The first in-depth study of Catherine the Great's plays and opera libretti, this book provides analysis and critical interpretation of the dramatic works by this eighteenth-century Russian Empress. O'Malley sets close textual analysis within an historical framework, analyzing the major plays according to content, style, themes, characters, and relation to Catherine's life and political aims. The study investigates how Catherine expressed her social ideas throughout her drama and exploited the stage's power to promote her political ideals and ideology.

The resulting production was, technically and artistically, a tour de force, and the critical response was very favorable. The complexity of the stage effects and the marionette was such that the production, once dismantled, is unlikely to be re-staged. There existed no detailed written record of the production, so the writer's account has made good this lack by means of interviews with members of the company and a search of their archives and press reviews.