About the work
Magic farce with song in three acts by Johann Nestroy, premiered on 11 April 1833 at the Theater an der Wien as a benefit performance for the author. Nestroy drew on Carl Weisflog's tale "Das große Loos" and on preliminary work by Josef Alois Gleich; the music was composed by Adolf Müller the Elder.
Plot
Three penniless journeymen – the cobbler Kneipp, the tailor Zwirn and the carpenter Leim – win a hundred thousand thalers in the lottery thanks to a magic potion. The spirits Fortuna and Amorosa argue over whether sudden wealth corrupts the three or whether true love is stronger than fortune. While Kneipp and Zwirn squander their money, only Leim finds lasting happiness through his love for Camilla.
Cultural significance
The play became Nestroy's first major stage success and stayed in the repertoire until he left the stage in 1862. Its "Comet Song" picked up on the real fear of comets in Vienna between 1832 and 1835 and became a popular catchphrase there; with its socially critical realism, the work is regarded as the start of Nestroy's genuine folk plays.