A flea in her ear

by David Ives

"A Flea in Her Ear is the greatest of French farces, perhaps the greatest farce ever written. Raymonde Chandebise suspects that her husband, Victor, a placid and successful insurance executive, is secretly having an affair. To find out, she and her friend Lucienne write him an anonymous love letter suggesting a rendezvous at the shady Frisky Puss Hotel. Thinking the letter was intended for his coworker, the gigolo Tournel, Victor sends Tournel off to make the rendezvous in his place. Lucienne's jealous Spanish husband, meanwhile, finds the letter, recognizes his wife's handwriting and takes...