Boeing-Boeing (play)
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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"Boeing Boeing is a classic French farce for the stage by Marc Camoletti. Utilizing most of the conventions of bedroom farce's canon, it concerns a Parisian bachelor playboy with three international air stewardess fiancées he secretly keeps in careful rotation, until their flight schedules change and he, along with his provincial friend and sassy maid, must keep them from finding out about each other. Luckily they have enough doors in the apartment to keep the girls unwittingly flitting about for two hours."--Sholem Stein |
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Boeing-Boeing is a classic farce written by French playwright Marc Camoletti. The English language adaptation, translated by Beverley Cross, was first staged in London at the Apollo Theatre in 1962 and transferred to the Duchess Theatre in 1965, running for a total of seven years. In 1991, the play was listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the most performed French play throughout the world.
Synopsis
The play is set in the 1960s, and centres on bachelor Bernard, who has a flat in Paris and three stewardesses all engaged to him without knowing about each other. Bernard's life gets bumpy, though, when his friend Robert comes to stay, and complications such as weather and a new, speedier Boeing jet disrupt his careful planning. Soon, all three stewardesses are in the city simultaneously and catastrophe looms.
Synopsis
- Characters
- Bernard;– a Parisian architect and lothario (turned into an American who resides in Paris in the most recent Broadway production)
- Bertha;– Bernard's Housekeeper
- Robert;– Bernard's old schoolchum
- Jaqueline (or Gabriella);– the French fiancée (or the Italian fiancée)
- Janet (or Gloria);– the American fiancée
- Judith (or Gretchen);– the German fiancée
Bernard, a successful Parisian architect, juggles three flight attendant fiancées: an American woman (Janet or Gloria), a French woman (Jaqueline; turned into the Italian Gabriella in the most recent Broadway run) and a German woman (Judith or Gretchen). He tracks their airlines' timetables, and his long-suffering housekeeper, Bertha, reluctantly resets the menus and bedroom decor depending on the arrivals and departures. Bernard has been successful at convincing each girl that she is the only one. Bernard's old school friend Robert arrives unexpectedly, and Bernard proudly explains to his wide-eyed visitor how he makes his busy romantic schedule run smoothly. He also has a fallback plan for keeping his fiancées separate, involving his country house. Unfortunately for Bernard, a new, faster Boeing jet has been introduced, changing the timetable. Weather delays occur, and complications arise when the girls' behavior does not match Bernard's careful planning.
Robert steps in to help Bernard by keeping one or more of the girls busy as they arrive ahead of (or behind) schedule. It becomes more and more difficult for Bernard, Bertha and Robert to keep the girls separate once they all arrive, and the lies told become more and more difficult to reconcile. Bertha is exhausted and threatens to quit. Eventually, the situation is combed out, with Robert becoming involved with the forceful Gretchen, Bernard keeping the feisty Gabriella, and the independent Gloria leaving to find a more pliable husband.
The plot runs parallel to the comedy film The Captain's Paradise (1953), where the protagonist is a seafaring captain (Alec Guinness) pursuing many affairs.
Adaptations
- Boeing Boeing (1965 film), American film adapted by Edward Anhalt with John Rich directing, stars Jerry Lewis, Tony Curtis and Thelma Ritter, released by Paramount Pictures
- Motarda Gharameya (1968 film), Egyptian film starring Fouad el-Mohandes, Shwikar and Abdel Moneim Madbouly.
- Boeing Boeing (1985 film), Malayalam film adaptation by Priyadarshan starring Mohanlal, Mukesh, and M. G. Soman
- Chilakkottudu, Telugu film adaption by E. V. V. Satyanarayana starring Jagapati Babu and Rajendra Prasad
- Garam Masala (2005 film), Hindi film adaptation by Priyadarshan starring Akshay Kumar, John Abraham, and Paresh Rawal
- Nee Tata Naa Birla, Kannada film adaptation.
