Frank J. Morlock

Peter and Alexis: a Play in Four Acts Frank J. Morlock

Based on the novel by Russian writer Dmitry Merezhkovsky (1867-1941), Morlock's dramatic adaptation tells the tragic story of Russian Tsar Peter the Great's conflict with his only surviving son and heir, Tsarevitch Alexis. Peter, an autocrat who was determined to modernize Russia at all costs, dealt brutally with any opposition--but found his most stubborn and potent resistance in his own home in the person of Alexis. This was a battle of wills that could end in only one way, given the nature of the Tsar's personality and the enormous power that he wielded. The ultimate tragedy is that Peter loved his son, and Alexis his father--but neither could find a way in which to reconcile their political differences. Shades of the twenty-first century! A riveting psychodrama.