Welcome to MPtc's production of Oliver Goldsmith's
"She Stoops to Conquer"
The action takes place in the home and garden of Mr and Mrs Hardcastle, set somewhere deep in the English countryside
Running time approx 120 minutes with an interval of 15 minutes
CAST
MR HARDCASTLE -- RICHARD RYAN
MRS HARDCASTLE -- LINDA COOKSON
KATE HARDCASTLE, their daughter -- ROSE ANDERSON
TONY LUMPKIN, Mrs Hardcastle's mischievous son from a previous marriage -- LOCHLAN EKER
CONSTANCE NEVILLE, The Hardcastle's niece -- SARAH HOLLINS
MARLOW, a young gentleman -- MAX STOCKTON
HASTINGS, another young gentleman -- SHWETHADRI SANTHU
PIMPLE, a maid in the Hardcastle's house -- CARROLYN MOCZYNSKI
DIGGORY, a servant in the Hardcastle's house-- PAUL TUCKER
SIR CHARLES MARLOW -- PAUL WANIS
Young Mr Marlow's father & an old friend of Mr Hardcastle's
CREATIVES
DESIGNED & DIRECTED BY JONTY REASON
PRODUCTION -- DONNA JOHNSTONE
STAGE MANAGEMENT -- TRISH FOX
ASM -- THOMAS LUCIEN
COSTUMES DESIGNED BY ANNIE LAURENSON
ASSISTED BY FRANCIS HICKEY
Special Thanks to
Community Bank Southern Peninsula,
Danckert Real Estate, Mount Martha,
Mornington Peninsula Shire Arts & Culture, & events teams
Mornington Community House & Staff
The Freesound Community
What is She Stoops to Conquer all about?
Kate's father, Mr. Hardcastle, arranges for her to meet Marlow, a wealthy Londoner. However, Marlow is prone to be nervous around upper-class women but is more comfortable with lower-class women. To make Marlow feel at ease and fall in love with her, Kate pretends to be a simple maidservant, thus "stooping" to a lower social class to "conquer" his affections.
Meanwhile, her step-brother, Tony Lumpkin, is up to old tricks and pranking everyone as he tries to avoid being married off to his cousin, Constance, who is in love with Mr Hastings, the friend and travelling companion of young Mr Marlow.
Mr Hardcastle
Three lines in ‘Julius Caesar’ in Year 9, the first of which was ‘Yes, my lord’. Fast forward to now.. after a few years of acting in French plays and shortish to longish films (I even played an Irish priest!) I’m here.
And remember, pig in prune sauce is very good eating!
Mrs Hardcastle
For many years I've trod the boards
Seeking to entertain the hoardes
My face has wrinkled along the way
And plastic surgery I now must pay.
Theatre, film and tv I sought
Some did drown and some I caught.
Starvation, poverty, joy and pain
Many times I feared I would go insane
But Mrs Hardcastle called my name
And now i have naught to blame.
Tony Lumpkin
After tackling the troubles of high school as Andrew in the short film ‘Detention’, Lochlan Eker now finds himself navigating an entirely new kind of chaos, theatre. Stepping into the muddy boots of Tony Lumpkin, the mischievous and mayhem-loving son of Mrs Hardcastle in ‘She Stoops to Conquer, Lochlan swears he’s nothing like his character… though he’s been enjoying the role with suspicious ease.
Having trained in acting for 4 years across various companies and currently performing in live theatre, Lochlan continues to explore roles that challenge and surprise him (and sometimes make him question his own sanity). When not getting into trouble on stage, he enjoys sports, the outdoors, and pretending he doesn't relate to Tony that much.
Kate Hardcastle
Hanging with dinner
Constance Neville
19-year-old Sarah loves acting, dancing, baking and falling off her unicycle. Recent roles include Alice in “Alice in Wonderland” and Alice in “Relative Values”. It appears her parents named her incorrectly. Her favourite role so far has been Dolly Parton, whom she portrays in the living room whenever her brothers and parents will listen (not frequently). Sarah’s life goal is to become a private investigator. She’ll be choosing one lucky audience member whose bank account details she will uncover as part of her studies. This will be completed by the end of act 1… it is already too late to stop her. Good luck.
Young Marlow
Appearing in a truly breathtaking role as “Background Reporter” in the 2025 Netflix drama “Apple Cider Vinegar” and recently appearing as “Pilsner” in the Mount Eliza Community Pantomime production of “Hansel and Gretel”, Max Stockton returns to the stage in She Stoops to Conquer.
