About the Plays:

Titus Maccius Plautus was the single greatest influence on Western comedy. Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors is an adaptation of The Brothers Menaechmus (in this volume). Molière rendered The Pot of Gold (also in this volume) when creating The Miser. Moreover, the huge success of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (a combination of several Plautine comedies) proves that Plautus is still very much alive on Broadway and in Hollywood.

Plautus himself borrowed from the Greeks, but his jokes, rapid dialogue, bawdy humour, and irreverent characterizations are the original work of an undisputed genius. The comedies printed here show him at his best, and Professor Segal's translations keep their fast, rollicking pace intact, making these the most readable and actable versions available. His introduction considers Plautus' place in ancient comedy, examines his continuing influence, and celebrates his power to entertain.

This volume includes, The Braggart Soldier, The Brothers Menaechmus, The Haunted House, and The Pot of Gold. He died in 2010 at the age of 72.

What people say:

"These translations are unrivaled in English. The dialogue is brisk, puns and alliterative strings trip from [Segal's] pen with an abandon that rivals the master himself, and the lyrics really ache to be sung. It is great theatre!" — Professor Walter Moskalew, Classics Department, Ball State University

"Enormously playable ...scrupulously accurate." — Dr. Richjard C. Beacham, Department of Theatre Studies, University of Warwick

About the Translator:

Erich Segal was an American author, screenwriter, and educator. He taught at Oxford, Yale, Harvard and Princeton and wrote widely about ancient Greek and Latin literature. He also wrote Love Story and was a screenwriter on the Beatles' 1968 film Yellow Submarine. He died in 2010 at the age of 72