An academic satirist and reformer in the spirit of the Enlightenment Ludvig Holberg (1684-1754) is the founding father of the art of theatre in the Nordic countries. He was a satirist - and university professor - who took his main inspirations form the comedies of Molière and from the commedia dell'arte to create a number of plays that mirrored contemporary costums and conducts in a both realistic and grotesque way. Due to the psychological and philosophical strength behind the comic mask the plays have been staged and revisited ever since. In the 18th century they were part of the European canon. They should be so now again. This book presents Holberg in a European context as a reformer in the spirit of the Enlightenment even before Goldoni, Diderot and Lessing, and at the same time as an exponent of a carnivalesque tradition.

Bent Holm, Associate Professor, Theatre Studies, Institute for Arts and Cultural Studies, University of Copenhagen. Dramatic adviser and translator of plays, esp. by Dario Fo, De Filippo, and Goldoni. Special research focuses are on relationships between visual arts and theatre; drama analysis and creative theatre production. Publications include: "The Taming of the Turk: Ottomans on the Danish Stage 1596-1896" (Hollitzer 2014).

PROLOGUE CHAPTER 1 Holberg on the European Stage. Instrument, score, music CHAPTER 2 Holberg on the Danish stage. Mask, comedy, satire CHAPTER 3 Holberg our contemporary. Impact, interpretation, practice EPILOGUE APPENDIX Holberg's plays Bibliography Index