The Comedy of Errors - by William Shakespeare (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Immerse yourself in Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors, a tale of mistaken identities, hilarious misunderstandings, and uproarious situations that is bound to leave you in stitches.

In the play, the lost twin sons of an old merchant Egeon--both named Antipholus--who were accidentally separated at birth, find themselves in the Greek city of Ephesus. Neither son is aware of the other's existence. Meanwhile, their father, who has been sentenced to death for the "crime" of being from Syracuse, has arrived in search of the son he thinks is still alive.

To add to the comedic confusion, the two Antipholuses have twin servants, both named Dromio. As the 2 sons and 2 servants unwittingly encounter each other, the play is filled with wildly escalating misunderstandings including wrongful beatings, a near seduction, false accusations of infidelity, theft, madness and demonic possession, before the truth emerges and Egeon is pardoned.

Shakespeare's skillfully constructed slapstick comedy of mistaken identities is more than mere farce. He thoughtfully examines the interplay between personal and commercial relationships and the breakdown of social order that follows the disruption of identity.

A timeless classic that has delighted audiences for over 400 years, The Comedy of Errors has been adapted for opera, stage, screen and musical theatre worldwide. In the years following its premiere, the play's title entered the popular English lexicon as an idiom for "an event or series of events made ridiculous by the number of errors that were made throughout"