When the Irish Repertory Theatre brought Oliver Goldsmith’s 237-year-old “She Stoops to Conquer” back to life with a big-time New York revival in 2005, it went over as “entirely respectable, if not entirely dazzling.”
Which also fairly sums up the Bas Bleu Theatre’s new production of this farcical comedy of manners, running through May 9 in Fort Collins. The actors are quite capable; the finery impeccable and the stage artifice requisitely ornate — in triplicate.
But true levity is a hard thing for actors to attain and maintain, and director Eric Prince’s workmanlike staging never quite builds to an unshackled, laugh-out loud velocity.
It’s never boring. It’s just never as funny as it seems like it should be.
That just may go with the territory. This is 1773, after all. Even with the omnipresence of Shakespeare, there’s something a bit alienating about Restoration comedy to a modern audience sensibility.
First titled “Mistakes of the Night,” this comedy of many misunderstandings revolves around snooty young Charles Marlow, who mistakes his arranged bride-to-be Kate for a barmaid; her father’s country manor as a public inn.
Prospects of a happy match are grim, though, for poor Marlow is wholly incapable of coherent speech around any woman whose station exceeds pub wench. Which is what he mistakes Kate to be. But she’s intent on lassoing herself a husband, so she embraces the ruse and stoops, as the modern title suggests, to conquer.
As Mel Brooks might say, invoking basketball parlance: “She stoops . . . she scores!”
The comedy is set in motion by a practical joke schemed by the lady of the manor’s grown son, Tony. He’s an idle man who will become an idly rich man whenever it is he comes “of age.” Now just when you might be thinking “What age? — Forty?” — comes the funniest joke of the night; when this fop discovers he’s been “of age” for years.
In the meantime, bored Tony leads Marlow (Andrew Miller) to believe Mr. Hardcastle (an endearingly exasperated Ken Benda) is a lowly innkeeper, rather than his future father-in-law. That triggers the most realized comic scenes of the night, in which Marlow unknowingly bosses his wealthy host around, just as he might a lowly squire.
There’s a secondary love triangle and a convoluted subplot involving a jewelry inheritance, but, in time, everything resolves itself happily, just as you might expect.
Though this lightweight material is hardly new, most every refreshing face on the Bas Bleu stage is. Especially winning are Tracy Kaufman’s confidently perky Mrs. Hardcastle and Kyle Accord’s playful Kate. This good-sport heroine could be considered the antithesis — and Goldsmith’s answer — to the Bard’s more famously acidic Kate. This no taming of the shrew but rather the manning-up of Marlow. Accord brings such relaxed, good-natured winsomeness to Kate, you can’t help but wonder if the priggish Marlow is worthy of her trouble.
“She Stoops to Conquer” is an agreeable diversion, a light artifice without consequence or stakes. But this cast comes across as working almost too hard to entertain us. This is the kind of buoyant comedy that, most expertly and confidently presented, should somehow seem like it came more easily to them.
John Moore: 303-954-1056 or jmoore@denverpost.com
“She Stoops to Conquer” **1/2 (out of four stars)
Restoration comedy. Presented by Bas Bleu Theatre, 401 Pine St., Fort Collins. Written by Oliver Goldsmith. Directed by Eric Prince. Through May 9. 2 hours, 35 minutes. 7:30 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. Sundays. $12-$22. 970-498-8949 or
