The Government Inspector is a classic satirical play in five acts by Nikolai Gogol. Set in a small provincial Russian town, the play follows a group of corrupt officials who panic when they hear a government inspector is coming incognito. Mistaking a simple traveler for the inspector, they descend into absurdity and chaos.
Sharp, ironic, and timeless, this comedy exposes the rot within bureaucracy and human vanity. It has become one of the most important plays in Russian theatre, often described as the only true Russian comedy, and remains universally relevant to systems of power and corruption.