Leander and his servant Crispin arrive in a large city, having just succeeding in evading the police, who were chasing them for debts and criminal activity. The cunning Crispin, an escapee from penal servitude, is the main protagonist and it is he who ensures that both he and his boss have their fingers in a number of pies, both legal and illegal. His system is simple: with great cunning and ingenuity, and with no scruples whatsoever, he dangles the hope of great riches before his victims.
 From a poet to a politician, and from a soldier to a stockbroker, they all take the bait. By the time the truth is revealed and their hopes are dashed, the devious Crispin and his master have so tied them up in bonds of vested interest that no one can afford to reveal the fraudsters’ plot for fear of losing everything they own.  
The Spanish writer and 1922 Nobel Laureate Jacinto Benavente (1866-1954) wrote 172 plays, most notably, The bonds of interest.
The comedy was first performed at Teatro Lara in Madrid in 1907. Benavente describes it as a “play of puppets” who express human relations and situations, and even universal truths. The bonds of interest restores the characters of Commedia dell’arte to the Spanish stage after a long absence, renewing interest in the genre.
It was performed for the first time in Greece in 1939, on the Main Stage of the National Theatre, premiering on 29 November. It was directed by Takis Mouzenidis in a translation by Pantelis Prevelakis. The main roles were taken by Eleni Papadaki (Doña Sirena), Vasso Manolidou (Silvia), Nikos Dendramis (Leander) and Giorgos Glinos (Crispin).