‘Stoops to Conquer’ Revives Farce as a 1970s Sitcom

A prelude of familiar TV theme songs telegraphs director Tiger Reel’s goofy, inventive take on “She Stoops to Conquer” for the Knightsbridge Theatre’s revival--the entire piece is staged as a 1970s sitcom.

Using jingles, commercials and even canned audience laughter and applause, Reel’s resetting draws enough parallels to make a compelling argument that lowbrow satire hasn’t changed that much since the 18th century. The principals in Oliver Goldsmith’s farce easily map into TV stereotypes. Perky heroine Kate (Tegan Ashton Cohan) dons a bartender’s guise and sultry Southern drawl to overcome the neurotic shyness of her callow suitor, Charles (Jason Cole). Mistaken by Charles for innkeepers, Kate’s bickering parents (Marti Hale, Peter Finlayson) become the archetypal nosy landlords.

Their independent, prankster son (Art Oden) sports spiked green hair and a Sex Pistols T-shirt. Leland Raymond III and Julie Anne Terrell supply the conniving lovebirds in the parallel romantic subplot, while Amelia Norfleet hovers as the sassy maid and Vicki Conrad serves the matronly deus ex machina function.

Notably, Cohan, Hale, Conrad and Raymond successfully layer their characters with classical underpinnings. The resetting not only meshes agreeably with Goldsmith’s plot, but also smooths over some awkward performance edges--after all, hammy acting is also a staple of sitcom fare.

Another major contribution is the look and feel of the piece, meticulously re-created by Reel and designer Finlayson, from the tacky 1970s suburban decor to the appalling attire (especially the footwear).

Despite its inventiveness, however, the conceit does sacrifice one important element of the original--Goldsmith’s merciless swipes at England’s class structure. Since there is no comparable American aristocracy usually manifested in sitcoms, the mutation of the Hardcastles into middle-class oafs may not sit well with Restoration Comedy purists.

* “She Stoops to Conquer,” Knightsbridge Theatre, 35 S. Raymond Ave., Pasadena. Fridays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, noon. Ends Jan. 7. $18. (626) 440-0821. Running time: 2 hours, 5 minutes.