Funny happenings.

The rollicking comedies of Plautus, who brilliantly adapted Greek plays for Roman audiences ca. 205–184 BC, are the earliest Latin works to survive complete and are cornerstones of the European theatrical tradition from Shakespeare and Molière to modern times. This first volume of a new Loeb edition of all twenty-one of Plautus’ extant comedies presents Amphitruo, Asinaria, Aulularia, Bacchides, and Captivi with freshly edited texts, lively modern translations, and ample explanatory notes. Accompanying the plays is a detailed introduction to Plautus’ œuvre as a whole, discussing his techniques of translation and adaptation, his use of Roman humor, stage conventions, language and meter, and his impact on the Greco-Roman comedic theater and beyond.

"Wolfgang de Melo has established an updated text and rendered Plautus into smooth, pleasantly readable prose for the Loeb Classical Library... De Melo makes the world of Plautinopolis intelligible without becoming too familiar. Footnotes succinctly explain references to Greek and Roman allusions. Sometimes the translation presents a clear modern analogue with the literal meaning footnoted... Several enhancements improve the presentation of the new edition... The overall product is quite impressive." - Bryn Mawr Classical Review