The Government Inspector
by Nikolai Gogol


Highlights
What readers are saying
Readers love the intricate construction and humor of the play. It is often praised as a masterpiece in comedy, showcasing exceptional writing and performance.
Synopsis
This is the poet and playwright Adrian Mitchell's version of Gogol's classic satire on human vanity with its story of a penniless nobody from Moscow who is mistaken for a government inspector by the corrupt and self-seeking officials of a small town in Tsarist Russia."The greatest artist that Russia has yet produced" Vladimir Nabokov
Press Reviews
"Unrelentingly hilarious…two hours of glorious, unbridled silliness.” —WhatsOnStage. “Devilishly funny adaptation.”—Radio Times. “Patrick Myles has re-imagined Gogol’s THE GOVERNMENT INSPECTOR solidly in the farce tradition…There are pratfalls galore."
— The Reviews Hub
"A comedy of galumphing, harrumphing hilarity. One part farce, one part slapstick, with a dash of musical theater, this naughty, frothy play is wholly entertaining. A clever, fearless script… the characters feel contemporary in a show where official ignorance and incompetence are compounded by corruption and hubris."
— Minneapolis Star Tribune
"A first-rate farce. Hatcher is an inspired choice to take a fresh run at this material, not least because his writing is so consistently deft and funny, swinging wildly in tone from one line to the next… a mountain of firecracker witticisms."
— CityPages
"Critic’s Pick! “Corruption, bribery, bottomless vanity, sexual predatoriness and incivility to all, excepting those more powerful than you — such are the ways of human nature in the muddy little backwater in which Gogol’s play is set. This Government Inspector, which uses a freewheeling but spiritually faithful adaptation by the American dramatist Jeffrey Hatcher, reminds us of the cathartic value of exaggerating the already grotesque."
— The New York Times
"…a comedy of galumphing, harrumphing hilarity. One part farce, one part slapstick, with a dash of musical theater, this naughty, frothy play is wholly entertaining…[A] clever, fearless script…[The] characters feel contemporary in a show where official ignorance and incompetence are compounded by corruption and hubris.” —Star Tribune (Minneapolis). “A first-rate farce…Hatcher is an inspired choice to take a fresh run at this material, not least because his writing is so consistently deft and funny, swinging wildly in tone from one line to the next…a mountain of firecracker witticisms."
— CityPages
Characters
| Character |
|---|
Osip His servant |
Anton Antonovich The mayor |
Anna Andreyevna His wife |
Marya Antonovna Their daughter |
Grusha Their maid |
Judge |
School Principal |
Hospital Director |
Postmaster |
Dobchinsky |
Bobchinsky |
Doctor |
Innkeeper’S Wife |
Waitress |
Svetsunov Police chief |
Constables |
Abdullin |
Pentelaeyev |
Chernyaeyev |
Corporal’S Widow |
Locksmith’S Wife |
Imperial Messenger |
Ivan Alexandreyevich Hlestakov |
Videos
Studio 58 presents a scene from The Government Inspector
Available Editions
Publication
The Government Inspector is a Russian comedy play written by Nikolai Gogol and published by Methuen in London (2001).
Digital editions available on Amazon Kindle.
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Paperback
Methuen · 2001 · 112 pp
Digital prices may vary by region and tax jurisdiction.
Performance Rights
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