Lauren Gunderson & Margot Melcon Bring Gifts of Hopeful Feminism

by Joanne Engelhardt

At its core, this TheatreWorks Silicon Valley production celebrates love—familial, romantic, artistic—and asks how women carve space for themselves in a world eager to hold them back. “Georgiana and Kitty” ties together threads from all three of Gunderson and Melcon’s Pemberley plays.

Although a few narrative lapses keep the evening from fully taking flight, the warmth of the ensemble and the polished set design make the journey to Pemberley a festive one. We especially love Act One’s spectacularly tall Christmas tree.

Thanks to scenic designer Andrea Bechert, Georgiana’s Act Two home radiates Romantic period authenticity with tall ceilings in shades of turquoise, period furniture, and a gold chandelier hanging from the ceiling.

Together with Director Giovanna Sardelli’s artistic direction, the lush production is brimful of evident affection. Although the handsome and lively staging is delightful, the story itself offers more charm than dramatic momentum.

The large ensemble flows on and off the stage energetically, nearly all related to the Darcy, Bennet, or Bingley families. Emotions run high and heartfelt. Still, TheatreWorks newcomers may find themselves having to work to track who’s who across sisters, in-laws, and cousins. The six-year jump between acts works if audiences follow it. Pregnancies shift, a beard disappears, and everyone else seems amazingly ageless.

Nima Rakhshanifar gives Henry a winning transformation from shy companion to confident suitor. Finally, He can declare his love for Emily Ota’s gentle, luminous Georgiana.

In the intervening years, Georgiana and her spirited sister Kitty grow tired of hiding female artistry behind closed doors. Kushi Beauchamp’s confident, charming Kitty and Georgiana launch the “Society for Women Musicians,” a bright nod toward the coming women’s rights movement.

William Thomas Hodgson brings easy warmth as Kitty’s husband, Thomas, greeting every scene with a smile that hints at family secrets.

The production lands several comedic gems. For one, there’s the magnetic attraction between Henry and Georgiana on a crowded sofa. The minimal seating forces Lydia (Jenny Nguyen Nelson) to wheeze, squirm, and crawl away! It’s a comic highlight. Another delight: the Regency glove-on, glove-off handshake ballet, executed with crisp, split-second precision.

Costume designer Cathleen Edwards parades a feast of Regency silhouettes across the stage. While some gowns feel more modest than expected for the wealthy Pemberley set, the variety adds texture and humor, especially among the poorer Bennet clan.

“Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley” offers a gentle reminder that progress often begins in living rooms. New ideas emerge through courage, creativity, and the insistence that every voice deserves to be heard.

TheatreWorks’ final trip to Pemberley blends festive charm with a hopeful feminist spark, inviting us to celebrate not just the season, but the possibility of a more equitable world.

“Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley” by Lauren Gunderson & Margot Melcon, directed by Giovanna Sardelli, scenic design by Andrea Bechert, costumes by Cathleen Edwards, hair & wigs by Roxie Johnson, sound by James Ard, lighting by Spense Matubang, by TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, at Lucie Stern Theater, Palo Alto, California.

Info: theatreworks.org – to December 28, 2025.

Cast: Emily Ota, Kushi Beauchamp, Amanda Pulcini, Jenny Nguyen Nelson, Monique Hafen Adams, Maria Marquis, Nima Rakhshanifar, William Thomas Hodgson, and Jordan Lane Shappell.