
audiobook
by J. Stirling (Joseph Stirling) Coyne
Dramatis Personæ
COSTUME.
STAGE DIRECTIONS.
HOW TO SETTLE ACCOUNTS WITH YOUR LAUNDRESS.
Transcriber’s Note
Set in a bustling West‑End tailoring salon on Jermyn Street, this one‑act farce opens with Whittington Widgetts, an over‑the‑top tailor, presiding over a parade of flamboyant customers and staff. A postman’s delivery, an Irish‑song‑singing page named Twill, and a fashionable opera dancer all converge, each delivering snappy repartee and absurd instructions. The dialogue crackles as Widgetts prepares for a dinner with the enigmatic ballet dancer Cheri Bounce, setting the stage for a cascade of social faux pas.
Into this whirl steps Mary White, the sharp‑tongued young laundress whose presence threatens to upend the delicate balance of egos. As shutters are hurriedly pulled, misdelivered letters and mistaken identities spark a rapid series of misunderstandings, each more ludicrous than the last. The play revels in its brisk pacing and witty wordplay, delivering a snapshot of Victorian theatrical comedy that relies on timing as much as on its colorful characters.
Language
en
Duration
~42 minutes (41K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Paul Haxo with special thanks to Barter Books and the University of California, Davis.
Release date
2015-08-17
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1803–1868
An Irish-born playwright and journalist with a sharp comic touch, he became one of the busiest figures on the 19th-century stage. His work mixed satire, farce, and lively everyday characters in ways that appealed to a wide popular audience.
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