Polichinell enters singing, reveling in spring. He stops in a forest for a snack break. A starving dog comes, and he gives it a piece of bread. The dog undergoes a metamorphosis: it actually is Fairy Rosa (Fée Rosa), who was the prisoner of a spell and who is now free of it thanks to Polichinell’s generosity. She wants to reward him, but Polichinell refuses because he wants to stay poor. He meets Herr von Neid (Desire) and accepts to be his servant. The Devil, who wishes for Polichinell’s downfall, rejoices to have brought them together. Neid and his wife Bosheit (Wickedness) overwhelm him with work, but Polichinell manages to complete the work straight away. Bosheit entrusts Polichinell with her little daughter Unart (Bad habit), who will not stop crying, and who accidentally falls out of the window. Bosheit comes back, learns of Unart’s fall, and beats him with a stick. Polichinell fights back, knocks her out, and does the same to Neid. Fairy Rosa advises Polichinell, who has now become rich thanks to Herr von Neil’s assets, to carry on with his good behavior. In Polichinell’s new house, Habakuk, his servant, leaves him after stealing some of his wealth. Türk the dog bites Polichinell’s nose and Hector the horse kicks him before biting him. After many failed attempts, Polichinell manages to climb on Hector’s back, but the horse makes him fall and flees. Herr von Schadenfroh (The One who rejoices from the misfortune of others), who pretends to be Polichinell’s friend, bursts out of laughter after hearing his misadventures. They fight, and Herr von Shadenfroh is killed by Polichinell. Princess Miauline asks Polichinell to deliver her father, the King of Trapezunt, who is the prisoner of the Magician Gewalt (Violence). The Devil unsuccessfully warns Gewalt of Polichinell’s arrival: Gewalt is convinced that his constable Popanz (Straw) will defend him. Polichinell, thanks to an enchanted chime gifted by Fairy Rosa, makes the castle’s guards fall asleep and frees the King of Trapezunt. At the entrance of the palace, he meets Habakuk, who has become Gewalt’s servant and who refuses to let him in. Polichinell beats Habakuk, enchants Gewalt with the chime, fights, and kills him. Habakuk comes back and has Polichinell arrested and brought before Gewalt. After a mock-trial, Polichinell is sentenced to death by hanging. Polichinell is imprisoned and robbed of the talisman which the fairy had given him, and which served as a protection. Habakuk is in charge of Polichinell’s hanging, but Polichinell manages to hang him instead and then kills Popanz and his guards. Polichinell calls the Devil, fights with him, and kills him. The Fairy makes her appearance again and officiates Polichnell and Miauline’s wedding.

Young audiences

Germany

Printed

Wickedness

Reward

Murder

Wealth

Labour

Fantasy

Comical

German

Polichinelle

Fairy

King

Princess

Count

Minister

Policeman

Baby

Domestic servant

Genie

Horse

Devil

Guard

Monologue

Song

Aria

Versified passages

Dance

Metamorphosis

Apparition of the Devil

Blow-with-a-stick

Death on stage

Allegory

Hanging scene

Final wedding

Polichinell

Doctor Sassafras is pleased to have a client as hypochondriac as Steinreich. This rich and selfish man forbids his niece Marie from continuing to see his secretary Schreiber, whom he dismisses. Steinreich envisions a more beneficial match for his niece. Doctor Sassafras makes a deal with the devil to summon Death. Schreiber then attempts suicide, but a gravedigger saves him, as Death is detained in Sassafras’ enchanted chair. The Devil realises that his pact with Sassafras is detrimental to him and breaks their contract. Death comes fetch the doctor, who turns to God and hopes for His mercy. In the meantime, Steinreich converted: he has become charitable and, most importantly, no longer opposes Marie and Schreiber’s union.

String marionette

Pocci Franz von

Munich

Medicine

Knödel

Usurpation

Drink

Surgery

Prestige

Champagne

Misery

Forced marriage

Hypochondria

Vanity

Cemetery

Faust

Bible

Suicide

Sentimentalism

Religion

Farcical

Satirical

Pathetic

Burlesque

Title page in the original edition of Pocci's comedies

oder Doctor, Tod und Teufel

Doctor

Kasperl

Secretary

Death

Peasant

Gravedigger

Apparition

Parody of formal language

Dialect as a social marker

Light effects

Pact with the devil

Off-stage voice

Philosophical dialogue

Doctor Sassafras

The king's daughter is to be married, but she will only marry a man who is both rich and intelligent. Known for his wit, Arlequin arrives at the palace, only to be beaten back with a stick by the Swiss guard at the entrance. Desperate, he confides his misadventure to a beggar, who suggests that he should become rich by setting up a business in beating people with sticks. Arlequin decides to do so. The customers, who come in great numbers, make his fortune. But Arlequin, increasingly revolted by their wickedness, ends up beating his customers with a stick. Rich enough and threatened with hanging by the Commissaire, he gives his business to Pierrot for free. Pierrot hangs the Commissaire, who has come to hang him, and comes to ask Arlequin for an explanation. Thanks to his wealth and wit, Arlequin is able to marry the princess and have Pierrot appointed as the new Commissaire.

