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helvetica; ">Molière's "Les fourberies de Scapin" is a masterpiece of french drama. The story tells the tale of Octave that has secretly married Hyacinthe, and of Léandre that has secretly married Zerbinette. But their father returns from a trip with marriage plans for their respective sons. Scapin, after hearing many pleas for help, comes to their rescue. Using tricks and lies, Scapin manages to come up with enough money from the parents to make sure that the young couples get to stay married. In the end, Scapin is brought to the head of the table at the ending feast (even though he has to fake a fatal wound to make it happen).
Molière, pseudonym of Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (1622-1673), is one of the greatest writers the World has ever produced. Son of a "tapissier honoraire du roi", he was educated in a Jesuit college and studied Law before engaging in theatre. He founded the "Ilustre Théâtre," an ambulant troupe with which he traveled thirteen years and learned the craft of theatre production. He wrote his first play, a comedy called "Le médecin volant", in 1645. His most famous plays include "Les précieuses ridicules" (1659), "Le bourgeois gentilhomme" (1670), and his last, "Le malade imaginaire" (1673), in which first performance he himself, being seriously ill, played the role of Argan and collapsed on stage, dying hours later.