W. Somerset (William Somerset) Maugham
The Circle: A Comedy in Three Acts
"The Circle: A Comedy in Three Acts" by W. Somerset Maugham is a play first produced in 1921. A young married woman considers leaving her husband for another man and seeks guidance from an elderly couple who eloped thirty years earlier. What she discovers challenges her romantic ideals about love and sacrifice. Set over one day at a country house, the play explores whether passion justifies abandoning comfort and respectability, featuring unexpected twists that shocked some opening-night audiences with its bold conclusion.