The Shadow

A history scholar is spending some time in a nice foreign town, studying the archives and quietly admiring a lady living on the opposite side of the street. Much to his delight, he finds out that the lady is a princess, the foreign town is a place where fairy tales come true and some of his acquaintances are… ogres? However, the scholar will have to discover how dysfunctional the magic world really is after asking his shadow to tell the princess that he loves her.

Exploring the topics of friendship, manipulation, corruption and personal bravery, “The Shadow” is a political satire twist by Evgeny Schwartz on the tale of the same name by Hans-Christian Andersen. It is at the same time exhilaratingly funny, sad, and very dark (somebody may or may not die). The play was written as a part of a play trilogy in the second World War, but through the topics it discusses, it remains still relevant in our society and our times.