Tartuffe
Presented by Actors Bridge
Through May 28
St. Augustine’s Chapel on the Vanderbilt campus
Call 341-0300 for information
This past fall, Actors Bridge presented a first-rate production of Lee Blessing’s Independence, a very interesting, emotion-filled modern family drama. I remember thinking at the time that the troupe’s performance space—the very quaint St. Augustine’s Chapel on the Vanderbilt campus—was both suitably intimate and surprisingly useful, especially for a company intent on charting new theatrical territory.
But if women can reserve the right to change their minds, so can theater critics. After attending an opening-weekend performance of Tartuffe, I do know this: Whatever plays well on the small St. Augustine’s stage, it ain’t necessarily 17th-century French farce. It’s unfortunate, too, because if the Actors Bridge cast had more room to move about, then everything good about this presentation of Molière’s classic take on hypocrisy would have been that much better. As it is, this is a fair-to-middling production whose promise is stifled by both physical and human elements.
Tartuffe is merely one of Molière’s very excellent comedies, which number among them such stage chestnuts as The Imaginary Invalid, The School for Wives, The Misanthrope, and The Miser. The French master’s plays hold up well over time, as long as attempts to mount them don’t descend to the level of second-rate sitcom. And good social satire should always find a willing audience. Molière himself also owes a posthumous debt of gratitude to Richard Wilbur, whose modern-day English translations have kept the playwright’s scripts relatively fresh and accessibly poetic.
Such is the case here. In deliciously rhyming couplets, Wilbur’s adaptation tells the familiar tale of the pious rogue Tartuffe, who insinuates himself into the life of middle-class, middle-aged merchant Orgon. It’s obvious to everyone around Orgon—his wife, his children, his servants—that Tartuffe is a rascal, an unabashed hypocrite who will stop at nothing to place himself in Orgon’s good graces, and his motives are even more suspect than his character. Orgon appears happily duped, to the point where he disinherits his son and attempts to destroy his daughter’s future marital happiness. He even signs over his estate to Tartuffe, and it appears to be too little too late when his wife, Elmire, exposes Tartuffe as an amoral charlatan who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. A tidy bit of deus ex machina in the form of a wary legal official helps to set Orgon’s affairs aright in the end, and Tartuffe gets his just societal desserts.
It’s a definite frustration to watch this production. One moment, the players are both thoroughly engaged and thoroughly engaging; moments later, they seem insecure. There’s also simply too much standing around—but of course there’s nowhere to move on the St. Augustine’s stage. Putting aside the strictly logistical considerations of the venue, then, one must look to director Olivier Leroux for some answers.
Leroux has his hands full playing the title role, though certainly directing and starring in a play is not automatically a recipe for disaster. But more often than not, it presents a situation where the forest can’t be seen for the trees. Here there are problems of pacing (it’s uneven throughout); blocking (more attention could have been paid—though it’s fascinating that Leroux the director manages to upstage Leroux the actor in one scene); and casting (some players simply aren’t up to the task, though not for lack of effort).
Leroux does make for an appropriately unctuous Tartuffe. Still, he might have been funnier if not so unlikable. In any case, he offers a confident and animated performance, and he at least does a capable job of directing himself.
By and large, there is some wonderful acting to be savored. Elizabeth Bell as Elmire is a delight. Her winsome, expressive face and comic timing are the saving grace of the critical Act 2 opening scene. Not far behind her is Rachel Agee as the maid Dorine, who shines in a self-conscious but nevertheless notably energetic performance. Christopher Browne is strong throughout in the relatively thankless role of Elmire’s brother, Cleante, while Tomi Funderburk makes the most of her emotional moments as Orgon’s put-upon daughter, Mariane. And, in a rather campy but still effective drag turn, Marshall Stern suits up as Madame Parnelle, Orgon’s mother. Other supporting players who contribute to the production’s limited success are Shane Caudill, Ken Jackson, and Robert Marigza.
Bill Feehely renders a fairly intelligent reading as Orgon, but there’s a tentativeness in his demeanor throughout; he just doesn’t seem too comfortable in the role. In a similar vein, but more drastically negative, is the performance of Brandon Hirsch as Orgon’s son, Damis. He is simply out of his league.
There’s nothing more frustrating than an evening of theatrical missed opportunities. Possibly, it might have been avoided here if Leroux had chosen but one poison instead of two. One thing’s for sure: The cheesy, hand-painted drapery used as a backdrop for the entire evening is an example of scene-design suicide (though come to think of it, Leroux is responsible for that as well).
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