
A troupe of actors is about to begin rehearsals when six unfinished figures appear onstage, each desperate to find the playwright who can complete their story. The father, mother, step‑daughter, son, a mute youth and a silent girl—later joined by a mysterious Madama Pace— demand an author who will give them purpose, turning the ordinary rehearsal into a strange encounter between reality and fiction.
The backstage crew scrambles to set the scene: a director‑manager, a stagehand in a blue coat, a lighting technician, and a chorus of actors in bright costumes. As they argue over props, lighting, and timing, the six strangers interject, questioning their own roles and the very nature of performance. The audience is drawn into a lively, almost chaotic tableau where the boundaries between play and life blur, promising a witty exploration of identity, creation, and the theatrical world itself.
Language
it
Duration
~2 hours (115K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Andrew Sly from a text provided by Liber Liber. http://www.liberliber.it/
Release date
2006-05-27
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1867–1936
Known for stories and plays that blur the line between truth and performance, this Nobel Prize-winning writer changed modern drama with works that are witty, unsettling, and deeply human.
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