Mr Puntila and his Man Matti

Written in 1940 during Brecht's brief exile in Finland, Puntila is one of his greatest creations. A hard-drinking Finnish landowner, Puntila suffers from a divided personality - when drunk he is human and humane; when sober, surly and self-centred. Oscillating unsteadily between these two poles, Puntila plays havoc with his workmen, his women, his daughter's marital arrangements and the loyalty of his sardonic chauffeur, Matti. 'Mr Puntila and his Man Matti' contains some of the best comedy Brecht wrote for the theatre. It was first staged in Zurich in 1948.