Intrigue and comedy in the king's court
Classical French playwrights brought to life in Moliere
PREVIEW
MOLIERE
Alberta Theatre Projects
playRites 2002
Runs until March 3
Martha Cohen Theatre (CPA)
Moliere wrote comedies. Racine wrote tragedies. Moliere was an actor loved by the public. Racine was a poet acclaimed by the intellects of the day. Together they are considered the greatest figures of French theatre. According to Sabina Berman’s new play, Moliere, they were friends and rivals whose lives were even more intriguing than their plays.
Moliere is one of the largest productions ever mounted at Alberta Theatre Projects’ playRites festival. Set in the glittering world of 17th century France, the play has a cast of 15 and promises to fill the Martha Cohen Theatre with spectacle. It offers an exciting view of the relationship between Moliere and Racine, who struggle to please their public and their king against a backdrop of backstage intrigue, political machinations and farcical comedy.
Director Keith Turnbull is excited about staging the first Canadian production of Moliere because of the scale of the show and its historical setting. It has been a challenge to recreate the theatre of 17th century France, complete with elaborate costumes and wigs, and while the play presents many important events in the lives of these two men, it is not a simple biography or historical pageant. Berman’s vision of this world is much more than that.
The script is the result of considerable research and study, and those familiar with the work of Moliere and Racine will pick up on the many historical details about the events and people in the characters' lives. However, none of this is necessary to enjoy Moliere.
"It’s very clever in that way," says Turnbull. "There is an added pleasure if you get the references, but it’s like Shakespeare in Love. Yes, it’s helpful if you know that Shakespeare was a writer. If you don’t know that going in, you’ll still enjoy yourself. For example, if you are very knowledgeable about the period you’ll recognize that one of the secondary characters, Baron, is one of the great actors of the French theatre but we see him here as a young puppy. Berman slips in her information in a very painless way."
The action of Moliere is nearly cinematic, spanning many years and moving through many locales in and around the theatre as well as in the Royal Court. Accommodating this onstage has been a particular challenge, but Turnbull has found a style for the production to keep the action moving.
"Moliere is more of a Shakespearean or what we would call a Stratfordian production," says Turnbull. "If you need a chair, get a chair. But you actually don’t need wallpaper. It’s pretty spare. There are a lot of scenes, and I really didn’t want to slow it down with big elaborate scene changes."
In their day, Moliere and Racine wrote different kinds of plays – they also represented a different approach to the arts. Moliere was an actor in the most successful company in Paris at a time when actors were not considered respectable; Racine was a poet and a favourite of French academics. Moliere’s comedies poked fun at the foibles of society; Racine’s tragedies railed against society's failings. Conflict between the two seems only natural.
"It’s two great artists in conflict," says Turnbull. "They are completely opposite and remarkably similar. They both have a huge passion for their art and for life. And while they end up being arch-enemies, they also become the closest of friends."
Their plays, their private lives and even how they are looked upon by the Royal Court is different.
"Moliere is rooting his art in his life," Turnbull explains. "Racine roots his life in the universe of the mighty and powerful and rich. He ends up, in his own words, as the lapdog of the mighty and powerful. Moliere ends up being his own person. So there is a little cautionary tale there about what price success." |
