Mostellaria

Acts

• 1
  Act 1

  Philolaches has been spending his absent father's money on wine and a courtesan. The slave Tranio hears that the father's ship has been sighted in the harbour.

  389 lines
• 2
  Act 2

  Tranio's first scheme: he tells the returning father that the house is haunted and must not be entered. The father is terrified.

  261 lines
• 3
  Act 3

  Tranio's second scheme: to explain the debts, he claims Philolaches borrowed money to buy the neighbour's house. The father insists on inspecting it.

  457 lines
• 4
  Act 4

  The neighbour is bewildered when the old man tours his house praising its features. Tranio improvises desperately as the lies accumulate.

  270 lines
• 5
  Act 5

  Both schemes collapse at once. Tranio takes refuge on an altar. A friend intervenes, promises to repay the debts, and the father reluctantly pardons everyone.

  190 lines