All Formats & Editions

"Pevear and Volokhonsky are at once scrupulous translators and vivid stylists of English." --James Wood, New Yorker

One of the most famous comedies in world theatre, Gogol's masterpiece has lost none of its bite. In a small town corruption is rife, and the Mayor and his cronies have got it made. So when they learn they are going to be subject to an undercover government inspection they... Read Full Overview

A classic text used at all levels of academic theatre studies.

This version of A Government Inspector is a Yorkshire take on Gogol's 1836 fantastical Russian satire. The setting is here transposed to a small northern town in the twenty-first century, geographically and culturally remote from the centre of government.

Considered the high point of Gogol's writing for the stage and a masterpiece of dramatic satire, The Inspector General skewers the stupidity, greed, and venality of Russian provincial officials. When it is announced that the Inspector General is coming to visit incognito, Anton,... Read Full Overview

The Inspector General (also known as The Government Inspector), is a satirical play by the Russian and Ukrainian dramatist and novelist Nikolai Gogol. It was originally published in 1836. The play is a comedy of errors, satirizing human greed, stupidity, and the extensive political... Read Full Overview

Based upon a personal anecdote recounted to Gogol by the great Russian poet Pushkin, "The Inspector-General", also known as "The Government Inspector", is a satirical play first published in 1836. It is a comedy of errors that unstintingly portrays human greed and stupidity... Read Full Overview

The theatrical genius of Gogol has gone largely unappreciated by English-speaking audiences because literal translations have left his plays virtually impossible to perform. These fresh translations restore the vitality of Gogol's language and humor, allowing his dramatic art... Read Full Overview

This collection chronicles the fiction and non fiction classics by the greatest writers the world has ever known. The inclusion of both popular as well as overlooked pieces is pivotal to providing a broad and representative collection of classic works.

The ever-topical satire of small-town corruption and cravenness.

The mayor and local officials of a small provincial town in Russia have got it made: corruption is rife and they have all the power. Yet, when they learn that an undercover government inspector is about to make a visit, they face a mad dash to cover their tracks. Soon, the... Read Full Overview

Revizor is the great comic masterpiece of nineteenth- century Russian theatre. Its central role, that of Khlestakov - the opportunistic yarn-spinner who is mistaken by provincial officials for a government inspector from St. Petersburg - has attracted performances from... Read Full Overview

The Government Inspector, also known as The Inspector General, is a satirical play by the Russian and Ukrainian dramatist and novelist Nikolai Gogol. Originally published in 1836, the play was revised for an 1842 edition. Based upon an anecdote allegedly recounted to Gogol by... Read Full Overview

The Inspector-General: A Comedy In Five Acts Translated From The Russian By Thomas Seltzer This book is a result of an effort made by us towards making a contribution to the preservation and repair of original classic literature. In an attempt to preserve, improve and recreate... Read Full Overview

KHLESTAKOV. The devil knows, but it isn't roast beef. It's roast iron, not roast beef. [Eats.] Scoundrels! Crooks! The stuff they give you to eat! It makes your jaws ache to chew one piece of it. [Picks his teeth with his fingers.] Villains! It's as tough as the bark of a tree... Read Full Overview

Ревизо́р - комедия в пяти действиях русского писателя... Read Full Overview