The Caucasian chalk circle
By: Bertolt Brecht ; translated by Frank McGuinness
Contributors: McGuinness, Frank, translator
Series: Modern plays; Methuen modern plays
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Published: 2014
Place of publication: London]
Language: eng
Work titles: Kaukasische Kreidekreis
Description: In a prologue set in Soviet Georgia, a narrator introduces the story of choice and sacrifice. The servant girl Grusha sacrifices everything she has to look after an abandoned child, even marrying a dying peasant in order to provide for him. But when the boy's biological mother attempts to reclaim him, the unruly judge Azdak calls on the ancient tradition of the chalk circle to resolve the dispute. Brecht subverts an ancient Chinese story into a parable advocating that resources should go to those best able to make use of them. A morality masterpiece, the play powerfully demonstrates Brecht's pioneering theatrical techniques.
Notes: This translation previously issued in print: London: Methuen Drama, 2007.

Translated from the German.