''Measure for Pleasure'' is a play written by David Grimm, and first played in 2006. It is set in the style of a Restoration comedy and concerns the romantic couplings of a host of nobles and servants.

Plot summary

Set in 1751, ''Measure for Pleasure'' uses classic

farce Farce is a comedy that seeks to entertain an audience through situations that are highly exaggerated, extravagant, ridiculous, absurd, and improbable. Farce is also characterized by heavy use of physical comedy, physical humor; the use of delibe ...

, including mistaken identities, mismatched lovers, deception and

wordplay Word play or wordplay (also: play-on-words) is a literary technique and a form of wit in which words used become the main subject of the work, primarily for the purpose of intended effect or amusement. Examples of word play include puns, phone ...

. Theater critic Anthony Del Valle summed the plot as follows:

Reception

The play has garnered mixed reviews from critics. The

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

' Charles Ishenwood's review was mostly positive:"Clearly a labor of love for a playwright as enamored of the lively cadences of Restoration and 18th-century English syntax as he is of bawdy punch lines, 'Measure for Pleasure' (...) will tickle, offend or simply bore in measures that will vary according to your taste for blatantly vulgar sexual comedy. Mr. Grimm's studied affection for the genres he's mimicking is impressive. (Previously he has paid tribute to the masters Marlowe and Molière.) But the play is essentially a nasty comedy-club routine performed in silk britches and powdered wigs.". Anthony Del Valle, reviewing the play in a 2012 creation in the

Las Vegas Review-Journal The ''Las Vegas Review-Journal'' is a daily subscription newspaper published in Las Vegas, Nevada, since 1909. It is the largest circulating daily newspaper in Nevada and one of two daily newspapers in the Las Vegas area. The ''Review-Journal' ...

, observed "Las Vegas Little Theatre's 'Measure for Pleasure' is remarkable in that so much has gone right on so many levels. David Grimm's 2006 script is an affectionate, self-mocking salute to Restoration comedy -- the naughty genre that helped 17th century England recover from its Puritan phase. (...)What I found most amazing is that despite all the exaggerated foolishness, the production has a strong reality base. I believed these were characters with genuine needs. It's easy to imagine how torturous this show would be if it were executed by performers who cared only about jokes."

Notes

References

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Measure for Pleasure – DC Theatre Scene
{{refend American plays Comedy plays Fiction set in 1751 LGBTQ-related plays 2006 plays Off-Broadway plays