The School for Wives

“The School for Wives” (Fr. L’École des femmes) is Molière’s five-act verse comedy; the premiere took place at the Théâtre du Palais-Royal on December 26, 1662. It is dedicated to Henrietta of England, wife of the Duke of Orléans, the official patron of the troupe.

Characters:

• Arnolphe, also called Monsieur de la Suche.
The role was first performed by Molière himself. Among the known performers on the French stage are Jean-Baptiste François Provost (fr: Jean-Baptiste François Provost), Lucien Guitry (fr: Lucien Guitry), Russian actors of the 19th century: M.S. Shchepkin and S.V. Shumsky (1869). On the German stage: Aribert Wäscher (de: Aribert Wäscher); on the Italian stage: Memo Benassi (it: Memo Benassi); on the Bulgarian stage: Konstantin Kisimo(v).
• Agnès, innocent young girl, ward of Arnolphe.
The first actress to play the role was actress of Molière’s troupe Catherine De Brie (De Brie). On the Russian stage in this role performed N.M. Medvedeva (1847, Maly Theatre), A.P. Kravchenko, N.S. Vasilieva (1870, Maly Theatre), M.D. Lvova-Sinetskaya.
• Horace, Agnès’s lover.
The first performer was Lagrange.
• Alain, a peasant, Arnolphe’s servant.
The first performer fr: Brécourt
• Georgette, a peasant woman, Arnolphe’s maid.
The first performer was Madeleine Béjart or Lagrange (fr: Mademoiselle La Grange)
• Chrysalde, friend of Arnolphe.
The first performer was François Bédot
• Enrich, Chrysalde’s son-in-law.
• Oronte, father of Horace and close friend of Arnolphe.
• The notary.
The first performer — De Brie fr: De Brie

The audiobook “The School for Wives” is the comedy by J.-B. Molière in a translation and performance by the famous contemporary poet, prose writer, and publicist Dmitry Bykov.
Keeping the classic form, tone, and style of the original, the translator managed—thanks to his unique sense of humor—to adapt Molière’s French play from the time of Louis XIV to modern times, adding dynamism and poetic lightness to the seventeenth-century text. In Dmitry Bykov’s adaptation, Molière’s comedy acquired an entirely new sound and received an unexpectedly fresh and original interpretation.