Soham Grammarian Summer 1950
L-R: JTB Bonnett (Hastings) - PJ Bullman (Miss Neville) - MS
Norman (Marlow) - JH Lenanton (Miss Hardcastle)
AA Lack (Mr Hardcastle) - D Tills (Sir Ch. Marlow) - M Stone
(Tony Lumpkin) - PJ Graves (Mrs Hardcastle)
A CRITICAL APPRECIATION OF SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER
It is often as well to know the off-stage characters of the actors as well as their stage characters. When you know the character in everyday life you can then appreciate the full worth of the production. There was one main fault with the play and that was that the actors were either suited to their parts in physical appearance and yet unable to act the part, or they were quite capable of acting their part and yet their outward appearance rather disappointed the audience.
However, there were two actors to whom this did not apply. For the exceptions I pick Bonnett, who played the part of George Hastings, and Lenanton, who played the part of Kate Hardcastle. Bonnett was suited to his part both in his physical and vocal attributes. He stood upright throughout the play as an orderly young gentlemen of that period should have done. He spoke boldly and clearly and was second only to Mr. Hardcastle in the clarity of his voice. With his sister in the audience, it was exceedingly daring of him to wear as his hose a pair of nylons.
Lenanton as Kate Hardcastle was excellent, and in my mind gave the best all-round performance because he was suited to his part in all respects. His unbroken voice sounded very feminine and his general appearance was very lady-like. He knew his part well and made very expressive speeches. He had a good insight into the part and rose to great heights in the scene where Kate Hardcastle and the shy Marlow were left alone. But for previous knowledge, bouquets might soon have been cluttering up the stage door!
Norman, as Young Marlow, is my first victim and the cause of my statement at the beginning. He was made for the part - a shy, reserved, handsome, well-educated young man, but all he did was to stand around, his left hand supporting his right elbow behind his back. He spoke in his usual soft voice, with his eyes to the ground most of the time. When the time came for him to retreat around the drawing-room table of Mr. Hardcastle's house before the advancing bar-maid he completely overdid his reserve. If only he could have excelled himself. To him alone, goes the distinction of growing a moustache between two performances and I'm sure the secret of this would be appreciated by the less fortunate members of the staff!
Lack, as Mr. Hardcastle, was excellent and yet again his countenance was too youthful, although grease paint did an excellent job. He was not suited to the part of the ageing, rustic, simple Mr. Hardcastle, but he put more into his part than anyone else in the cast and when he appeared one was urged to sit up and take notice. As I have said he was the most clearly spoken member of the cast, taking advantage of all comic situations in an attempt to arouse the audience's interest - when, for example, he was trying to tell Hastings and Marlow of the time when his army attacked a garrison which might have consisted of about five thousand men, and at the time when he discovered his own wife begging his mercy at the bottom of their garden.
Graves, as Mrs. Hardcastle, was good, but did not seem very acquainted with the play and was somewhat subdued. She was quite unperturbed at tl:e end when, with all her plans being frustrated, she should have been terribly shocked.
The other female in the play, Constance Neville, was played by Bullman, who looked very ravishing and yet was still Bullman. In Act IV. Scene I. she should have flirted with Tony in a corner so as to mislead Mrs. Hardcastle, but in spite of Tony's efforts to attract her attention, she was calmly picking out acquaintances from the audience.
Stone, as Tony Lumpkin, was good, but not outstanding. To anyone who knows his normal character it was obvious that he was not acting at all, but behaving in his normal manner. It is true that there could have been no other person so well suited to the part, but a more distinct and less harsh voice would have been a great improvement. He spoke too quickly and coarsely and many of his speeches could not be understood. He did his "hallooing" well and nearly dismantled the sturdy old mansion at times. On some occasions he could not resist a wry grin at his own tricks, and this was probably the cause of the audience's laughter. However, when he saw that the audience was laughing at his face and not his jokes, his grin changed into a horrible grimace, the whites of his eyes being very conspicuous against the bright red colour of the grease-paint.
Among the less important characters, Tills, as Sir Charles Marlow, was very effective and he was made up to good effect. Burroughs, as a servant and as one of the paltry set of fellows at the "Three Jolly Pigeons", was good and very amusing with his henchmen, Human, Perry and Kershaw. In one performance, however, he came on to the stage with his jacket on and he had forgotten to take the shiny fountain pens from out of his top pocket.
It is very unlikely that innkeepers in those days were highly educated, but Goodwins as Stingo gave us a very good Oxford accent together with a mispronunciation of the word "mischievous". McCullagh, Murfet and Garwood executed their parts as servants well, which added to the general high standard of the play.
Mr. Catala and Mr. Saunders, the producers, down to the prompter must be congratulated for their very fine presentation. The five acts ran smoothly and the difficulty of the garden scene was overcome quite successfully. The music before the play and in between the acts was good; although, on one occasion, the " disc-jockey " failed to "rein in" in time. The programmes, too, must be commended and they gave an extra fillip to the production.
On the whole it was well done, but I think that if an adapted version of the play had been tackled the result would have been more creditable still.
J.R.F., UVA
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page last updated 7 Nov 2007