Glove-puppet

All audiences

France

Paris

Duranty Louis Émile Edmond

Witty man

Trade

Revenge

Discord

Scruples

French

Arlecchino

Swiss

Beggar

Cassandre

Cassandra

Apothecary

Constable

Police Superintendant

Pierrot

Herald

Aside

Plot twist

Le Marchand de coups de bâton

Merchant of blows-with-a-stick

Casperl inherits money from his neighbor Frau Bas, who recently died: it's a fortune. He passes a miserable evening, tormented by the idea that people are plotting to steal his money. He even cries out about a fire. The next day, Grethel buys the latest style of toilet, hires a cook… Casperl goes out to drink at the tavern with his friend, the hunter Tomerl. However, when he returns, the notary Stahlfeder is there to announce to the cleaners that Madame Casperl's purchases and the settling of debts with the tavern have exhausted the fortune of Frau Bas—there is nearly nothing left. Casperl throws out the notary and police chief Schnuffler, who came with a fine for nighttime disturbances. He then scarfs down a plate of Knödel that his cook prepared while declaring that he doesn't need money as long as he keeps his good spirits.

Burial

Coffee

Inheritance

Grief

Beer

Fear

Night

Paranoia

Conflagration

Fashion

Zwischenspiel in zwei Abteilungen

Madame Kasperl

Thomerl

Hunter

Fireman

Notary

Police officer

Cook

Shopkeeper

Night watchman

Chorus

Sung scenes

Brawl

Final song

Current affairs

Die Erbschaft

L'Héritage

Cockatrice is made aware that he must not look at himself in a mirror, otherwise he will die. As he wants to admire his own beauty, he runs away and visits a painter to get a portrait of himself painted. To flatter him, the painter portrays him like an English gentleman. Blind-Boy finds Cockatrice and takes him away with him without paying the painter. Blind-boy tells Cockatrice that Columbus the Parrot and himself met a very old man named Old Man Adam, who owns a donkey, a table, and a stick which have magical powers. All three of them go to Old Man Adam’s house, and Old Man Adam gives them the objects as presents as they will lose their magical powers should they not change owners.

Not specified

Craig Edward Gordon

Italy

Marina di Pisa

Portrait

Magic

Enchanted object

Forest

Meals

Donkey

Mirror

Narcissism

Runaway

Magical words

Thief

Father

English

Cockatrice

Basilic

Blind Boy

Blind

Parrot

Columbus

Pretty Polly

Painter

Adam

The Magic Donkey

Table

Stick

Hidden character

Blind character

The Painter and the Three Magics

Le Peintre et les trois objets magiques

Esteban is the owner of a farm. He has a male servant, Silvestre, and a female servant, Oliva, who is also his mistress. Oliva really loves her master and she serves him so well that Esteban is thinking about marrying her. But he is wondering if Oliva really loves him or if she is after his belongings, so he explains to Silvestre the stratagem that he has planned to deploy in order to put her to the test: he will pretend that he has lost all of his possessions, and then fake his own death. Silvestre, in the presence of the supposed body, will have to feign love for Oliva in order to test her faithfulness. Esteban puts his plan into action. Thanks to the help of a fake doctor, Esteban pretends to die. Silvestre tells Oliva how he feels about her as planned, but his feelings are in fact true and he had always concealed them. Oliva faints, Silvestre carries her in his arms and the two of them run away from the house. Esteban sits up on his death bed and, taken aback by the revelation of truth, he actually dies of syncope.

Spain

Madrid

Fainting

Love

Loyalty in love

Farm

Corpse

Travelling theatre

False doctor

Tragic

Spanish

Farmer

Servant

Maid

Peddler

Fake death

Trap

Curiosa muerte burlada

The Strange Duped Death

After performing a traditional guarattelle show, the puppeteer and his Pulcinella think they won’t have anything to eat as the audience left without paying. They both decide to leave Naples for France. When they arrive at court, the King carefully examines Pulcinella with a magnifying glass, and finds him too poor, so drives him away. Pulcinella beats the King with a stick and the guards come to arrest him. The puppet escapes from the puppet booth with the Puppeteer, who explains that if the puppet wants to eat, he must “change his face”.
The Puppeteer then turns Pulcinella into Polichinelle, giving him new, luxurious clothes decorated with ribbons and little bells, two bumps (one on the belly and the other on the back) and a white mask to hide his black half-mask. Thus transformed, Pulcinella moves and speaks far more slowly, but his new lazzi with a cock amuse the King greatly. The puppet and the Puppeteer are able to eat a big plate of pasta in front of the puppet booth and go to sleep with a full belly. Woken by the Marseillaise, they enter the puppet booth, believing a party is going on. On stage, in front of a guillotine, Robespierre and Danton debate whether the King should be tried. After cutting off the heads of Danton and the King, Robespierre also wants to kill Polichinelle, who is friends with the King. First, he cuts off one bump, and then the other, and finally the white mask. Polichinelle, who has now gone back to being “Pulcinella the revolutionary”, cuts off Robespierre’s head and then, like Napoleon Bonparte, proclaims himself emperor and uses a stick to beat, one after the other, the emperor of Austria and the Pope who has come to crown him. He shows his emperor’s crown to the Puppeteer: it means he’ll be able to eat for 200 years. The Puppeteer comes out of the booth for a last monologue at the end of which he dons the black half-mask and proclaims himself to be Pulcinella.