La Foire de Guibray

La Foire de Guibray
Title plate from 1721 edition of La Foire de Guibray
Written by	Alain-René Lesage
Characters	Arlequin Pierrot Scaramouche a judge an Italian actor two actresses a musician
Date premiered	1714
Place premiered	Foire de Saint Laurent, France
Original language	French
Genre	farce
Setting	Guibray Fair in Falaise

La Foire de Guibray (English: The Guibray Fair) is a one-act farce by Alain-René Lesage. It was first performed at the Foire de Saint Laurent in 1714. La Foire de Guibray is actually a prologue to two other one-act farces, Arlequin Mahomet and Le Tombeau de Nostradamus. Between the three works, Lesage created a comedy in three acts.

Plot summary

Arlequin and Scaramouche come to the Guibray Fair in order to steal things from merchants. When Scaramouche talks about how scared he is of the judge of the town, Arlequin suggests that they disguise themselves as Arab actors to avoid suspicion.

Meanwhile, the judge and Pierrot are walking through the fair, watching the various theatrical and musical acts. An Italian actor offers to entertain the judge, when Arlequin walks up and proposes his own play. The judge suggests a competition between the two. Arlequin will perform Arlequin Mahomet, and the Italian will perform Le Tombeau de Nostradamus.

Characters

• The judge of Guibray
• Pierrot, his secretary
• Arlequin, a thief posing as an Arab actor
• Scaramouche, a thief posing as an Arab actor
• An Italian actor
• Two actresses
• A musician