She Stoops to Conquer

An 18th-century lesson in dressing down to win a man

Poor Kate Hardcastle. Like every other young lady of 1773, she dons the latest fashions from Paris, but her father (“the old grumbletonian”) has no patience for that sort of frivolity. So they’ve worked out a compromise: “You allow me the morning. . . to dress in my own manner, and in the evening I put on my housewife’s dress to please you.” As it happens, young Marlow, whom Kate’s father sees as her potential husband, has a quirk of his own: flustered and stammering in the presence of ladies of his own class, he’s only at ease around the lower-born. Think Kate might use this to her advantage? The title of Oliver Goldsmith’s ebullient comedy, She Stoops to Conquer, does kind of give the game away. Presented by the UW School of Drama. Meany Studio Theatre, UW campus, 543-4880, depts.washington.edu/uwdrama. $10-$15. 7:30 p.m. Wed., Feb. 6-Sun., Feb. 17. GAVIN BORCHERT

Wednesdays-Sundays, 7:30 p.m. Starts: Feb. 6. Continues through Feb. 17, 2008