The Recruiting Officer

Farquhar's play is set in Shrewsbury where he was sent recruiting himself in 1704, and much of it and many of the characters are based on his experiences there.  It is bawdy, fresh, and the humour quite broad, in the nicest sort of way, for the characters are so human and their failings and desires so recognisable.  

It is a very busy plot, starting with the arrival of the Recruiting party, and the effect it has on the locals - both male and female - for the Recruiting Officer gets his men and his women by fair means or foul, and leaves behind, in the making, new recruits for the next generation.