The scene is the box office lobby of a theatre where a politically scandalous play, implied to be Gilbert's contemporaneous play
The Happy Land, is being produced. The play is so popular that spectators are literally crammed into the private boxes, sitting on each other's laps. The boxkeeper thinks that the play is scandalous, but "Society comes because Society is loth to believe in such audacity on mere hearsay, and flocks to the theatre in thousands to witness the appalling spectacle for themselves." Quisby and Jopp, a pair of "swells", arrive to see the play for the sixty-eighth and eighty-fifth time, respectively – but only to "moralise over the depravity of human nature" and "see the spectators". Mr. and Mrs. Jellybag have taken their young daughters (who interest Quisby and Jopp greatly) but arrange for them to be sent out with the cloakwoman whenever things get too scandalous. They're soon sent back out, and declare themselves much amused (A "melancholy instance of juvenile depravity" according to the cloakwoman.) Meanwhile, Mr. Wilkinson has arrived with Mrs. Scruby. Mr. Scruby now arrives, waiting for Mrs. Wilkinson – but his box has been sold to another person as well. Both Mr. Scruby and Mr. Wilkinson have forbidden their wives from seeing the piece, and so have agreed to take each other's wives to it. Farcical complications ensue, with attempts to hide each other's wives from the other husband. In the confusion, the Jellybags' daughters give in to Quisby and Jopp's flirting and head off with them, unnoticed by the Cloakwoman. Everything comes out between the Scrubys and Wilkinsons, and, as they all were guilty of the same act, they forgive each other and go in to watch the show – but it's over! Ah, well! Now they can come as often as they like together. ==Notes==