The Captain of Köpenick (German: Der Hauptmann von Köpenick) is a satirical play by the German dramatist Carl Zuckmayer. First produced in 1931, the play tells the story of a down-on-his-luck ex-convict who impersonates an army captain and holds the mayor of the town to ransom. The Prussian cult of the uniform ensures that the townspeople are all-too willing to obey his orders.[1] Zuckmayer described the story as a "German fairy tale". Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany during the first run of the play and the Nazis soon closed the production.[2] The play was first produced in London in 1953 and subsequently at the Old Vic by the National Theatre Company in 1971, with Paul Scofield as Wilhelm Voigt.[3] It has been adapted for film and television many times. In exploring the situation of a town duped by a character impersonating an authoritative figure, the plays bears some resemblance to Nikolai Gogol's Russian classic, The Government Inspector (1836). Friedrich Dürrenmatt used a similar dramaturgical structure—the visitor from outside to a provincial town—to satirical ends in The Visit (1956).
Notes
References
- Banham, Martin, ed. 1998. The Cambridge Guide to Theatre. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521434378.
- Mortimer, John. 1971. Introduction. In Zuckmayer (1971).
- Zuckmayer, Carl. 1971. The Captain of Köpenick Trans. and adapted by John Mortimer. London: Methuen. ISBN 0416671004.
