The Comedy of Errors is a candidate for Shakespeare’s earliest play, although many scholars believe that honor goes to Two Gentlemen of Verona. The first known performance was in 1594, but it’s possible that it existed in a less polished form some years before that. The basis of the story comes from two farces by the Roman playwright Plautus, but it’s unfair to say that our Bard just wrote a version of these ancient stories. There are elements which seem to be original with Shakespeare, and of course in the language we can recognize the brilliance of the Bard of Avon.

It has been adapted for opera, stage, screen and musical theatre numerous times worldwide. In the centuries following its premiere, the play’s title has entered the popular English lexicon as an idiom for “an event or series of events made ridiculous by the number of errors that were made throughout”.

Syracuse, originally a Greek colony, is located on the modern-day island of Sicily. Cicero, the famous Roman orator, described Syracuse as the greatest and most beautiful Greek city. Its namesake is the city in New York. Ephesus, the setting of the play, is located on the western coast of Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey).   

There are many anachronistic references to religion, as is common in Shakespeare’s plays: Christian, (rosary) beads, “cross me”. There are also many references to geography in III.2, in which Dromio compares his “wife” to a globe, with different parts of her body representing countries which did not exist in the ancient Greek world.

The play also contains a reference to the wars of succession in France, which conveniently lets us suppose that The Comedy of Errors must have been written sometime during or after the period from 1589 to 1595. The earliest performance was recorded in December 28, 1594. The play was not published until it appeared in the First Folio in 1623.

Why did both twins answer to the same name? Aegeon explains in I.1 that he named the younger brother after the eldest after they were separated in their accident.   

The play has been adapted as a musical several times. The most popular of these was The Boys from Syracuse, with music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Lorenz Hart. The play premiered on Broadway in 1938, with a film adaptation released in 1940.

Some new vocabulary:

• cozenage – cheating
• ell – old measurement of about 120 cm.
• mermaid’s song – according to legends, the mermaids sang songs to sailors to tempt them to jump off their boats and drown.
• mickle – much
• niggard – very selfish and stingy person
• peevish – silly

To make things less confusing, I will refer to Antipholus & Dromio of Syracuse as “AS” and “DS” and Antipholus & Dromio of Ephesus as “AE” and “DE“.

ACT I

scene 1

The Duke of Ephesus passes judgement on Aegeon, a merchant from Syracuse. Due to war between the two cities, Aegeon must be sentenced to death unless he can pay a large ransom. Aegeon explains that years ago he was separated from his wife during a storm at sea. Each of them kept one of their identical twin baby sons, and each had one of their slave boys, also identical twins. The father raised his half of the children in the city of Syracuse, but never found the others. Recently his adult son set out with his slave to find the rest of the family, and after seven years Aegeon followed, having heard no word of him during that time. He had searched all over Greece, finally looking in Ephesus out of desperation.

scene 2

AS and DS arrive in Ephesus. A friendly Merchant warns them to tell no one they are from Syracuse. AS tells DS to take their money to an inn for safekeeping. A few minutes later DE, sent to bring AE home for lunch, instead finds AS, who demands to know what happened to their money, and beats DE for making up a story about having a wife and house in this city.

ACT II

scene 1

Adriana, the wife of AE, complains to her sister Luciana about how difficult marriage is. DE arrives, describing his strange encounter with AS, but Adriana sends him back for his master again.

scene 2

AS finds that DS put the money in the inn just as he was supposed to, and DS can’t understand why he’s so angry. Adriana and Luciana see AS in the street as he passes the house, and call him to dinner. AS thinks DS must have met her already, because she knows their names, and the words she uses match what DE had said to him earlier. He still agrees to have lunch with her, and DS is to keep the door locked so that no one disturbs them.

ACT III

scene 1

During the meal AE returns to the house. He had been at the market, arranging for Angelo the goldsmith to make a chain for Adriana. AE knows he’s late, and that his wife will be angry, but he invites Angelo to join him for lunch. Both he and DE call inside demanding to know why the door is locked, but DS follows orders and doesn’t let anyone in. Adriana yells outside that she is already eating with her husband. DE is angry, and decides to get even by giving the chain to a prostitute he sometimes talks to.

scene 2

Meanwhile, AS has fallen in love with his sister-in-law Luciana, who keeps telling him that he is married to Adriana. DS tells him that the cook, a very fat and ugly woman, claims to be Dromio’s wife. Even though he is smitten with Luciana, AS is too confused with this city to stay, and orders DS to go to the harbor and find a boat for them to leave on. Angelo gives AS the golden chain he had promised to AE.

ACT IV

scene 1

AE has been eating lunch with the prostitute, waiting for Angelo to arrive with the chain so he can give it to her, and takes from her a valuable ring in exchange. AE sends DE to buy a rope so that he can beat his wife with it. Angelo asks AE to pay for the chain, so he can pay his debt to another merchant. Of course AE knows nothing about the chain, so Angelo has him arrested for non-payment of debts. Just then DS arrives to announce that he has chartered a boat for them to leave the city. Yelling at him, AE sends him home to get the money to pay his bail.

scene 2

Adriana laments that AS was wooing her sister, then that he has been arrested. She gives DS the money for his bail.

scene 3

AS is remarking about how people he’s never seen before treat him like a friend and give him valuable gifts, when DS arrives and gives him the bag of money. The prostitute sees him with the chain, and asks for either the chain as AE promised or her ring back. AS sends her away empty-handed.

scene 4

AE is waiting for the money, but DE only gives him the rope he was sent for. Adriana arrives with a schoolteacher who declares that both AE and DE are possessed by spirits. They are sent off to be exorcised, but immediately AS and DS enter from another direction with swords drawn, and scare everyone away.

ACT V

scene 1

Angelo sees AS with the chain and demands it. AS and DS runs inside a church (according to tradition, those in trouble could seek sanctuary inside a church and be safe from those chasing them.) The Abbess forbids anyone from entering to get them.

The Duke arrives with Aegeon, and tries to resolve the confusing stories about Antipholus. Suddenly AE and DE, who escaped from the schoolmaster, ask the Duke for justice, which confuses matters more. Aegeon recognizes AE and DE, but they don’t recognize him. The Abbess brings in AS and DS, and explains that she is the wife of Aegeon and the mother of the Antipholus twins, whom she hasn’t seen since the boat wreck. The Duke sets Aegeon free, the chain and ring are returned to the rightful owners, AE is reunited with his wife, and AS promises to continue wooing Luciana.