VILLAGE WOOING - a Comedietta for Two Voices- Wins London Pub Theatres Standing Ovation 'Rediscovery' Award

SHAW2020's production of VILLAGE WOOING - a Comedietta for Two Voices, written nearly 100 years ago by George Bernard Shaw, has won the London Pub Theatres Standing Ovation 'Rediscovery' Award. Maryann O'Brien (pictured above), who played 'Z' in the production at the Etcetera Theatre, Camden, was at the presentation ceremony at The Lion & Unicorn theatre on Sunday, 24th October, along with Joe Sargent who played 'A' and director Jonas Cemm, to collect the Award. Sponsored by The Shaw Society, Village Wooing was performed as part of the Camden Fringe Festival in August this year.

Of nearly three hundred events taking part in the Camden Fringe, the theatre press singled out Village Wooing for special mention with four- and five-star reviews. It has also been nominated for an OffFest award by the prestigious 'Offies', the body which recognises the creativity of 'OffWestEnd' theatres and other venues.

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 many 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.

Jonas Cemm, Artistic Director of SHAW2020, thanked London Pub Theatre, The Etcetera Theatre, The Camden Fringe Festival and The Shaw Society, among others in his acceptance speech: " I am over the moon that our post covid comeback has been so well received. The reviews were a huge boost but winning the Standing Ovations Award is the frosting on the cake of our success. We hope to take the show on the road in the spring of 2022".

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