It is rare that a classic such as Molière’s Tartuffe is given an audience at a school such as RPI, but the Arts Department’s Theatre Performance course, taught by Clinical Associate Professor Paulina Shur, is doing just that. The Poly was invited to preview the show at a rehearsal on Thursday. Overall, the play was well-performed, although it lacked a certain energy that would really do justice to the satirical genius of Molière.
The story is that of a prominent and wealthy citizen, Orgon (Duane Granston), whose daughter Mariane (Laurel Pietrykowski) is engaged to a man named Valere (Jeffrey Moon). Orgon takes in a very pious beggar named Tartuffe (Elijah Pearson), who so charms Orgon that he is given Mariane’s hand in marriage and the deeds to all of Orgon’s possessions. Tartuffe, it is revealed, is a hypocrite of the highest order, only affecting a pious nature to gain Orgon’s wealth.
Molière aimed this play at society—it is a satire of the rampant hypocrisy he saw in 17th century France. The mark of a truly good satire is that, without letting on that it is a satire, it becomes so outrageous that it cannot be anything else. Unfortunately, while the play itself is quite outrageous, the students’ performance of it failed to bring that out. The acting talent itself was not lacking, but the outrageous elements of the play lacked outrageousness in the actors.
The best performance came from Orgon’s servant Dorine, played by Colleen Shugrue. Dorine learns of Orgon’s plan to force Mariane to marry Tartuffe, and reenergizes Mariane and her fiancée Valere into action against Orgon. Shugrue is the only performer who displayed the right attitude of performance during the show.
The only other criticism of the play, a minor one, is that the actors were a little shaky on their lines. This is entirely understandable, considering that the performers were still two rehearsals away from opening night. In addition, all of the dialogue is written in rhyming couplets, resulting in a lot of unusual sentence constructions.
The set was minimalistic, relying only on two chairs and a table throughout the entire play. The minimalism served to focus attention on the play itself, rather than a more accurate portrayal of the lavish luxury in which Orgon and his family lived. Tartuffe, ultimately, is about human nature, not 17th century French aristocracy.
Tartuffe is scheduled for two performances, April 22 and April 26, both at 6 pm in Mother’s Wine Emporium. It is worth attending, if only for exposure to such a literary classic.
