OR
The Transformed Peasant
by Ludvig Holberg
Adapted and Translated by Jerry Argetsinger & Sven Rossel
(For production by Professional, Amateur and Educational theatre groups.)
Jeppe of the Hill is Holberg’s most successful comedy, having remained active in the repertories of virtually all national Scandinavian and several Northern European theatres since 1722. It is also the most likely to be produced around the world. The character Jeppe Berg is considered the first fully developed Danish literary character and is considered one of the great comic character roles of all time. The supporting roles also offer great opportunity for comic genius. Jeppe is a Zealand peasant, a drunk, a ne’er-do-well who is beaten by his wife, oppressed by his Baron and cuckolded by the deacon. On his way to the village to buy soap for his wife, he finds his way into Jacob’s pub where he squanders all of his money on drink and falls into a ditch in a drunken stupor. The Baron passes him by and decides to play a joke. They will carry him into the manor house, dress him in silks, and when he awakens convince him that his peasant life was a terrible dream and that he is the rightful Lord of the Manor. When he is finally convinced, he tries unsuccessfully to act the part, eating like a slob, berating his servants, and bedding the overseer’s wife. Finally drunk on Canary wine, he is cast out onto a dung heap where his wife finds him and beats him all the way home as he tries to convince her he was in paradise. He is next confronted by a local magistrate who tries and finds him guilty of breaking into the manor house. Sentenced to death, he again sinks into a drunken coma and awakes hanging on a gallows. As his wife beats him, the Baron appears and has him cut down from the gallows, explaining the prank that has been played on him and what they should have learned. The play ends with Jeppe and Nille returning home while the Baron moralizes about the dangers inherent in practical jokes.
PLAY DETAILS:
- 13 Men 2 Women
- 1 Exterior / 2 Interiors
- About 90 minutes
- Order #3108
Available for immediate production!
PERUSAL COPIES
- The PERUSAL PAGES file for Jeppe of the Hill will be available by clicking JeppeOfTheHillPERUSAL The PDF file is the first three acts of the 5-act play and all other pertinent information about the play.
- EMAIL us for rights and information. Be sure to give us anticipated performance dates and the address of your group and, if different, your theatre. Please also include a contact name and phone number.
PURCHASE REHEARSAL MATERIALS:
(Any PDF purchased will be emailed to your email address — if you need to provide that to us (not the one on your PayPal account?), email us. CDs will be mailed to a snail mail address)
- Script in PDF format — Order #3108a : $20.00 (from which you will be authorized to copy for your production)
- First Performance Amateur/Educational Royalty — Order #3108d : $75
- Second Performance Amateur/Educational Royalty — Order #3108e : $60
- Professional Royalties will be quoted upon application
PRODUCTIONS
- Nebraska Wesleyan University — April 1992, directed by Kenneth Robbins
BILLING CREDITS
The following is how the credits should read in all programs, posters, fliers, handbills and other promotional advertising for the show:
Jeppe of the Hill
by Ludvig Holberg
Adapted and Translated by Jerry Argetsinger
NOTE: The names of the Playwright(s), Composer, Lyricist, and Bookwriter shall be equal in size, type, coloring, boldness, and prominence. No billing shall appear in type larger or more prominent than the billing to the Authors except for the title of the play.
ALSO:
THIS NOTICE MUST APPEAR IN ALL PROGRAMS, ON ALL POSTERS AND PUBLICITY MATERIALS AND INTERNET ADVERTISING/WEBPAGES FOR THE PLAY:
“Jeppe of the Hill is presented through special arrangement with Leicester Bay Theatricals. All authorized materials are also supplied by LBT, www.leicesterbaytheatricals.com”
Other plays in the Ludvig Holberg Acting Edition Collection
includes: The Political Tinker, Erasmus Montanus, Jeppe of the Hill,
Ulysses of Ithaca, Jean de France, The Christmas Party
From the Catalog of
