"Dem vermummten Herrn"

Eine absolut brillante, komische Kritik an bürgerlicher Moral. Man mag es kaum glauben, dass dieses Stück Ende des 18. Jahrhunderts verfasst wurde, so viel Aktuelles findet sich darin. Äußerst lehrreiche Unterhaltungsliteratur!

I read Jonathan Franzen's translation of this play and thoroughly enjoyed it. The context for the script and the themes of the play I feel hold much more weight than the material itself. While it does have an important edge and message, unless portrayed properly on stage, the text itself leaves a bit to be desired. Some monologues floored me, others left me scratching my head as to why they were included. Overall, an important part of theater and a must read for anyone interested in the musical adaptation or the play itself.

First thing's first. I need to clarify why I'm only giving this mind blowing musical three stars.

This is not a script to be read, but to be seen.

The script itself is poignant, beautiful and heart wrenching, but there are times when just words don't cut it. Sometimes you need to see the faces, hear the voices -- the strain in Moritz's voice, the heaving sadness of Wendela -- to really understand and feel what's happening. It is a script, so there are stage directions, but that is not enough.

The story is beautifully told and incredibly haunting. It's about the struggle to understand and accept yourself for who you are. It's a story about love and growing up. It's a story about ignorance and people who just don't understand. It's a story about sex and what parents "don't want their kids to know". It's a story about everyone who has ever sat back and wondered "Why is this happening to me?"

If you want to read this script, by all means do it. I am certainly not discouraging it in any way, but do yourself a favor and at least pick up the soundtrack too. Listening to it while you read provides a much more satisfying experience. Better yet, go see it and then read it. You'll have a much better understanding and you'll really be able to appreciate the wonderful writing.

another “musical was better” read. i think if i’d read this play with no outside knowledge of the 2006 adaptation, i definitely would not have enjoyed it at all. i think the musical did a much better job of identifying and expressing and underlying overall theme/message that the original play just doesn’t really have. melchior in the play is actually so creepy and the worst. i don’t know that i would have gotten along with frank wedekind at all.