Romantic Tale Magic Love Transformation Princess Bear
CHARACTERS Master - a wizard who got married, settled down and took up housekeeping, but still reaches for miracles. A bearded man of enormous stature, broad-shouldered, the owner of an estate in the Carpathian Mountains. He is passionately in love with his wife. Mistress - the wizard's wife, still young, a very attractive woman. She reproaches her husband for his foolish magic, but takes a philosophical approach to it. The Bear is an enchanted youth: a wizard turned him from a bear into a man. The bear lived in human form for seven years, then came to the wizard to have him turn him back, but while visiting him, he met a princess and fell in love with her. The Princess is the king's daughter, a very kind and nice girl. From early childhood, she was not at all like a king's daughter: "you come to the nursery - and suddenly, it's embarrassing to say, you become cute." The King is the wizard's guest and the princess's father. Along with the family jewels, he inherited all the vile family traits from his relatives. The Minister-Administrator is a man with a business acumen and no moral principles. "He is the only one of us who knows how to travel. He knows how to get horses at the post station, get a carriage, feed us. True, he does all this poorly, but we can’t do anything like that at all. Don’t tell him that I complained, otherwise he will leave me without sweets." Emilia - the first lady of the knighthood, the beauty and pride of the royal retinue. Emil (the Innkeeper) - a small, quick, slender man, graceful in his movements. The owner of the mountain tavern "Emilia". In his youth, he was in love with the lady-in-waiting Emilia, but left her; He met her when she came to him as part of the royal retinue in search of a runaway princess. The Hunter - a famous hunter who stayed at the Emilia tavern and dreamed of killing the hundredth bear in his career. The Hunter's Apprentice - the hunter's assistant and his "whipping boy". He constantly suffers the hunter's displeasure: "that's why I keep apprentices, so that my abuse will hurt at least someone." The Father-Steward - the innkeeper's neighbor, living a five-hour drive away and able to communicate using telepathy. He is the most curious monk in the world. He knows everything that is happening for a hundred miles around. The First Minister - was a majestic person at court: "experts claimed that it was difficult to understand who holds himself more important and dignified - me or the royal cats." On the way from the kingdom, he changed a lot. Amanda - the princess's maid of honor. She stopped believing in love because of an unfortunate experience and after that fell in love with everyone. She married a hunter. Orinthia - the princess's maid of honor. She forgot how to tell the truth about love: "it's so scary and so difficult. I say about love what is expected of me." She married a hunter's apprentice.
SYNOPSIS
An estate in the Carpathian Mountains. Here, having married and decided to settle down and take care of the household, a certain wizard settled. He is in love with his wife and promises her to live "like everyone else," but his soul longs for something magical, and the owner of the estate cannot resist "pranks." Now the Hostess suspects that her husband is up to new miracles. It turns out that some rather unusual guests are about to arrive at the house.
The first to appear is a young man. When the Hostess asks his name, he replies: Bear. The wizard, informing his wife that it is because of the young man that these amazing events will begin, confesses: seven years ago, he turned a young bear he met in the forest into a man. The Hostess hates it when "animals are tortured for their own amusement" and begs her husband to turn the young man into a bear again and set him free. It turns out that this is possible, but only if some princess falls in love with the young man and kisses him. The Hostess feels sorry for the unknown girl; she is frightened by the dangerous game her husband has started.
Meanwhile, the sound of a trumpet is heard, announcing the arrival of new guests. A passing King suddenly wanted to turn into the estate. The owner warns them that they are about to encounter a rude and unruly man. However, the King, upon entering, is initially polite and courteous. True, he soon admits that he is a despot, vindictive, and capricious. But twelve generations of ancestors are to blame for this ("all monsters, one after another!"); because of them, he, a kind and intelligent man by nature, sometimes does such things that make you cry!
After an unsuccessful attempt to treat his hosts with poisoned wine, the King, blaming his late uncle for his mischief, explains that the Princess, his daughter, has not inherited the family's villainous tendencies; she is kind and even softens his own cruel nature. The host escorts the guest to the rooms designated for him.
The Princess enters the house and bumps into the Bear at the door. An immediate liking emerges between the young people. The Princess is not accustomed to simple and cordial treatment; she enjoys talking to the Bear.
Trumpets are heard—the royal retinue is approaching. The young man and woman run off, holding hands. "Well, here comes the hurricane, love has come!" says the Hostess, who has overheard their conversation.
