A funny
thing happened on the way (home) from the theater… Actually lots of funny things happened in the theater too but it wasn’t until a short while later did I get the incredible coincidence that serendipitously
befell us in our theatrical double header yesterday. Since our schlep into
the city is significant we have taken to doubling up lately (great day for a ball game, let’s play two). It helps of course if two of the tickets are generously gifted, the others are available at steep
discount through the Theater Development Fund (TDF) and the two Off Broadway theaters are within a few blocks of each other.
Adding
to the serendipity was the fact that the overriding themes of both were similar, i.e., man’s hypocrisy and both used
the same vehicle, i.e., farce, to deliver the message. They could have been bundled
together and headlined the NY Festival of Farce Through the Ages. In the first
of the day-night double header (the kind where the fans pay separately for each game), Moliere’s classic Tartuffe was staged at the Pearl Theater, a cozy subterranean space on St Marks Place. The evening performance was Why Torture is Wrong and People Who
Love Them (still working on the significance of that title) at The Public Theater.
Tartuffe is the tale of a vagabond (guilefully played by Bradford Cover)
masquerading as a religious zealot in order to ingratiate himself with a
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wealthy
family. His hypocrisy is immediately transparent to the audience and to all of
the characters except Orgon, the head of the household (played by TJ Edwards) and his equally naive and gullible mother (Carol
Schultz) who feel sorry for Tartuffe and take him in. Tartuffe with a holier
than thou slight of hand manages to cleverly and effortlessly twist black into white and easily gets his sponsor to transfer
his fortune and pledge his daughter (Carrie McCrossen) in marriage, all the while lusting after Orgon’s wife (Ratchel
Botchan). Moliere speaks through all of his characters but none as clearly and
forcefully as the maid Dorine (portrayed with great gusto, emphasis on great by
Robin Leslie Brown). Moliere’s sharp commentary on religious hypocrisy,
written in 1664, was originally banned by the French King Louis XIV under pressure from the Archbishop of Paris who issued
an edict threatening excommunication for anyone who watched, performed in, or read the play.
The aforementioned actors plus Sean McNall (the son) and Dominic Cuskern (the uncle) all deserve great marks for absorbing
their characters and adding depth to what could easily be played just for laughs. Pearl’s
talented repertory cast are like your favorite shirt that’s been worn countless times but still has that great comforting
and familiar quality that keeps you coming back to it at the top of the pile.
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