About the work
A satirical "comic tragedy" in three parts by Johann Nestroy, based on Paul de Kock’s novel "Ni jamais ni toujours" (1835), with music by Adolf Müller senior. It premiered on 3 November 1838 at the Theater an der Wien as a benefit performance, with Nestroy in the title role.
Plot
The gullible Simplicius Berg repeatedly falls for swindlers across three stages of his life: as a young man he loses his inheritance to a false lover, as an adult at the gambling table, and in old age he nearly falls for another young woman’s scheme. Only his brother Richard saves what remains of the fortune, placing it under guardianship.
Cultural significance
Critics largely rejected the play; the Wiener Theaterzeitung argued that an incorrigible fool could not produce genuine dramatic effect. After this attempt to fuse moralizing folk theatre with farce, Nestroy returned to his usual, more purely comic form.