The Schoolmistress

About the book

"The Schoolmistress: A Farce in Three Acts" by Arthur Wing Pinero is a farce written in 1886. When a headmistress secretly takes to the stage to fund her aristocratic husband's extravagances, she leaves him in charge of her girls' boarding school. Chaos erupts as students exploit his weakness, hosting an unauthorized party complete with a clandestine marriage, a gruff admiral, and unexpected guests. When a fire sends everyone scrambling and the headmistress returns in full opera costume, a whirlwind of revelations and reconciliations ensues.