School for Scandal

About the Play: Richard Sheridan’s classic comedy satirizes a vicious “school” of gossips who wreak havoc in proper London society. Their hilarious stylings are set on the backdrop of the story of two brothers who are not what they seem. Sir Joseph Surface and his brother Charles couldn’t be more different. The former has the appearance of a dignified gentleman but engages in the kind of devious philandering that could ruin a marriage. Charles, on the other hand, appears to be a dissolute spendthrift. The return of their long-lost uncle puts their true natures to the test. This, along with the comical war of the sexes between Sir Peter Teazle and his young wife, makes School for Scandal a down and dirty satire in sophisticated wrapping.

About the Playwright: Richard Brinsley Sheridan is among the greatest comic playwrights in the English language. Beside The School for Scandal, his plays The Critic and The Rivals (which gave the English lexicon the word “malaprop”) are still successfully produced on the stage today.