Some very bad dating strategies show their age in the Irish Repertory’s current production of Oliver Goldsmith’s “She Stoops to Conquer.” For all the single ladies out there who have concealed a superior intellect, have picked demurely at salads, or have minimized their salaries to put a swain at ease – meet your predecessor: “Stooping to conquer” (or pick up, or woo) was probably a girl’s best bet as far back as the Stone Age. But in the 18th century, Goldsmith actually wrote it down.

At its best, Goldsmith’s farce can be a vitriolic little spree; here, it plays as a rather sweet, early version of “Grease.” Though the Irish Repertory’s production doesn’t fire all its comic thrusters, it does steer its way through the play’s thicket of repartee. The piece’s original subtitle (“The Mistakes of a Night”) certainly does not describe the staid competency on view in Charlotte Moore’s production.

In the exposition, many of the characters tie themselves into bows describing our hero Marlowe’s modesty. As played by Brian Hutchison, Marlowe has one set of manners for his peers, and one set for the class below him. In the presence of women of his own rank, Marlowe can barely string a sentence together – at one point, he wraps a handkerchief around his head, like a very posh ostrich. Lower the lady’s station, however, and Marlowe turns into a smooth-tongued devil.

Luckily, the lady he should woo, Kate Hardcastle (Danielle Ferland), knows just how to manage the men in her life. To her father, she is obedient and docile, but with her suitor, she can talk like a beer-slinging barmaid. Hands on hips, her accent flattened, Kate disguises herself as something just low enough to catch Marlowe’s eye. Since he’s also been bamboozled into believing her father is an innkeeper, Marlowe’s true colors as a snob and a lecherous boor soon emerge. But the boor gets the girl every time.

A subplot with secondary lovers, a testy aunt, and the obligatory casket of jewels flutter around the edges of the tale. The best counterpoint to the central theme, though, is Mr. Hardcastle (Remak Ramsay) and his bewilderment at being treated like a hotelier. Unconventional he may be (and his loving treatment of a daffy wife makes him a catch), but when Marlowe asks him to make punch, the arrogant houseguest clearly goes a bridge too far.

All the cast members seem less than entirely sure if the piece needs stylizing, and so they seem to have chosen for themselves. At one extreme, Hastings (Tommy Schrider), a secondary lover, can barely speak for all his shrugs and eyerolls. At the other, Mr. Ramsay, though saddled with a ridiculous wig, knows how to play the humor without betraying its period.

As for the central lovers, they don’t find enough heat, much humor, or sufficient heart. Certainly, Goldsmith only draws them cartoonish outlines for their characters, but neither Ms. Ferland nor Mr. Hutchison succeeds in much animating them. But the staging and storytelling are both clear – not easy for such a scrambled plot – and Goldsmith’s story still deserves an audience. Just know that this time, the company isn’t exactly going after Goldsmith with hammer and tongs.

***

Down at the Ohio, Clubbed Thumb’s Summerworks festival again waxes impressive with Ethan Lipton’s “100 Aspects of the Moon.” Mr. Lipton, taking his inspiration from a 19th-century book of woodblock prints, has stitched together a breezy banner of folktales that relate to the moon. With an incredibly successful blend of ancient Japanese forms and modern American diction, Mr. Lipton’s sketches of suicidal lovers, bewildered archers, and inappropriately amorous flower-lovers inspires a little lunacy of its own.

Emma Griffin’s direction, gentle and insistent as a stiff breeze, moves an excellent cast through the stories with economy and charm. Naming those doing good work would simply amount to a complete cast list, but April Matthis’s gender-bending brilliance and Matthew Mayer’s sleep deprived husband deserve special mention.

“She Stoops to Conquer” until June 16 (132 W. 22nd Street, between Sixth and Seventh Avenues, 212-727-2737).

“100 Aspects of the Moon” until May 14 (66 Wooster Street, between Spring and Broome Streets, 212-966-4844).