The Comédie-Française has decided to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the birth of its founder, Molière, by producing a modern version of "Tartuffe". The choice of Belgian director Ivo Van Hove to orchestrate this major event speaks volumes about his excellence and his reputation in the profession.
© Svenson-studio Shutterstock
The man who would become a prominent figure on the contemporary scene was born on 28 October 1958 in Heist-op-den-Berg, a municipality in the province of Antwerp.
To mark the anniversary of the famous playwright, the Belgian master has produced a shocking staging of the play that lambasts religious hypocrites. Both erotic and violent, this "Tartuffe, or the Hypocrite" is full of tension and leaves the audience stunned yet delighted. The actors are in contemporary dress and act out a family plot, in full crisis mode, to drive from their house the religious hypocrite and beggar, who manipulates Orgon, the master of the house, in order to seduce his wife Elmire and embezzle his fortune.
The director allows us to discover the original version, which was banned after its first performance in 1664. Ivo Van Hove tackles the subject by modernising it to create a scandalous plot.
