Arthur Wing Pinero

The Amazons: A Farcical Romance


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This 1895 farce inspired by the outlandish idea of women wearing pants, centers around the predicament of the three daughters of the eccentr…

The Magistrate


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The success of “The Magistrate” was immediate, and the Court Theatre was crowded night after night for more than a year, the play being pres…

The Princess and the Butterfly


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The English-born Princess Pannonia had spent the twenty years of her marriage isolated in the Prince's remote Hungarian castle. Now widowed,…

Dandy Dick


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“Dandy Dick” was the third of the farces which Mr. Pinero wrote for the old Court Theatre—a series of plays which, besides giving playgoers …

The Schoolmistress


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The second of Pinero's farces, following the wildly successful The Magistrate, and likewise a hit. The Schoolmistress has a secret: "Th…

The Second Mrs. Tanqueray


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Aubrey Tanqueray marries a woman with a past which he believes will not matter in society. "I know you think me a fool, Cayley—you need…

The Weaker Sex


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Mrs. Boyle-Chewton and her cause - the Advancement of Women from the Rear to the Van. Lady Vivash, new recruit to the cause. Their daughter…

One-Act Play Collection 011


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Here are 10 one act plays offered by various groups of Librivox readers. From Ancient India to the Far Future, from the palaces of royalty t…

In Chancery


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Subtitled "An Original Fantastic Comedy in Three Acts", this should be another enjoyable farce by Pinero, including memory loss, m…

The Benefit of the Doubt


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The plot resolves around a young woman being cited in court as "The Other Woman" in a divorce case, and how her family reacts to i…

The Money-Spinner


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When his younger brother incurs a large betting debt, what could be easier than for a man to borrow the money to save him from the factory h…

The Notorious Mrs. Ebbsmith


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Lucas Cleeve is living in Venice with a widow, Mrs. Ebbsmith. His relatives do not accept this arrangement and come to intervene. Note that …

Sweet Lavender


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"Sweet Lavender" must be regarded as one of the most successful stage-plays of modern times, and there can be no question that it …

The Gay Lord Quex


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Lord Quex, after a life of philandering, has decided to reform and marry. But he is not believed, particularly by the guardian of his intend…

The Hobby-Horse


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A man's wife is caught up in Philanthropy, generously supporting all sorts of good causes. But that does not include her husband's interests…

Iris


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Left a widow 5 years ago at age 21, Iris Bellamy is shackled by terms of her husband's will that would leave her penniless if she remarries.…

The "Mind The Paint" Girl


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Another Pinero play from the early 1900s. With a social message about the effects of stardom on the star as well as those that love them. &q…

A Wife Without A Smile


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Mr. Rippingill can not get his wife to relax her stony features and smile. Maybe even laugh. "Avis - Lady Whitstable and the pickled sa…

The Rocket


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Gentlemen out away from London, looking for wives. "I'm going to settle down, hearthrug and slippers and all that sort of thing." …

The Freaks: An Idyll of Suburbia


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When Mrs. Herrick's brother Charlie dies, he leaves his money in trust for members of the circus he used to own under the name of "Sega…

The Squire


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"Then take a word of advice—cut yourself adrift from Squire Kate's apron strings. (Gilbert turns away) When my father, John Verity, die…

The Cabinet Minister


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Mr. Pinero holds that farce should treat of probable people placed in possible circumstances, but regarded from a point of view which exagge…

One-Act Play Collection 014


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Here, in our 14th collection, are 10 One Act Plays for your enjoyment. They range from the farm to the courtroom to the palace throne room; …

Trelawny of the Wells


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A theater, various actors and actresses, their admirers, financial backers, etc. The star Rose Trelawny wants to leave the stage for love, b…

The Times


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Percy Egerton-Bompas, M.P., and Mrs Bompas have secrets in their family. Which promise grave difficulties as they try to marry off their dau…

Letty


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Letty is another one of Pinero's Social Plays, exposing the double standard of woman's reputations suffering for actions that in men were no…

His House in Order


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"A well-meaning second wife is made miserable by the fact that she is continually compared, to her disadvantage, with her predecessor. …

Lady Bountiful


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"The story of "Lady Bountiful" is, I venture to think, human and interesting enough to offer possibilities to the novelist; w…

The Big Drum


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Another Pinero play. Biting satire this time, ironic comedy - not a farce. The Big Drum, a novel being written by Phil, one of the main char…

The Profligate


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'Mr. Pinero, in essaying to deal dramatically with a moral problem in a manner which, while neither cynical nor commonplace, should still be…

The Beauty Stone


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Not your usual Pinero play. Gilbert and Sullivan had stopped collaborating, and so Pinero - at the height of his very successful career - an…

One-Act Play Collection 019


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Here, in our 19th collection, are 10 One Act Plays for your enjoyment. (Several of the plays took longer than one section and had to be spli…