A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

The Miser (Thomas)

Full-Length Play, Comedy  /  3w, 7m

Translated and adapted by Freyda Thomas

The Miser is a new adaptation of Molière's most famous prose play by celebrated Moliere adaptor Freyda Thomas ( The Learned Ladies, Tartuffe: Born Again). This side-splitting, comedic classic has all the hilarious elements of the original and is set in a pre-20th Century period, where marriages could be forced upon one’s children.

The Miser (Thomas)

  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    3w, 7m
  • SubGenre
    Subgenre
    Farce

Details

Summary

The Miser is a new adaptation of Molière’s most famous prose play by celebrated Moliere adaptor Freyda Thomas (The Learned Ladies, Tartuffe: Born Again). This side-splitting, comedic classic has all the hilarious elements of the original and is set in a pre-20th Century period, where marriages could be forced upon one’s children.

The elderly Harpagon obsesses over the feeling that he never has enough money, and unfortunately his obsession wreaks havoc on all around him. This includes his two children, Elise and Cleante, who are passionately in love with a valet and the girl next door, respectively. While Harpagon’s arranged them to be married to absurdly mismatched types, the two smart children plot against their frugal father until all erupts in a climatic dinner, and truths are revealed.


Keywords

HARPAGON - 60s, a miser 
ELISE - early 20s, his daughter 
VALERE - valet to Harpagon, in love with Elise 
CLEANTE - son to Harpagon, in love with Marianne 
MARIANNE - 18, the girl next door 
LA FLECHE - 20s, 30s, valet to Cleante, disguises himself as a German marriage contractor 
MAITRE JACQUES - young to middle-age, Ze chef 
FROSINE - 40ish, a marriage broker, disguises herself as the lisping Mme. Poquelin 
MAITRE SIMON - young to middle-age, a broker, also plays Inspector Sansclou 
INSPECTOR SANSCLOU - the original Clouseau, played by the Actor playing Simon 
SEñOR ANSELME - the Deus ex Machina, 50s, father to both Marianne and Valere

There is a version of the script available in which the character of LA FLECHE may be played by a woman. Please contact your licensing representative.

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: £55 per performance plus VAT when applicable.

Scripts

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Authors

Freyda Thomas

Freyda Thomas was born and raised in Philadelphia. She has a B.A. and an M.A. in French and Linguistics from Penn State University and an M.F.A. in Playwriting from California Institute of the Arts. After teaching at Penn State, Ursinus College, and La Salle University for se ...
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Jean Baptiste Molière

Molière was the leading French comic actor, stage director, and dramatic theoretician of the seventeenth century. He was born Jean Baptiste Poquelin on January 15, 1622, to Marie and Jean Poquelin. His father was a Parisian furniture merchant and upholsterer to the king. Jean ...
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