Travesties

Tom Stoppard’s dazzling comedy of art, love and revolution features James Joyce, Tristan Tzara and Lenin as remembered -- and misremembered -- by Henry Carr, a minor British diplomat in Zurich 1917.

When Gwendolen and Cecily wander in from The Importance of Being Earnest, Henry’s mind wanders too. He knows he was Algernon in a production in Zurich. But who was the other one?

Travesties opened at the Aldwych Theatre in 1974, directed by Peter Wood. It won the Evening Standard Award for Best Comedy, and a Tony Award and New York Critic’s Circle Award for Best Play for its Broadway run at the Ethel Barrymore Theater.