Oh What a Girl

Albert Pekki, a middle-aged painter, has for a few weeks been having a good time while his wife Anna, a professional dancer, is touring England. The couple’s now five-year-old marriage is childless since Anna has been unwilling to have a baby because of her fear that giving birth to a child might ruin her career as a dancer. Despite this, Albert continues to daydream about a son of his own, and this dream has made him increasingly frustrated about the subject. For years, also Albert’s parents have lived in the hope of finally having a grandson, and they are now very disappointed with their son, pressing him to make Anna have a baby. While Anna is abroad, a beautiful prostitute by the name of Irene Koski moves into the house next to Albert’s. Fairly soon, she gets to know everything about Albert’s marriage, and seduces him by cleverly taking advantage of his desire for a son. When Anna returns home, she quickly finds out about Albert’s affair with Irene. This discovery makes Anna pack up Albert’s things and throw him out on the street, even if she has something very important to tell him – she is in fact now expecting his child. After getting rid of Albert, Anna phones Irene and makes an appointment to meet with her. In their meeting, Anna gets to know that Irene is a prostitute, and proceeds to bluntly use that fact to force Irene to leave Albert. Irene can do nothing but to drive him out. Albert now moves to stay with his parents, with whom he discusses the situation. At the end of the play, Anna turns up at the parents’ house too, announcing her pregnancy to Albert. (Tinfo/Sunklo)