Theatre
An Italian Straw Hat
Un chapeau de paille d'Italie
Opening lines
Virginie
Non, laissez-moi, monsieur Félix !… Je n’ai pas le temps de jouer.
No, leave me alone, Monsieur Félix!… I have no time to play.
Translation by Erostrate
Text quoted from fr.wikisource.org
Synopsis
On the day of his wedding, Fadinard's horse eats the Italian straw hat of a married woman, Anaïs, who was there with her lover, Émile. The couple settle in at Fadinard's and refuse to leave until the hat has been replaced: without it, Anaïs cannot go home to a jealous husband who would demand explanations. Fadinard sets off across Paris in search of an identical hat, while the wedding party, which follows him everywhere, grows impatient.
Context
The play, a comedy in five acts in which dialogue alternates with sung couplets, was first performed at the Théâtre du Palais-Royal on 14 August 1851 and was a great success there. It combines the machinery of vaudeville with the construction of the well-made play, and the whole action takes place on the day of a wedding. Written by two hands, it remained Marc-Michel's best-known work and is among Labiche's most famous. Kenneth McLeish made an English translation of it.
Who it is for
Five lively acts, where songs alternate with dialogue; the play can be read in one sitting and is still often performed.
Prizes and reception
The first vaudeville to enter the repertoire of the Comédie-Française, in 1938, the play inspired René Clair to make a silent film.
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