Tricks and Tails of an Old Dog

The exceptionally dowdy yet quite endearing middle sister Mary crept out from the all white set. 

She daringly glanced down at the small, colourful karaoke machine front and centre stage, something she had been barred from…until now.

Now was her chance. And we knew it.

My friend yelled out from the front row, “go for it Mary!” to my teen daughter’s embarrassed delight. 

Mary looked down at her, grinning in the spotlight.

The mic was hers. The disco epic ‘Young Hearts, Run Free’ blasted joyfully through the theatre.

It wasn’t exactly the Austen ending we had in mind when booking tickets to this ‘sort of’ adaptation of the classic tale Pride and Prejudice.

But then again, the tale has been retold so many times, it’s hard to pinpoint the details of the original. 

This version was certainly modern, witty and downright entertaining, but it made me wonder why we keep retelling old stories. Can you teach an old dog new tricks? Or should we simply let sleeping dogs lie?

T.S. Eliot wrote that "No artist of any art has his complete meaning alone…You cannot value him alone; you must set him for contrast and comparison among the dead.” Now, Eliot was controversial in lots of ways, but I think there’s something to take here. Whenever we create, we are always influenced by that which has come before, and our work will always be compared to that of the past.

So, it’s not surprising that we ‘borrow’ old stories and unleash them for new entertainment.

But in doing so, does the original intention become diluted?

Austen herself once wrote that her “idea of an author is one who can make something interesting out of what he knows well.” She wrote about the truth of a patriarchal world where gossip, intrigue and relationships were essential to understanding and moving through society, particularly as a young woman. On the surface, her tales are romantic and lovely, but under her wit and lighthearted humour, is the sharp bark of social hierarchy and flawed humanity.

I’m not so sure this message was necessarily received by audiences from the wagging delights of ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’, middle finger flipping and the odd swear word in this production. 

There’s no doubt that it was fun and energised, but in the back of my mind, I kept wondering if they were barking up the wrong tree. 

Was Jane herself ever that edgy? Would she approve? 

But then, does she have to?

My friend, the same one who yelled out to Mary, is an absolute stickler for the classics, particularly Austen.

She once saw a community theatre version of Pride and Prejudice that had been stolen word for word from the 2005 Kira Knightly film. I haven’t stopped hearing about it since. 

Like Mrs. Bennet herself, her howl of horror at the inane script, the inauthentic sets and costumes, the hideous wigs and the terrible casting choices have been heard by all who will listen.

So, understandably, I was a little apprehensive about accompanying her to this one.

There’s always an element of excitement and anticipation when you see an old tale retold. What will be included? What will they leave out? Expectations can be high.

I think the beauty of this version was that it didn’t sniff around the fact that it was a retelling.

Filmmaker Jim Jarmusch says that "authenticity is invaluable: originality is non-existent." He tells artists, “don’t bother concealing your thievery - celebrate it.” 

And that’s exactly what this production did.

At one point, they even criticised the 90s BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, questioning why their Darcy wasn’t wet because coming out of a lake would have been “sexier.”

Now, for us well read, well viewed Austen lovers, this was delightful. My friend was like a pup with two tails.

But I know the reference would have gone over the heads of many, including my own daughter who didn’t know the TV series and hadn’t read the book. 

It’s for this reason that I think there can be a fine line between old stories attracting an audience and putting people off. No one wants to be sitting in a room where everyone is laughing and you don’t get the joke. 

So, I think to avoid that ostracisation, new tricks have to be played. They can train a new audience to love an old story for new reasons. 

This clever production of Pride and Prejudice involving five maids, a karaoke machine, fast paced character changes, gender bending, and pop songs really did work well to fetch audiences new and old. 

As Mary’s final solo reached its climax and all five talented young women belted lyrics, “to yourself be true,” while their dancing exploded under the wonder of mirror ball light, I thought about Jane.

Yeah. She couldn’t help but love this.

She couldn’t help but tap along.

She couldn’t help but smile.

Knowing her tale WAS interesting. And all of this had come from something SHE knew well. The art of a good story.

And, I think, in the end, even she would understand that it’s not the old story that really matters, but how it is told. 

How it is told is like the tail wagging the dog.