The Complaisant Lover

A "delicious . . . champagne cocktail" of a stage comedy about a sporting British couple's marital--and extramarital--propositions ( New York Herald Tribune ).

Victor Rhodes, a hearty and amiable dentist in North London, has what he thinks is a happy marriage. It's stable, routine, and comfortably platonic. Five years and counting, his wife, Mary, feels the same way. That's why she's taken a secret lover--their good friend, Clive Root, an antiquarian bookseller for whom relieving complaisant husbands of their duty is a pleasure. But when Mary and Clive connive a rendezvous in Amsterdam, their getaway takes a surprising turn with a visit from Victor. What's now at risk for Mary is more than a marriage to a man she genuinely loves but also a perfectly fulfilling affair with a man she truly desires. In this "sin-and-tonic work of art," Mary isn't about to give up either of them ( Spectator ).

"An expert at badinage full of quiet English verve, Mr. Greene writes with smooth sophistication" in his last play--a comedy of lies, cheats, and betrayals--produced by Sir John Gielgud at the Globe Theatre, London, in 1959 ( The New York Times ). Two years later, it debuted on Broadway, with a cast including Sandy Dennis, Michael Redgrave, and Gene Wilder.