Mystery-Bouffe


Mystery-Bouffe is a socialist dramatic play written by Vladimir Mayakovsky in 1918/1921. Mayakovsky stated in a preface to the 1921 edition that "in the future, all persons performing, presenting, reading or publishing Mystery-Bouffe should change the content, making it contemporary, immediate, up-to-the-minute."

Plot

First version

The play was written for the anniversary of the 1917 revolution, and was accepted by the Central Bureau to be part of the festivities. The title is likely a reference to the opera buffa/opéra bouffe, comic opera genres popular at the time. This original version was directed and produced by Vsevolod Meyerhold, and the art was done by Kazimir Malevich. The premiere was in the Theatre of Musical Drama on November 7, 1918.
Mayakovsky himself played the role of the "simple man", as well as some bit roles including Methuselah and one of the demons. This version of the play lasted three seasons.

Second version

After two years, Mayakovsky reworked the text of his play. This second version premiered in the First Theatre of the RSFSR on May 1, 1921. A printed edition of the second version was released in June of that year. This version of the play lasted about 100 shows.

Later versions

A 60-minute animated film adaptation of the play was made in 1969, directed by David Cherkasskiy. It was the first animated feature to be made in Ukraine. The Soviet government banned screenings outside of the Ukrainian SSR. In 2015, the director of the film .
In 2007, after several decades of the play not being seen anywhere, the Moscow A.R.T.O. theatre put on an updated version of the play which was dubbed "Mystery-Bouffe. The Clean Variant", based on the texts of the first and second versions. It premiered in France on May 1, 2007.

Characters

  1. Seven Pairs of the Clean:
  2. :1) The Negus of Abyssinia
  3. :2) An Indian Raja
  4. :3) A Turkish Pasha
  5. :4) A Russian Merchant
  6. :5) A Chinese
  7. :6) A Well-fed Persian
  8. :7) Clemenceau
  9. :8) A German
  10. :9) A Russian Priest
  11. :10) An Australian
  12. :11) His Wife
  13. :12) Lloyd George
  14. :13) An American
  15. :14) A Diplomat
  16. Seven Pairs of the Unclean:
  17. :1) A Soldier of the Red Army
  18. :2) A Lamplighter
  19. :3) A Truckdriver
  20. :4) A Miner
  21. :5) A Carpenter
  22. :6) A Farmhand
  23. :7) A Servant
  24. :8) A Blacksmith
  25. :9) A Baker
  26. :10) A Laundress
  27. :11) A Seamstress
  28. :12) A Locomotive Engineer
  29. :13) An Eskimo Fisherman
  30. :14) An Eskimo Hunter
  31. A Compromiser
  32. An Intellectual
  33. The Lady with the Hatboxes
  34. Devils:
  35. :1) Beelzebub
  36. :2) Master-of-ceremonies Devil
  37. :3) First Messenger
  38. :4) Second Messenger
  39. :5) Guard
  40. :6) 20 of the Clean with Horns and Tails
  41. Saints:
  42. :1) Methuselah
  43. :2) Jean-Jacques Rousseau
  44. :3) Leo Tolstoy
  45. :4) Gabriel
  46. :5) First Angel
  47. :6) Second Angel
  48. :7) Angels.
  49. Jehovah
  50. Actors of the Promised Land:
  51. :1) A Hammer
  52. :2) A Sickle
  53. :3) Machines
  54. :4) Trains
  55. :5) Automobiles
  56. :6) A Carpenter's Plane
  57. :7) Tongs
  58. :8) A Needle
  59. :9) A Saw
  60. :10) Bread
  61. :11) Salt
  62. :12) Sugar
  63. :13) Fabrics
  64. :14) A Boot
  65. :15) A Board and Lever
  66. The Man of the Future

    Settings of the Acts

  67. - The entire universe.
  68. - The Ark.
  69. - Hell.
  70. - Paradise.
  71. - Lord of chaos.
  72. - The promised land.