THE AMOROUS FLEA Music Bruce Montgomery; Lyrics- Bruce Montgomery: Book - Jerry Devine: Based on Molière's comedy The School for Wives 1964 Off-Broadway - 78th Street Playhouse, February 17, 1964 moved to York Theatre (total 93 perf.) SYNOPSIS Arnolphe is about to marry Agnes, a beautiful orphaned girl whom he has groomed to be the perfect wife by sequestering her in a convent and keeping her totally ignorant of the outside world since she was four years old. Just as she reaches legal age, she meets and falls in love with Horace (son of Arnolphe's old friend Oronte), whom Arnolphe befriends without revealing his identity as the girl's lecherous fiancé. To his dismay, Horace persists in describing his success at wooing Agnes. Eventually her birth father Enrique arrives on the scene to demand she fulfill the marriage contract he arranged for her many years before, Agnes discovers the deception, and the revelation of the identity of the intended groom leaves Arnolphe a very unhappy man. STORY As the overture ends Arnolphe, a middle-aged, self-centered man who always carries a gold cane is seen. His friend Chrysalde, who carries a lorgnette, is urging Arnolphe not to marry for he is convinced that the marriage will fail. Arnolphe tells him that he has kept his orphaned ward Agnes in a convent where she has been raised in total innocence. He invites his skeptical friend to visit his future bride, yet tells him he must refer to Arnolph as La Souche, for that is the name he has taught her to call him. Chrysalde exits, leaving Arnolphe to comment on his greatness in an extremely self-centered way. The set changes to the garden of Agnes’s house where the comical servants Alain and Georgette are working. After baiting their master the two leave and Agnes enters. Arnolphe questions the young innocent only to discover that she has nightly visitors; he momentarily panics until he realizes they are harmless fleas. Arnolphe sends her away, pleased with himself for training her in the art of exiting. Agnes appears in the upstairs window and comments on her situation. Agter her solo she closes the shutters and Alain and Georgetter enter to complete the musical trilogy by derogatorily singing about their employer. The scene moves to the street where Arnolphe meets Horace, the son of Oronte, an old friend. Oronte has entrusted the boy to Arnolphe’s care until her returns to Paris. Arnolphe loans the boy some money and begins to advise him about the pitfalls of Paris and the deviousness of its women. Horace quickly responds that he has found a lovely maiden named Agnes who lives on the other side of the wall. Arnolphe is apoplectic for he realizes it is his ward. He quickly exits leaving Horace to exalt his feelings of love. The scene returns to the arden where Arnolphe, in a rage, angrily confronts the servants. They deny any knowledge of Agnes’s lover and he exits to ask the girl for the truth. Alain and Georgetter sing of the confusing situation. At the end of the number they exit and Agnes enters with her tatting. Arnolphe enters and begins to question her until he discovers that Horace has indeed been there and caressed her incessantly. He is relieved to find that nothing of real consequence has happened and vows to put a stop to any more philandering. He tells her that she has sinned but there is no sin in anything if one is married. Agnes is anxious to marry Arnolphe immediately so she can make love to Horace. Arnolphe is appalled and he orders her to her room and insists she throw rocks out her window at the suitor. She retires, weeping, to her room and the act ends with Agnes hurling a rock at Horace. At the start of Act II, Alain and Georgette are in the garden comically drilling a la soldiers at arms when Arnolphe enters to instruct them. He sends them off and Agnes enters with her tatting. He decides to give her some lessons on married decorum. His lesson ends when he is informed that Agnes’s young man is outside. Arnolphe quickly rushes out to the street to greet Horace who tells him that the rock that Agnes threw had a love letter attached to it begging him to save her from La Souche. Arnolphe is having fits of pain, but contains
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