‘She Stoops to Conquer’ @ The Core Theatre
—Carol M. Rice
She Stoops to Conquer has always been a favorite of mine, so when I heard The Core Theatre was bringing it to life, I was excited to see Oliver Goldsmith’s rarely performed (outside of colleges) 18th-century gem.
What I didn’t expect was for the play to be updated and set in Sherman, Texas...and for it to work so well!
Charles Marlow has come to town to inspect Kate Hardcastle, as their fathers have determined they would be a good match. (Not bothering to ask them, of course.) Charles’ good friend George Hastings is tagging along because he and Kate’s cousin Constance Neville are in love, secretly. They are plotting to steal away to be married—despite the fact that Constance’s aunt is determined she marry her lazy son Tony (from her first marriage) so they can keep Kate’s fortune in the family. Constance warns Kate that Charles is known for being tongue-tied with upper-class women, yet he’s quite the ladies’ man with the lower classes.
Kate’s father, Mr. Hardcastle, doesn’t approve of the fancy Dallas fashions his daughter likes to wear, so they’ve made a deal that she’ll dress the way she likes during the day and in the more comfortable, old-fashioned style he approves of in the evenings. This simple plot device is what makes She Stoops to Conquer possible: Charles doesn’t even look at Miss Kate during their first meeting—when she’s all gussied up—but thinks she’s a pretty dang cute bar maid when they meet later the same evening.
Why would he think she’s a bar maid, you may ask? Charles and George get lost on their way to the Hardcastle home and manage to meet and insult Tony, who thinks it would be fun to direct them to a nearby inn to dine and sleep—but the “inn” he points them to is actually Mr. Hardcastle’s country home. Needless to say, the two young men’s mis-understanding of where they are—and who everyone is— causes a great deal of confusion and comedy.
McKenna Curtis is perfectly cast as Kate. She loves her daddy and wants to make him happy by marrying the man he’s picked out for her…but only if she likes him, too. Her Kate is sweet yet strong, and she’s not afraid to go after what (and who) she wants.
As Charles, Luke Gurgenidze is a swaggering jerk through much of the play, as he firmly believes Mr. Hardcastle is an intrusive innkeeper who just won’t leave him alone—and in consequence, Charles treats him pretty rudely. He has a completely different swagger when he comes face to face with Kate as the “bar maid”—but his initial attraction quickly turns into an unexpected love. Charles’ uniquely different personas have to change on a dime, which Gurgenidze manages skillfully.
Scott Eddins, Jr. is George, and has wonderful chemistry with everyone onstage, but especially with Charles and Constance. He’s a very natural actor with excellent stage presence, and his comic physicality is lots of fun to watch.
Arianna Hope plays Constance’s determination to marry George, but also to be loyal and subservient to her aunt. This is not an easy mix, but Hope makes it look easy. Her scenes with Tony are laced with disdain.
As Tony, Timothy Charles Jones makes the most of his mischievous attitude yet doesn’t overplay it. His hilariously understated performance is a fun contrast to the chaos that’s going on around him, earning him well-deserved laughs.
David Colville plays Mr. Hardcastle with good ol’ boy charm. He has some of the most creative updates of lines from the 1773 original, and squeezes all the humor out of the role without taking it too far.
As Mrs. Hardcastle, Ivy Opdyke is simply a joy to watch. Her scheming to marry Tony off to Constance is so sickeningly sweet, you just want to cheer when she finally gets her comeuppance. Opdyke is a gifted actress who strikes comedy gold in her performance, especially with the physical humor at the end.
Fred Patterson plays the dual roles of the Bartender and Senator Charles Marlow, making the characters as different as they can possibly be in an excellent performance. Ari Aronoff, Sierra Loren, and Carol Henry fill out the rest of the cast as servants and bar patrons, each taking on multiple roles.
James Hansen Prince serves as both the director and the set designer and does both equally well. His casting choices, especially, are quite good, and be watching for a surprise towards the end of the play when it comes to the set. I assume Prince also did the script updates, although it wasn’t mentioned in the playbill.
Lisa Davoodi handles the props and costumes. While I wasn’t sure what the time period was, the costumes seemed consistently “neutral Texan” throughout and worked well for the show.
Jon Rogers designed the lights (which had a few dark spots here and there) and also served as the light and sound board operator, and Kenneth Hall’s sound design included some fun Texas tunes.
Despite the show’s age, She Stoops to Conquer remains a funny and entertaining comedy of manners and love story, and The Core Theatre’s production is well worth seeing, whether you’re familiar with the story or not.
WHEN: May 30-June 15, 2025
WHERE: 518 West Arapaho Road, Ste. 115, Richardson TX
WEB: thecoretheatre.org
