TOWAMENCIN – An upper-class young woman pretending to be a barmaid in order to get to know a shy yet sophisticated suitor, with an over-protective mother, hidden jewels, and practical jokes lighting up the background?  Sounds an awful lot like the last couple nights, when the members of North Penn High School Theater took to the stage and conversed, argued, hid, and laughed with each other in their performance of She Stoops to Conquer.

For four performances the North Penn High School Theater delivered Oliver Goldsmith’s play, a comedy involving feigned identities and false alehouses.  Its timeless appeal making audiences laugh since 1773, the play has been repeatedly performed worldwide.

Below is a brief summary of the plot of She Stoops to Conquer.

Attempting to find a husband for his daughter Kate, wealthy countryman Mr. Hardcastle arranges for a worldly young man from London named Charles Marlow to meet with her.  After being tricked into believing that the Hardcastle home is an inn, Marlow and his friend George Hastings treat their hosts rudely, though Hardcastle shakes it off.  Upon meeting Kate, it is apparent that Marlow is terribly shy and nervous around upper-class women, so Kate devises a plan to masquerade as a barmaid in order to get to know him.

Meanwhile, Hastings pursues the hand of Constance Neville, the niece of Mrs. Hardcastle, who in turn wants Constance to marry her son Tony Lumpkin.  Mrs. Hardcastle desires that the two marry so that Constance’s inheritance, jewels fiercely guarded by Mrs. Hardcastle, stay in the family.  As Tony and Constance despise each other, they and Hastings scheme to steal Mrs. Hardcastle’s jewels so that Constance and Hastings can run off to France.

Upon realizing that the supposed inn is in fact the home of Mr. Hardcastle and that the barmaid he fell for is actually Kate, Marlow apologizes for his earlier behavior and marries her.  When it is revealed that Mrs. Hardcastle has been lying to Tony and that he is of age, now eligible to receive his inheritance, he declines to marry Constance, allowing her to marry Hastings and receive her jewels.

The North Penn production of She Stoops to Conquer was met with delighted audiences, and as word spread after the first performance Thursday evening people came the following nights with high expectations.

“Theater has always been a big part of North Penn,” said John Bogert, a senior who watched the play on Saturday night.  “I look forward to seeing my friends have some really good moments on stage.”

The actors took their performances very seriously, although they managed to have quite a good time in the spotlight.

“It’s sad that it’s ending,” said Anna Shinners, who played the part of Jane, “but the experience overall was amazing.”

“I was given the opportunity to play someone that I’m not accustomed to playing, and this role gave me a very good opportunity ability to expand my acting abilities and to improve my accent, my actions, and my listening to the other actors,” explained Francis Burk, who played the part of Mr. Hardcastle.  “This show was a really great opportunity for everyone involved, it was a really intimate and condensed cast, and we really got to know each other very well.  Mrs. Roney did a very good job in bringing out the best in all of the cast and in encouraging everyone to keep on pushing and growing.”

The cast list was switched around following an accident involving Tom Schmids, who originally portrayed Tony Lumpkin.  The role then went to Liam McKee, who now had to master the role in just a couple weeks time.  Schmids, a veteran North Penn actor, continued to attend rehearsals despite his injury and coached McKee on playing Tony.

“It was constant line memorization for six days.  It was tough, but everyone was really supportive.  I think that’s what’s really great about North Penn High School Theater, everybody is really supportive.”  Liam McKee acknowledged.

Behind the scenes a lesser known element of North Penn Theater was busily at work.  The student production leaders took on the crucial task of ensuring that the stage was well lit and that each microphone was at 100% condition, making it easier on the actors to perform.  The set construction crew truly brought the stage to life with brilliantly done set pieces, from ornate chairs to a roaring fire.  The look and clothing of the 17^th century setting was captured by the costume and make up crew, who also made sure that the face of every person on stage was illuminated by their makeup.

“We’re an intimate group, we’ve been working together on building, and painting, working the lights and the sound,” said Syd Glisan, a member of the stage crew.  “It’s been a really great experience so far, and I’m really excited to take us to the State Conference.”

The producer and co-director, Mrs. Andrea Lee Roney, expressed her pride over all members of North Penn High School Theater.

“I’ve been so proud of my actors, how hard they’ve worked to come together, and to really dig into the script and analyze it and figure out at all points what their characters are saying, and what the jokes were, because it’s a comedy.” Mrs. Roney added that students had designed the lighting for the sets and that North Penn students created each costume in the play.  “Our students really built all of the costumes you see up there, and they are 18^th Century dresses for the ladies, and full cut-away vests for the men.”

Mrs. Roney stated that the students involved in North Penn Theater have “taken this play, which is way over 200 years old, and they’ve made sense of it, and they’ve fallen in love with it, and they’ve realized that even something written in the past is still contemporary for today.”

So what’s next for North Penn High School Theater?  The next stop for She Stoops to Conquer is Central York High School, where North Penn will take part in the 2016 Pennsylvania State Thespian Board.

“Theatre is something that everyone can enjoy,” concluded Matt Krise, who played George Hastings.