A Comedy by Ferenc Molnar
The Play’s The Thing is one of the funniest comedies ever written about the theatre. In it, playwright Turai and his collaborator bring a young composer, Albert Adam, on a surprise visit to a castle on the Italian Rivera with their prima donna, Ilona, Albert’s fiancee. When Albert overhears his beloved being wooed in her boudoir, Turai tells him it is all a silly mistake, explaining to the besotted young man that the passionate scene was merely a rehearsal for a new play. To support his fabrication, Turai stays up all night to write a play which includes the overheard love talk. The next day, during a public rehearsal, the suggestive dialogue is reborn as an innocent, harmless bit of dialogue from a play, but actually a barbed satire showing just how ridiculous a writer can make an actor appear, especially when the actor is in no position to protest!
Praise for The Play’s the Thing
