GTG to Present Shaw's VILLAGE WOOING in Gender-Neutral Adaptation
David Staller adapts and directs the rarely seen Shaw comedy for a salon presentation at a landmarked Upper East Side mansion.
Gingold Theatrical Group (GTG) (David Staller, Artistic Director; Isaiah Josiah, Managing Producer) has announced VILLAGE WOOING, a special Salon Presentation of George Bernard Shaw's romantic comedy. Newly adapted and directed by David Staller, VILLAGE WOOING will be presented at The House of the Redeemer (7 East 95th Street), a historic landmarked mansion on Manhattan's Upper East Side, for four performances only, October 22–25, 2026.
For this special engagement, GTG will present a new gender-neutral adaptation of Shaw's text. The adaptation opens the roles—identified simply as 'A' and 'Z' in Shaw's original—to performers of any gender, illuminating the play's contemporary resonance while preserving the wit, intelligence, and emotional intricacy of Shaw's language.
Written in 1933, VILLAGE WOOING is one of Shaw's most intimate, romantic, and quietly profound late works. Two resolutely independent people, each determined to remain single, meet aboard a pleasure cruise. Their conversation—at first accidental, then increasingly irresistible—continues through two later encounters as argument becomes attraction and an unlikely courtship begins to take shape. This rarely seen play is filled with Shaw's characteristic wit, intellectual combat, and emotional surprise.
'Village Wooing is Shaw at his most playful, intimate, and unexpectedly romantic,' said Artistic Director David Staller. 'It is a delicious battle between two people who are certain they know exactly what they want—until they meet someone who makes them see the world in a completely different way. By opening the roles to actors of any gender, we can focus even more clearly on what makes the play so enduring: the exhilarating danger of allowing another person to change your life. And I can imagine no more inviting setting for this encounter than the beautifully atmospheric library of The House of the Redeemer.'
Casting for VILLAGE WOOING will be announced at a later date.
VILLAGE WOOING will be presented as a Salon Presentation: an intimate theatrical event inspired by the great literary salons, bringing exceptional performers and a small audience together in an elegant and unusually personal setting.
Proceeds from VILLAGE WOOING will directly support GTG's continuing artistic programs, including its Project Shaw reading series, the Speakers' Corner new-play development program, and its Off-Broadway productions.
Event Details
The performance schedule is Thursday, October 22, through Saturday, October 24, at 7 p.m., and Sunday, October 25, at 3 p.m.
Venue: The House of the Redeemer, 7 East 95th Street, Manhattan.
For additional information, visit gingoldgroup.org.
About Gingold Theatrical Group
Gingold Theatrical Group, now in its 21st year, creates theatre that supports human rights, freedom of expression, and individual liberty, using the work and humanitarian ideals of George Bernard Shaw as its guide. Through full productions, staged readings, new-play development, and educational programs, GTG uses Shaw's humanist values to encourage open discussion, civic engagement, and social action.
GTG's past Off-Broadway productions include Man and Superman (2012), You Never Can Tell (2013), Major Barbara (2014), Widowers' Houses (2016), Heartbreak House (2018), Caesar & Cleopatra (2019), Candida (2022), Arms and the Man (2023), The Devil's Disciple (2024), and Pygmalion (2025).
Founded in 2006 by David Staller, GTG has established a distinctive place for the work of George Bernard Shaw within the social and cultural life of New York City. Through its Project Shaw series, GTG made history in 2009 as the first company ever to present performances of all 65 of Shaw's plays, including his full-length works, one-acts, and sketches.
GTG brings together performers, writers, critics, students, academics, and the general public to explore theatrical works inspired by the humanitarian and activist values Shaw championed.
Major support for GTG is provided by The Buchwald Family Foundation; the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council; The Helen M. DeMario Foundation; Golden Globe Foundation; Herman Goldman Foundation; Government of Ireland Emigrant Support Programme; Marta Heflin Foundation; Michael Tuch Foundation; New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature; The Shubert Foundation; Pamela Singleton; and the National Endowment for the Arts.
