The PlayFinder™

THE STORY: A young husband is forced to visit the country estate of his rich aunt—somewhere in the vast reaches of rural Russia. She is an eccentric and dislikable tyrant, and the nephew is nervous and upset because he fears the old lady will shame him in front of his shy, gentle bride. Their first contact is with the maid, who is disagreeable and rude, and the meeting with the aunt turns into a hilarious romp, as she talks to herself, smokes a cigar, and proves to have very few inhibitions, to say the least. The groom is certain his bride will be shocked into leaving him, but then she confesses her own dark secret—her relatives are, if anything, even worse! Anton Chekhov’s blend of laughter and sentiment, and his uncanny perception of the interior workings of men and women are delightfully captured in the adaptation, and make this short play a gem of rich humor and characterization. The running time of the play is about twenty minutes.