|
The King of Navarre and three of his lords form a little 'academe' in which they vow to study for three
years, renouncing the company of women. But the Princess of France and three of her ladies arrive on a diplomatic mission,
throwing the plan into chaos as soon as the vows are made. The men from Navarre trump each other in a scene in which they
are overheard reading aloud their bad love poems. The ladies then comprehensively outwit the men in a scene involving Russian
disguise. A comic sub-plot concerns an extravagantly spoken Spaniard, his clever page, a country clown and a pregnant dairymaid,
with contributions from a curate and a pedantic schoolmaster, culminating in a pageant of classical and biblical heroes, 'The
Nine Worthies'. Halfway through this show, Marcade arrives with news of the death of the princess' father. The mood turns
sombre and the ladies give the men the task of performing a year's ascetic penance or community service before they will marry
them.
|
