Dalliance
by Arthur Schnitzler, Tom Stoppard, Anton Chekhov

Name: Dalliance
Brand: Arthur Schnitzler
SKU: 9780571197507
Rating: 4.12 (84 reviews)

Highlights

Female

Male

19th CenturyExpandable CastingUnit Set/Multiple SettingsBritish

Awards & Recognition

Olivier Award

What readers are saying

Readers generally appreciate the wit and cleverness in Tom Stoppard's adaptations, finding them engaging and entertaining. Many enjoy the unique style that comes with Stoppard's translations, often feeling that the humor is preserved or even enhanced in his hands. However, some readers express disappointment, feeling that certain plays included are less impactful compared to others in the collection.

Witty and clever dialogueEngaging translationsAddictive readingStands out visuallySome plays feel minorA few found it dull

Synopsis

Dalliance

Undiscovered Country

Rough Crossing

On the Razzle

The Seagull

This fourth volume of Tom Stoppard's work for the stage brings together five of his most celebrated translations and adaptations of plays by Arthur Schnitzler (

Dalliance and Undiscovered Country

), Ferenc Molnar (

Rough Crossing

, a classic farce set aboard an ocean liner), Johann Nestroy (

On the Razzle

, a mad chase through Vienna), and Anton Chekhov (

The Seagull

, the classic Russian country tale).

According to The Times of London, "Adaptation in Stoppard's terms means finding a sympathetic text and using it as a springboard for invention that leaves the original far behind."

In adapting these plays--some classics, some nearly forgotten--for the modern stage, Tom Stoppard has added his own unique elements of dazzling wit and verbal brilliance, hilarious parody and cutting satire, to create works that stand as exceptional works of theater that do not belong to any one age.

Press Reviews

"A theatrical feast: a play that combines detailed psychology with a portrait of a society.... What the play shows us is couples indulging in a polite sexual excuse me behind which lurks panic, death and an insane preoccupation with honour.... What is fascinating is that the action is conducted against a background of tennis parties, trips to the Dolomites, charade like affairs and summerhouse banter against Art Deco panels. Everything suggests a world of golden leisure and civilized deceit. But what Schnitzler shows us is the corrosive effect of habitual lying on this Smiles of a Summer Night' atmosphere and the destructive impact of the hero's contaminated sense of honour. I think it's a marvelous play because it pinpoints decadence with wit and irony."
— Guardian