The Commedia of the Nose

A nose makes a career

On March 25 the barber Ivan Yakovlevich finds a nose in his bread. He believes it belongs to Major Kovalyov, one of his regular customers. He anxiously wraps up the nose and throws it into the Neva River. Elsewhere, Kovalyov awakens to discover that his nose is missing. On his way to report the incident, he meets his own nose dressed in an official uniform. He chases the nose and confronts it in the church, but is repelled. The newspaper also refuses to place an ad about the disappearance of his nose. Perplexed, Kovalyov returns home, where he happily receives news that the nose has been arrested. A police officer then returns it to Kovalyov – but his joy is cut short when he discovers that the nose just won’t stick on to its old place. All attempts fail, even by the doctor. In the meanwhile, rumor has spread about a nose taking its daily walk on the Nevsky Prospect. On April 7 Kovalyov wakes up with his nose once again on his face, as if nothing had happened.

“Whatever you may say, these things do happen – rarely, I admit, but they do happen.” Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol

Just imagine – you wake up one morning, and your nose is gone! And then you coincidentally meet your nose in the city. It wears tailor-made clothes and has made a career for itself. Two performers fight and dance their way through a game of power, losses, and triumphs. A thrilling and fast-paced roundelay with masks, hand puppets, and tarantella (southern Italian folk dance). Nothing is real in this play about illusions and dreams, yet all of it is true.