|
The fashion police are everywhere, or at least in all the chic parts of town. Fashion, a social farce written by Anna Cora Mowatt, one of the first successful American female playwrights, explores that very issue. What does one have to do (not just wear) to be fashionable? Why and how do so many of us seek that high status in a world where "the stamp of fashion gives currency even to the coinage of vice?" The original show was written in the 19th century, when fashion was dictated by America's enthrallment with European style, so following the French customs was the trendy— "fierce," if you will— thing to do. The story involves the daughter of a seemingly wealthy couple, Mr. and Mrs. Tiffany, who hopes to marry a man posing as a count. Much to Mrs. Tiffany’s chagrin, Mr. Tiffany wants his daughter to marry a lowly clerk instead. And through the course of disguises, trickery, sexual cunning, we arrive at shocking revelations about the intricate connections that link the various characters. Cast |