The Makropulos Affair
Věc Makropulos is a Czech play written by Karel Čapek. Its title—literally The Makropulos Thing—has been variously rendered in English as The Makropulos Affair, The Makropulos Case, or The Makropulos Secret (Čapek's own preferred English rendition).[1]
This article is about the play by Karel Čapek. For the opera by Leoš Janáček, see The Makropulos Affair (opera).The Makropulos Affair
The main topic of the play is immortality. The play opens with an inheritance dispute between the aristocratic Prus family and the Gregor family, illegitimate descendants of a Prus nobleman who died in the 1820s. The dispute has lasted for a century. Famous singer Emilia Marty appears to be greatly interested in the case, without revealing her motives. She gradually reveals intimate knowledge of the 19th century nobleman and his household, along with personal experiences from the French Revolution. Emilia turns out to be Elina Makropulos, a woman from Crete who was accidentally granted a centuries-long life through a decision of Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor. She has lived for over 300 years, using many aliases and always working as a singer. She was the 19th-century nobleman's mistress and a direct ancestor of the Gregor family. She now seeks a way to further prolong her life, as the time granted to her is nearing its end.
Production history[edit]
Described by Čapek as a "comedy", Věc Makropulos received its first performance on 21 November 1922 in the Vinohrady Theatre in Prague. The play was produced in translation at the Arts Theatre in London, under the name The Macropulos Secret, on 8 July 1930. The producer was A. R. Whatmore and the cast included André van Gyseghem as Vitek, Lesley Wareing as Krista and Donald Wolfit as Jaroslav Prus.[2]
Adaptations[edit]
Between 1923 and 1925, Leoš Janáček adapted the play into an opera of the same name.
