As the 1934 literature laureate of the prestigious Nobel Prize, author and playwright Luigi Pirandello was truly a pioneer in his field. The award was given to him "for his bold and ingenious revival of dramatic and scenic art". He is today known as the greatest Italian playwright of his time. His contributions to the genre are unequivocal. Even today the influence of his writings can be seen through the works of many prolific writers such as Eugene O'neill, Samuel Beckett, and Eugene Ionesco. What many argue to be the pinnacle of his career as well as the best know of his works Sei personaggi in cerca d'autore (Six Characters in Search of an Author, 1921) has been critically acclaimed for its fresh outlook and commentary on the interdependence of the characters from the author, and the distinction between reality and actuality.
             The first act begins with a group of actors preparing for a rehearsal of a Pirandello play entitled Il Giuoco delle Parti (Mixing It Up). The rehearsal is short lived however due to the appearance of several people claiming to not really be people but instead characters of an unfinished play. The manager, who is also the direct of Mixing It Up, becomes somewhat intrigued with these characters and agrees to become an author to finish the play, which in turn will bring the characters to life. The character of the father tells the manager all he has to do is write down what they perform, and then the actors can take over.
             The characters begin to explain their history to the manager. Originally, the father and mother were married and had a son. The mother fell in love with the father's secretary, and the father not only lost interest in the mother but wanted to be free to visit with prostitutes so he told her to leave with the secretary. The mother went on to have three children with the secretary and the father began to miss the very same family he had pushed away. T...