When adapted to film in 1964, it was extensively rewritten in order to replace the Examining Magistrate with the inept police Inspector Clouseau, played by Peter Sellers, who had earlier originated the character in The Pink Panther.
[2] The plot concerns a free-spirited, guileless and amoral young woman, Josefa (Julie Harris in the original Broadway production), who works as a maid in the home of one of the most prominent and influential families in France.
As the play begins, she is being brought before the Examining Magistrate to determine if there is enough evidence to take her to trial where, under the French legal system she will be considered guilty unless proven innocent.
The rest of the play involves Paul unraveling the mystery while ruffling the feathers of his superiors, incurring the wrath of his wife, and dealing with Josefa's obstinate attempts to protect her other lover (besides Miguel).
A running gag is that Josefa seldom wears underpants and tends to trip over things, exposing her bare derrière; she relates that this is how her affairs with both men began.