VILLAGE WOOING Will Be Performed as Part of the Camden Fringe Festival at Etcetera Theatre in August

SHAW2020 presents this knockabout battle of the sexes in a Shaw Society sponsored production, as part of the Camden Fringe Festival in August. Village Wooing is a charming two-hander in which the characters, simply named 'A' and 'Z', play a relentless game of cat and mouse across land and sea.

This hour-long play has had may incarnations, most notably in a 1979 ITV production, starring Richard Briers as 'A' and Dame Judi Dench, a Shaw Society vice-president, as 'Z'.

"It's wonderful to see Shaw's plays being kept alive, and to such a high standard by SHAW2020. Long may they continue" said Dench.

Bernard Shaw was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from the 1880s to his death in 1950 and beyond. With a range incorporating both contemporary satire and historical allegory, Shaw became the leading dramatist of his generation. He was awarded the 1925 Nobel Prize in Literature and an Oscar for his screenplay of Pygmalion in 1939. Shaw was a vestryman on St Pancras Council and championed the right for women to have a public toilet provided by the council, which eventually led to the installation of the ladies loos in the centre of Camden Town.

SHAW2020, a limited theatre company founded by theatre professionals who are members of The Shaw Society, is dedicated to the performance, exploration, and adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's works. Their focus is to bring Bernard Shaw's theatre and writings - including those of his contemporaries and those he influenced - to a wider, more diverse audience.

In 2019 SHAW2020 presented a five-star reviewed tour of Shaw's Arms and the Man across five counties. "If there was a roof on this venue, they would have blown it right off." The Reviews Hub

They hoped to repeat the success in 2020 with the infamous Mrs Warren's Profession, however as that was the year that wasn't, SHAW2020 and The Shaw Society transferred their performances to online, presenting a programme of zoom theatre events entitled 'Sharing Shaw' and the YouTube series 'Talking Shaw'.

Now in 2021, they are delighted to be flexing their live theatre muscles once more after a year of online content. The production of Village Wooing stars Joe Sargent and Maryann O'Brien, and is directed by SHAW2020 artistic director, Jonas Cemm. It will begin its tour in Ayot St Lawrence at the Palladian Church, where Shaw occasionally played the organ and the local postmistress, Jisbella Lyth, who is the inspiration for the character "Z", is buried.

"SHAW2020: Their mission -to bring Shaw's works to a wider more diverse audience is ground-breaking and important." Dr Bonnie Greer OBE

Village Wooing is part of the Camden Fringe Festival at Etcetera Theatre- Sun 15th Aug 15.30, Mon 16th Aug 13.30, Tues 17th Aug 15.30, Wed 18th Aug 13.30 and Thurs 19th Aug13.30. Tickets-https://camden.ssboxoffice.com/events/village-wooing/

Visit www.shawsociety.org.uk for full tour details

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