The Real Inspector Hound and After Magritte

by Stoppard Tom

Two one-act comedies. Hound is about two theater critics watching a who-dun-it who become involved in the action. "A looking-glass comedy of great suspense and intrigue" says the back cover. Cast 5 men, 3 women. Magritte is "a surrealist comedy in detective form." Harris 40, Thelma his wife, mother, Detective, Police Constable

Genres: Plays, Drama, Theatre, Humor, Fiction

105 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1969

Reviews

[Kit]

5 stars for Hound, 3 for Magritte.

[meeners]

like another reviewer here, i'd give 5 stars for "the real inspector hound" and 3 stars for "magritte." the former is exactly the kind of stuff i love - a metaphysical detective story that bleeds into another story of satirical realism until finally the two merge and become a thing of REAL ULTIMATE POWER!!!11 - by which i mean brilliance, executed with typical stoppard elegance and flair. (the execution was so elegant i could die. perhaps literally, in the spirit of the play.)

god bless used bookstores everywhere - would never have stumbled across this otherwise.

[Jessica]

Four stars for Inspector Hound, why not, because few contemporary writers could pull this off, I should think! After Magritte didn't have the same effect or show the same command: 2 to 2.5 stars there.

[Jack Brounstein]

"The Real Inspector Hound" is fantastic; "After Magritte" is weird and surreal in a superficially similar way, but without the charm.

"Hound": 5 stars
"Magritte": 2 stars

[Jonathan]

Definitely 4 stars for TRIH, which is a delight. It's fast and funny and gleefully mocks too-clever murder mysteries as well as self-absorbed theatre critics. Stoppard is great at the play-within-a-play conceit, deftly weaving two worlds together until they become one with ludicrous results. I wasn't as keen on AM, although I still enjoyed it. The concept of a Surrealist painting come to life, and the multiple (rather bizarre!) viewpoints that affords, is amusing, but the play was perhaps a bit too farcical for me.

[Linda]

Very clever and funny story telling. The Real Inspector Hound weaves two audience members into the play they are watching. After Magritte illustrates how the varying perceptions of different people can lead to very different conclusions. So clever.

[Laura Harrington]

I love Tom Stoppard and ‘Inspector Hound’ is him at his most typically witty, absurd and genuinely funny. ‘Magritte’ is a lot of fun but lacks some of the charm and depth - it can feel like a little wordy for the sake of it. Either way highly enjoyable collection.