Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill turned to John Gay's 18th century The Beggar's Opera to fashion this savage, biting commentary on bourgeois capitalism and modern morality. Set in Victorian London as seen through the lens of 1920's Berlin, a bitter tale is told of the predatory outlaw known as Mack the Knife. Through a series of events, Mack is sent to prison, freed, and eventually sentenced to death. Saved only by a final hour reprieve from Queen Victoria, the finale is laced with ferocious irony.