About the Play:

Fools has long been a favourite of acting teachers for Male Monologues and Female/Male Scenes.

Fools is a full-length comedy by Neil Simon. An idealistic teacher attempts through education to free a Ukrainian town from a magic spell that has turned the inhabitants into fools. Fools is a story that makes us laugh at the foolishness of others, and as we begin to think of our own foolishness, we are reminded to not take ourselves so seriously! Especially recommended for school and contest use.

Fools is a romantic fairy tale about an eager young teacher, the prettiest airhead in town, several kooky villagers, and an ancient curse. The unknowing hero, master teacher Leon Tolchinsky, is ecstatic. He's landed a terrific teaching job in an idyllic Ukrainian village of Kulyenchikov (still a Russian territory in the late 19th Century). When he arrives he finds people sweeping dust from the stoops back into their houses and people milking upside down to get more cream. For 200 years, the town been under an evil spell of foolishness that left the villagers and all their descendants dense, dim-witted, and unable to feel or understand love. And it's Leon's job to break the curse! He learns that the curse will be lifted if he can educate one of the afflicted inhabitants within 24 hours – but if he fails, he will become a fool like the rest of them. But, he has fallen in love with bubble-headed Sophia who has only recently mastered the fine art of sitting down. Faced with this dilemma, a hysterical tale of foolishness, love, and human nature unfolds in quintessential Neil Simon style.

Fools premiered in 1981 at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre on Broadway in New York City. The play has become a favourite scene study vehicle in acting classes and workshops and, with a stationary set, it is a favourite Neil Simon play for high schools, colleges, and community theatres.

Cast: 6 female, 6 male (but some genders can be easily switched)

What people say:

"Anyone who judges high school drama festivals long enough will become familiar with Neil Simon's Fools. Students are easily attracted to the story of a remote Ukrainian village populated entirely by idiots. They love the opportunity to walk around the set with blank looks on their faces, smacking into walls, and giggling stupidly at each others' antics like some sort of 19th century Beavis and Butthead. The people ... have no brains, but a lot of heart. ...Fools works because while we're laughing at them, we're also rooting for them." — Talkin' Broadway

"The brightest, freshest, funniest, wittiest, warmest and happiest to do on Broadway in many a day." — CBS-TV

About the Playwright:

Neil Simon (1927-2018) was America's most prolific playwright. He had dozens of plays and nearly as many major motion pictures produced. He was showered with more Academy and Tony nominations than any other writer, and is the only playwright to have four Broadway productions running simultaneously. His plays have been produced in dozens of languages, and in 1983 became the only living playwright to have a New York theatre, the Neil Simon Theatre, named in his honour. His true success, however, is in his unique way of exposing something real in the American spirit.