
And the actors are very good at doing exactly that.
The cast works incredibly hard, with every performer taking on multiple characters and giving each one a distinct physicality and comic rhythm. There is a lot of precision underneath the silliness, particularly in the way the actors find different voices, postures and mannerisms for the people they are playing.
Amy Lehpamer is a standout across her roles. She gives each character such a specific personality that they feel completely separate from one another, and her comic timing is excellent. She had my audience in stitches more than once.
Then there is Zoe Ioannou’s Mr Darcy, which may be my favourite bit of characterisation in the show. Ioannou also plays Mrs Bennet, so the contrast between the two roles is particularly funny. She is one of the shorter performers in the cast, yet put her in a waistcoat and tails, give her that disdainful Darcy stare and suddenly she seems to have grown six inches. There is something about the posture, the attitude and the sheer pomposity of it that makes her instantly imposing. Add the smoulder and the unmistakable Darcy energy and, yes, Mr Darcy is still hot when played by a woman. Austen’s powers remain intact.
For me, Pride and Prejudice (*sort of) is at its strongest when it lets its performers have fun with Austen’s characters. I’m still not entirely convinced that the servant perspective adds as much to the story as I expected it to, but I enjoyed seeing this very familiar book approached from such a theatrical angle. And as someone who has probably spent far too much time with Pride and Prejudice over the years, I’m always going to be interested when someone finds another way to put Darcy on a stage.
WHAT: Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of)
WHERE: Playhouse, QPAC
WHEN: Until October 18, 2026
TICKETS: Get tickets to Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of) here.
In her spare time, she likes long walks down the makeup aisle and performing in Brisbane theatre. You can follow her adventures on Instagram and TikTok @thebeautypalate.
