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Initially banned in France by King Louis, Moli�re's celebrated social satire Tartuffe exposes false piety and hypocrisy in the Catholic Church. When a pious fraud worms his way into a wealthy family and manipulates the patriarch into giving up his fortune, it's up to his family to expose the truth before they end up in the poorhouse! An L.A. Theatre Works full-cast performance starring:Brian Bedford as TartuffeJB Blanc as M. Loyal and OfficerDaniel Blinkoff as DamisGia Carides as DorineJane Carr as Mme. PernelleJohn de Lancie as CleanteMartin Jarvis as OrgonAlex Kingston as ElmireMatthew Rhys as ValereSarah Zimmerman as MarianeTranslated by Richard Wilbur. Directed by Dakin Matthews. Recorded at The Invisible Studios, West Hollywood in June, 2010.… (more)
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Just one quote, on old age:
“As long as ‘twas in her power to make conquests, she did not balk any of her advantages; but when she found the luster of her
- It is the most frequently produced play in the French language and considered to be Moliere’s best.
- The play was written entirely in rhymed iambic pentameter (or according to
- The play was so “famous” (or as it turns out - “infamous”) that King Louis XIV refused a private performance request from Queen Christina of Sweden and no public performances were allowed for 5 years, i.e. it opened widely in 1669.
The third bit caught my attention as I pondered (before reading the play) what was so different about this play that the King kept it from the public for 5 years.
“Tartuffe” is the main character and subject of the play where he is a vagrant and a pious fraud, who fooled and influenced the wealthy Orgon and his mother. Much to the chagrin of his other family members, Orgon fell deeply under the spell of Tartuffe, believing all his martyr-like yet self-promoting speeches, so much so that he disowned his son, broke a promise of marriage for his daughter to a loyal young man, and instead offered her to Tartuffe. Believing all of Tartuffe’s preaches and trusting him, Orgon renounced his wealth and contractually signed his possessions to Tartuffe, including a briefcase with confidential and damning information, which is then used against Orgon upon the reveal of the betrayal. The happy ending came when the enlightened King intervened, nullifying the contract, pardoning Orgon, and arresting Tartuffe for fraud.
Moliere was quite explicit with his condemnation of the church. “Who could imagine that devout façade could hide such double-dealing wickedness?... he’s the last religious man I’ll trust; in future I’ll recoil from them in horror.” 1664 is far too early and risky for the arts to openly mock the church. On the other hand, the King was presented as the all-seeing wise and mighty hero who swooped in to save Orgon. In short, it is a (perhaps unintended) bold piece of literature that pitted the King against the Church. Though my book’s introduction didn’t include this, I found articles online that validated my hunch. The French Roman Catholic Church was displeased with the play; the Archbishop of Paris issued an edict banning it with the threat of excommunication. Meanwhile, King Louis XIV got his jollies from the play and protected Moliere from excommunication.
To be honest, with my modern mind, the plot sounded so preposterous that it is laughable. Though putting on a lens of time, I believe that is the intended appeal of this play – mocking the gullibility of the wealthy and the falsehood of piety. Surely, such was a provocative rarity then. Without being able to read it in French, the charm of the alexandrines rhymes is absent. However, there are indentations that mark the pace of lines; these remain to be affective even in English.
Favorite Character: Dorine, the maidservant who was vocal and spoke the truth and obviousness and never held her tongue regardless who she is addressing. You go girl!
3.5 stars for the play
+0.5 star considering the original publication yea
Lots of good nuggets of prose and quotable dialogue here. It's pretty much as awesome as awesome can get.
Tartuffe is the second play by Moliere I've read out of five; this one, about over-religiosity and hypocrisy is my favorite. The title character Tartuffe is a conman who prays on the religious sensibility and man-crush of his patron Orgon. The scene in particular where Orgon responds to reports of his wife's illness by repeatedly asking, "But what about Tartuffe" nearly had me laughing out loud. The character of the pert and shrewd lady's maid Dorine is particularly delightful.
Molière has a keen eye for human nature & although Orgon & Tartuffe are exaggerated for comic effect, they still display characteristics which I can recognize in people today. I will certainly be reading more of his plays!