Following sell-out seasons, critical acclaim and a slew of awards, Bloomshed returns to Darebin with a bold new take on Jane Austen’s insatiable classic, Pride & Prejudice, for a limited season from 30 July 2025.
Bringing their signature wit to the depths of the housing crisis, this raucous production flips the table on the Bennet sisters’ quest for love and security through a mercenary marriage.
In the plush ballrooms of high society, Mrs Bennet sees too well the value of a strategic union. But her five daughters all have ambitions of their own. Jane and Elizabeth want to marry for love (whatever that means), Mary is stuck in a goth phase, Lydia’s hot for the local militia, and Kitty is… well, we don’t need to talk about Kitty.
With the cost of living rising, and Mr Bennet played by a potted monstera, how will the Bennet family hold onto their precarious position on the property ladder?
Bloomshed are one of Melbourne’s leading independent theatre companies, known for vibrant adaptations that both celebrate and reframe the stories we think we know – from Animal Farm to Paradise Lost, A Streetcar Named Desire and The Importance of Being Earnest.
With big design gestures and a powerhouse ensemble, Bloomshed shows are joyous experiences – hilarious, fast paced and invigorating for audiences. In Pride & Prejudice, they’re challenging themselves to tell one of the most iconic love stories of the Western canon, turning their critical eye to the politics of love, marriage and the property ladder.
After sell out seasons across Melbourne and countless Green Room Awards, Bloomshed are stepping up to the epic stage of Darebin Arts Centre for this large-scale production, highlighting the company’s growing reputation and offering wider audiences a chance to experience their work.
Bloomshed’s unique take reawakens the fundamental conflict in the novel, suggesting that in the current climate, marrying for love might be a terrible idea.
“Playing with Austen’s original, with the Romantic Comedy, and with the form of reality television, we’re looking at the decay of “Love” as a political category,” says Co-Creator James Jackson.
“How the institution of marriage emerges not as an artful expression of human passion, but as a calculated ritual of ownership. Can we redeem actual, radical, really existing “love”? Can we separate property and marriage? And can the romantic comedy save us from social bankruptcy?”
Featuring: Laura Aldous, Elizabeth Brennan, Syd Brisbane, James Jackson, James Malcher, Anna Louey, Lauren Swain | Set Designer: Savanna Wegman | Costume Designer: Samantha Hastings | Lighting Designer: John Collopy | Sound Designer: Justin Gardam | Stage and Production Manager: Jacinta Anderson
Pride & Prejudice
Darebin Arts Centre, 401 Bell Street, Preston
Season: 30 July – 10 August 2025
Bookings: www.arts.darebin.vic.gov.au
For more information, visit: www.bloomshed.org for details.
Image: Bloomshed presents Pride & Prejudice (supplied)