Princess Zoubaroff

arts, performing, comedy, fiction · EN

Dive into Princess Zoubaroff, a brilliantly subversive and delightfully suggestive play that challenges the norms of its era. Through sharp wit and outrageous situations, Ronald Firbanks takes aim at the sacred institutions of polite English society—matrimony, motherhood, religion, and sexuality. Enid and Eric, newlyweds in name only, find themselves at a friends vacation home in Florence, where Eric and his friend Adrian venture off into the mountains. Left behind, the women entertain themselves with a colorful cast of characters, including the flamboyant Lord Orkish and his young companion Reggie—thinly veiled representations of Oscar Wilde and his lover, Lord Alfred Douglas. Among the group are the provocative Blanche Negress, author of “Lesbia, or Would he Understand?”, and Lady Rocktower, whose imaginative daughter Glyda navigates her own fanciful romantic escapades. At the heart of the drama is Princess Zena Zoubaroff, who aspires to establish a convent in Florence and has captiv