The Threepenny Opera (Masterplots II: Drama)
At a glance:
- Author: Bertolt Brecht
- First Published: 1929
- Type of Work: Epic
- Time of Work: The nineteenth century
- Setting: London
- Principal Characters: Macheath (Mac the Knife), Jonathan Jeremiah Peachum, Celia Peachum, Polly Peachum, Tiger Brown, Lucy Brown, Low-Dive Jenny, Smith, The Reverend Kimball, Filch, A ballad Singer
- Genres: Satire, Drama, Epic
- Subjects: Values, Crime or criminals, Nineteenth century, Middle classes, Prostitution or prostitutes, Class consciousness, Poverty or poor people, England or English people, London
- Locales: Soho, London, England
The Play
Following the plot of John Gay’s The Beggar’s Opera (pr. 1728), Bertolt Brecht’s very different play traces the marriage of Polly Peachum to the notorious criminal Macheath, her father’s attempt to dissolve the union by turning Mac in, and Mac’s last-minute reprieve. Nominally divided into nine scenes spread over two acts, in fact the play is an episodic drama interrupted by songs (of which “Mac the Knife” is best known), by signboards suspended above the stage, by “interludes,” and by three “finales.” To gain a sense of it, one must...
[The entire page is 2837 words long]
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