Were can I find a synopsis of the play Scapino!

Question

Were can I find a synopsis of the play Scapino!

Answer 1

Molière’s original (The Impostures of Scapin, Les Fourberies de Scapin, in French, around 1665) or a modern adaptation?

Molière’s original synopsis :

In Neaples (note that Scapino was instead a character from Bergamo, North Italy, heavy German like accent)

Two young men, Octave and Léandre, have fallen in love with two women, Hyacinthe and Zerbinette, in secret while their fathers were away. Octave met Hyacinthe when she was sobbing over her dead mother’s body, immediately fell in love, and (upon Hyacinthe’s insistence) got married. Léandre met Zerbinette at a gypsy camp where she grew up after being stolen from her biological parents.

Upon the fathers’ unexpected return, the sons beg Scapin—Léandre’s servant and a consummate con artist—to help them. His efforts scramble the situation into a worse mess.

In the meantime, the sons need money for the dowry to ransom Zerbinette from the gypsies. In a wickedly funny series of events, Scapin swindles the money from the dads, and then gets revenge on Géronte, Léandre’s father, for telling a lie about Scapin to Léandre.

Through a dizzying series of revelations, Géronte reveals that Hyacinthe is his daughter from a secret second marriage, and Argante (Octave’s father) recognizes Zerbinette as his long lost daughter (who was stolen by gypsies).

As the lovers are reunited, Scapin is wheeled in on his “death bed.” He manipulates Géronte into forgiving him—and is miraculously healed.

The Characters:

Scapin

Scapin is both the name of the main character in SCAPIN and the name of one of the stock (or basic) characters in the tradition of Italian Comedy (or commedia dell ‘arte). Scapin is traditionally one of the rascal servants. Although a good-hearted fellow, Scapin is an incredible liar who can keep control and maneuver his way through any situation. And if he loses control, can easily run away either with a tall tale or, if need be, with his feet.

Sylvestre

Sylvestre is the other servant character SCAPIN. Sylvestre is not nearly as smart or in control as Scapin, so he is the “second” servant (in the Italian Comedy tradition of two servants where one is dominant). Director Chris Bayes modeled Sylvestre on the Commedia stock character of Pierot. Pierot has a good heart but is a bit stupid and stubborn.

The fathers: Argante and Géronte

Both fathers in SCAPIN are merchants, and both love money and control money gives them over their children (who are in a way just another commodity). Because they are merchants, both Argante and Géronte are modeled on the commedia stock character of Pantalone.

The Lovers: Octave, Léandre, Hyacinthe, Zerbinette

In an Italian comedy, there are almost always a group of lovers. They are young, naïve, and absolutely obsessed with love and each other.

Gypsies

A bit of a convention for Molière, meaning exotic and foreign people.

Gypsies are the English name for the Romany people, a tribe of nomadic people who came to Europe in the 14th or 15th century from India and lived and maintained a migratory way of life chiefly in Europe and the U.S. At the time Molière wrote Scapin, Romany (or “gypsies”) were a fact of life in all parts of Europe, but a poorly understood people with a xenophobic reputation for stealing children.

Taranto

Italian port city on the Adriatic directly across Italy from Naples. It is renowned for it’s harbor and coastal life. Taranto is the city where one of the two fathers in Scapin had a second family hidden away from his “real” life in Naples.

Turkish yacht

At the time the play was written, the Ottoman Empire was one of the great powers in the world and a serious military threat to Christianity. They had overrun what is now Yugoslavia (so a Turkish yacht in Naples would be a common occurrence). But as Muslims, Turks would be entirely foreign and very threatening. So it’s an excellent lie, being both probable and dangerous.

Hyacinthe’s imaginary brother’s thug culture

At this time, Naples was a big international port. Like Marseilles or New York or New Orleans or Miami or Havana (pre-Castro) port cities are all uniquely dangerous and threatening, while also being diverse and exciting. Because there is little control of who lives there, and itinerants move freely, the possibility of gangs and violence is right around the corner. So Scapin is again weaving excellent lies based on a probable reality.

Miser

A stock character in Molière’s work (especially the play The Miser). A mean grasping person, and one who hoards his wealth and lives miserably in order to do so. In a way, it’s the opposite of frugality (living well or carefully on limited means).