The courtiers appear. All of them: the First Minister, the First Dame, and the ladies-in-waiting are terrified to the point of trembling by the Minister-Administrator, who, although he knows how to please the King in everything, has completely subjugated him and keeps his retinue in a state of darkness. The Administrator enters, consulting his notebook and calculating his income. Winking at the Mistress, he abruptly sets up a date with her, but upon learning that her husband is a wizard and can turn him into a rat, he apologizes and takes out his anger on the courtiers who have appeared. Meanwhile, the King and the Mistress enter the room, followed by the Princess and the Bear. Noticing the joy on his daughter's face, the King realizes it is due to a new acquaintance. He is ready to grant the young man a title and take him along on a journey. The Princess admits that the young man has become her best friend, and she is ready to kiss him. But, realizing who she is, the Bear flees in horror and despair. The Princess is at a loss. She leaves the room. The King plans to execute the courtiers if none of them can give him advice on how to help the Princess. The executioner is ready. Suddenly the door swings open, and the Princess appears on the threshold, dressed as a man, with a sword and pistols. She orders the horse to be saddled, bids farewell to her father, and disappears. The sound of a horse's hooves is heard. The King rushes after him, ordering his retinue to follow him. "Well, are you satisfied?" the Hostess asks her husband. "Very!" he replies.
On a stormy winter evening, the owner of the Emilia tavern sadly recalls the girl he once loved and after whom he named his establishment. He still dreams of meeting her. There is a knock at the door. The innkeeper lets in snow-covered travelers—the King and his retinue, searching for his daughter.
Meanwhile, the Princess is in this house. Disguised as a boy, she became an apprentice to a hunter who lived there.
While the Innkeeper is settling his guests in for a rest, the Bear appears. A little later, he meets the Princess, but doesn't recognize her in her men's clothing. He explains that he ran away from love for a girl who looks very much like his new acquaintance and, he believes, is also in love with him. The Princess ridicules the Bear. An argument ensues, culminating in a sword fight. Lunging, the young man knocks his opponent's hat off—his braids fall, and the masquerade is over. The girl is offended by the Bear and is ready to die rather than prove to him that she cares about him. The Bear wants to flee again, but the house is covered in snow up to the roof, making it impossible to leave.
Meanwhile, the Innkeeper discovers that the First Lady in Arms is his lost Emilia. An explanation and reconciliation take place. The King is happy that his daughter has been found, but seeing her sad, he demands that one of his courtiers go and console her. The lot falls to the Administrator, who is terrified that the Princess will simply shoot him. However, he returns alive and with unexpected news: the king's daughter has decided to marry him! The enraged Bear immediately proposes to two maids of honor. The Princess appears in a wedding dress: the wedding is in an hour! The young man asks permission to speak with her alone and reveals his secret: by the will of the wizard, he will turn into a bear as soon as he kisses her—that is the reason for his flight. The Princess leaves in despair.
Suddenly music is heard, the windows open, revealing not snow, but blooming meadows. The cheerful Innkeeper bursts in, but his joy quickly fades: the expected miracle has not happened. "How dare you not kiss her?!" he asks the Bear. "You did not love the girl!"
The Innkeeper leaves. Snow falls outside again. Utterly depressed, the Bear turns to the hunter who has entered and asks if he has any desire to kill the hundredth bear (he boasted that he had killed 99 bears), for he will still find the Princess, kiss her and turn into a beast. After some hesitation, the hunter agrees to take advantage of the young man's "kindness."
A year has passed. The Innkeeper has married his beloved Emilia. The Bear has disappeared into thin air: the wizard's spell prevents him from reaching the Princess. The girl, because of unrequited love, has fallen ill and is about to die. All the courtiers are deeply saddened. Only the Administrator, although his wedding never took place, has become even richer and more insolent, and he does not believe in death from love.
The Princess wishes to say goodbye to her friends and asks them to brighten her last moments. Among those present are the Master and Mistress. Footsteps are heard in the depths of the garden—the Bear has finally made it here! The Princess is delighted and admits that she loves and forgives him; even if he turns into a bear, so long as he doesn't leave. She embraces and kisses the young man. ("Glory to the brave who dare to love, knowing that all this will come to an end," the wizard said a little earlier.) A clap of thunder rings out, darkness reigns for a moment, then light flashes, and everyone sees that the Bear has remained human. The wizard is delighted: a miracle has happened! Overjoyed, he transforms the annoying Administrator into a rat and is ready to perform new miracles, "so as not to burst from excess strength."