Thursday, March 29, 7:30 pm at Orcas Center
Delightful deceits, hilarious plot turns and mayhem ensue with Oliver Goldsmith’s She Stoops to Conquer from the National Theatre Live, On Screen at Orcas Center on Thursday, March 29 at 7:30 pm
One of the great, generous-hearted and ingenious comedies of the English language, Oliver Goldsmith’s She Stoops to Conquer, first performed in London in 1773, offers a celebration of chaos, courtship and the dysfunctional family. A young lady poses as a servant girl to win the heart of a young gentleman too shy to court ladies of his own class. Many delightful deceits and hilarious plot turns ensue.
‘A sparkling revival. Riotously comic performances…’ Sunday Times
‘A joyous spectacle.’ Sunday Telegraph
‘Goldsmith’s tightly plotted play seems wonderfully youthful in this fizzy production.’ Evening Standard
The plot: Hardcastle, a man of substance, looks forward to acquainting his daughter with his old pal’s son with a view to marriage. But thanks to playboy Lumpkin, he’s mistaken by his prospective son-in-law Marlow for an innkeeper, his daughter for the local barmaid. The good news is, while Marlow can barely speak to a woman of quality he’s a charmer with those of a different stamp. And so, as Hardcastle’s indignation intensifies, Miss Hardcastle’s appreciation for her misguided suitor soars. Misdemeanours multiply, love blossoms, mayhem ensues.
Music plays a more benign role in this bouncy revival.The director Jamie Lloyd uses wordless, infectiously silly a cappella singing – performed by the entire ensemble — to bridge the scenes of this late 18th-century frolic of love, lucre and mistaken identity.
The device sets the tone for an artificial world that moves to its own antic melody and rhythms. It’s the distilled sound of giddy, sunny farce, wherein collisions, deceptions and confrontations blend improbably into celestial harmony.
Tickets are $15 $11 for students ($2 off for Orcas Center members) and may be purchased on the website or by calling 376-2281 ext. 1 or visiting the Orcas Center box office during box office hours which are Thursday, Friday and Saturday from noon- 4 pm. For more information about Orcas Center 2012 season events, please visit www.orcascenter.org.
