The rentier Galmar is waiting for his guests to arrive for a social evening. However, his two overly chatty servants, Guignol and Jeannot, threaten to ruin everything. To get rid of them, he gives them the evening off, under the pretext of thanking them for their excellent service. The two servants then begin to plan a feast. Shortly afterwards, Gnafron talks to Fanchette, a laundress. She tells him that last week, Guignol invited her to dinner. The meal was delicious and everything was going well until Guignol left the restaurant on the pretext of going to buy tobacco... and never returned. Gnafron then shares a story of his own: Guignol once sold him his watch! Meanwhile, Guignol and Jeannot return from a restaurant. Fanchette gives him a package to carry. Guignol hears a child crying. Together with Jeannot, he discovers that there is a baby inside the package. They decide to leave it at their master's door. Their master discovers it and takes it. To get rid of Guignol, Galmar offers him a hundred francs. Guignol then promises to pay back all his debts to Gnafron and Fanchette.

Glove-puppet

Not specified

Vuillerme-Dunand Victor-Napoléon

France

Lyon

Manuscript

Dinner

Servant

Feast

Infant

Child abandonment

Trap

Revenge

Reconciliation

Debt

Comical

French

La Blanchisseuse; L'Enfant abandonné ; Le Poupon abandonné ; Les Mésaventures de Fanchette

Rentier

Guignol

Domestic servant

Gnafron

Laundress

Situation comedy

Comedy of language

Aside

Hidden character

Plot twist

La Parisienne

Parisian woman

Hans is a happy new father but when the infant screams, he beats it. His wife Liesel worries, but she is in denial. Then Hans wants to baptise the child in beer. They quarrel again and eventually agree to call the infant Stiefele (boot), so that it will always have good shoes. The innkeeper Schnallans must prepare a feast, but they do not agree on the menu and Hans beats him to death. A police officer grabs him and wants to hang him, but Hans hangs him instead. Liesel worries because of the double murder which weights on her husband’s conscience and, above all, because there is no one to prepare the feast anymore. Hans settles the matter by fetching a whole Swiss cheese.

Müller Alphons

Germany

Frankfurt

Printed

Household

Couple

Family

Father

Party

Meals

Police

Justice

Gallows

Assassination

Serial murder

Cheese

Beer

Hanswurst

Farcical

Front cover of the collection Sechs neue Lust-Spiele für das Porzinell-Theater

La Parisienne

Die Taufe

Idyllisches Lustspiel in einem Akt