Punishment without Revenge is a dark and thrilling drama, an audacious blend of unbearable tension and delicious comedy, which both terrifies and delights. Regarded as the greatest tragedy of the Spanish Golden Age and the finest play of its presiding genius, Lope de Vega, this elegant work is set in the dangerous and glamorous world of Renaissance Italy. The Duke of Ferrara has lived a wild and unconventional life.

An infamous womaniser, his only son, Federico, is a bastard whom he dreams will one day succeed him. When his subjects demand that he marry and provide them with the stability of a legitimate heir, the proud and beautiful Cassandra, Duchess of Mantua, is sent to be his bride. But everything does not fall happily into place.

A passionate love develops - but not between the Duke and his Duchess - and, in a culture where honour is the highest virtue, there can be only one outcome…

Lope de Vega (1562-1635), acknowledged as Spain's most lyrical and energetic dramatist, was a prolific and compulsive writer. He treated an enormous range of subjects, often mingling comedy with tragedy, to the horror of the classicists, and defended his methods in his 'Arte nuevo de hacer comedias en este tiempe', published in 1609.
Meredith Oakes' first play, The Neighbour, was produced at the Royal National Theatre, London in 1992, and is published by Oberon Books. The Editing Process was first produced by the English Stage Company at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in 1994. Her translations include The New Menoza by Lenz, Horvath's Italian Night, and Bernhard's Elizabeth II. Opera Libretti include The Triumph of Beauty and Deceit and Solid Assets.