Making his MPTC debut, Max stars as young Charles Marlow, a man who feigns confidence around his friends, but is truly hopeless when it comes to conversing with a modest woman. In other words, the role he was born to play.
Outside of theatre, Max lends his efforts to the world of voiceover, appearing in online animations, video games and even a music video. Who knows where you might hear him next?
Hastings
After getting caught in shady schemes as Borachio and dancing with a teddy bear as Sir Andrew Aguecheek, Shwethadri returns to the MPtc stage as the ever-so-gallant (and occasionally baffled) George Hastings.
In She Stoops to Conquer, he plays George Hastings, a dashing young gentleman who’s trying to elope with the woman of his dreams... if only he could figure out where the inn ends and the house begins. Expect charm, chaos, and a whole lot of "Wait, what?"
When not fumbling his way through 18th-century courtship rituals, Shwethadri moonlights as a middleware wizard in the tech world. Theatre, however, remains his truest stage — and Hastings, his latest (mis)adventure.
Pimple
“I’ve been a lover, a wife, a corpse, a ghost,
A dwarf, a dementia patient, a dancer,
An activist, a nun……and quite a few other
Things as well…….but I have never played
A “Pimple”!!!!!!!! What could possibly go wrong!!??
Diggory
Blah Blah Blah Blah Lord Augustus Lorton Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah Lady WIndermere's Fan Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah short films great fun Blah Blah Blah Blah back again as Diggory who supplies his own bananas Blah Blah Blah Blah
Thank you.
Sir Charles Marlow
Paul Wanis is a prolific Producer, Director and Actor of Independent Theatre. He describes theatre as his “Soul Food”. A fan of classic comedians: Abbott & Costello, Martin & Lewis and The Marx Bros. He has just finished a very successful run where he played the male lead in the hilarious two-hander The Housekeeper (1812). He can be seen next as Frankenstein’s Creature in Frankenstein (Peridot – Aug 2025) and as the infamous Nice Guy Eddie in Reservoir Dogs (AVID – Oct 2025). Recently, he has also performed with Lilydale (Suite Surrender 2024), Mordialloc Theatre Company (Home, I’m Darling 2024), Warrandyte (A View From the Bridge 2022), Hartwell Players (Tribes 2022) and Peridot (War of the Worlds 2022). During the day he is a mild mannered Business Development Manager in Real Estate and also enjoys playing Fortnite with his teenage son. Paul was brought into the cast late to bring life into Sir Charles and he has very much enjoyed acting with some old friends and made new ones along the way!
Director
I first encountered SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER when I was the Artistic Director of The Royal George Theatre in London in the mid-nineties. Although I never managed to mount a production of this fantastic play there, it was an obvious choice to be in the repertoire here at MPtc. So here it is, updated and modernised a little for a 21st Century audience. Nonetheless, I hope you'll agree our new version retains all of the charm and wit of the original, together with a large dollop of madcap hilarity as the ...
'Mistakes of a Night'
(The original subtitle of the play) unfold and 'rattle' towards their inevitable conclusion.
There are laughs aplenty, so don't hold back. Let the merriment of this farce sweep you up and transport you to the English countryside.
As you may be aware, Mornington Peninsula Shire Council have decided to withdraw ALL Arts funding.
This is a deplorable act which threatens the arts and cultural heart of our community.
Please consider making your feelings known to your councillor.
Thanks to our wonderful sponsors and you, our lovely audience, we will be able to weather the storm until wiser heads prevail. However, if you would like to donate to MPtc, all help is very gratefully received and will be put to very good use. There is a link at the bottom of this page or at trybooking.com/eventlist/mptc
If you would like to look at our sponsorship packages please email us at
Thank You!
MPtc's next production
Scheduled for our October run is Anton Chekhov's masterpiece, "The Seagull" - a profound exploration of the complexities of human emotions, unrequited love, and artistic ambition. Set in a Russian country estate, it delves into the lives and aspirations of struggling artists and their tangled relationships, highlighting themes of change, despair, and the relentless pursuit of meaning.
THEN, Next summer, we head off again to the great outdoors, following our super successful run of Twelfth Night, we will be presenting your favourite Shakespearean tragic-comedy ROMEO & JULIET
The dates and venues are yet to be fixed, so keep an eye on our socials etc for more details as they are confirmed. We look forward to welcoming you to our productions of these wonderful plays.
If you would like to get involved in any capacity, please let us know.