Molière’s 350-year-old “The Misanthrope” Gets a Modern Twist
--Comedy Set in Trendy Bar where Characters Text, Use Social Media--
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Gwen O’Brien
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Saint Mary’s College
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October 27, 2014 (Notre Dame, Ind.)—The Saint Mary’s College Department of Communication Studies, Dance, and Theatre is proud to present a modern adaptation of Molière’s “The Misanthrope” (#SMCmisanthrope) at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday-Friday, November 12-14 and at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, November 16 in Little Theatre. (There is not a Saturday performance because of a University of Notre Dame football home game.) Click for a campus map.
The French comedy, written in 1666, is about love, friendships, gossip, and rumors — human themes that transcend time and place. While the names of the characters and the script remain as Molière penned them, the setting has been changed from a king’s court to a modern-day nightclub called The Misanthrope (pronounced “miss-in-thrope”). In another modern twist, characters use texts and social media to deliver some lines and communicate their thoughts. One character during the play, for instance, changes his relationship status on Facebook from “in a relationship” to “it’s complicated.”
“In the play, Molière made fun of the way people communicated at the court during the reign of King Louis XIV; how they complimented each other to their faces and sniped about each other behind their backs. It’s not unlike how people use social media now,” said associate professor of theatre Mark Abram-Copenhaver, who is directing the play.
Theatre faculty and students had fun adjusting Molière’s characters, fictional figures in the king’s court, to character types we’re familiar with in today’s society.
“Alceste, a French aristocrat who takes everything to the extreme, is now a hyper-emo and his love, the elusive and flirtatious Célimène, is cast as a party girl. Arsinoé, a bitter and unpleasant woman in the original play, is now a prude wearing a button-down shirt and a long skirt,” explained professional specialist/costume designer Melissa Bialko.
Abram-Copenhaver adds, “The thing that’s so wonderful about Molière and watching a play by him is the characters are very funny, even today. So when you laugh at how shallow Célimène is or you laugh at Alceste’s extremeness, 350 years go away and we are sitting in the same seat that people have sat in for 350 years laughing at these characters. The genius of Molière is he captured something that was human and it doesn’t matter the time. We have these same types of people in all times.”
For the set, professional specialist/scenographer Michaela Duffy and Bialko took a road trip to Chicago to an Ikea furniture store. “The set is made up largely of furniture purchased at Ikea to give the feel of a trendy, urban nightclub,” Duffy explained.
Nia Parillo ’15 and Claire Stewart ’15, who took a communication studies course on social media over the summer with associate professor Colleen Fitzpatrick, were enlisted to weave social media use into the 350-year-old script. They’re considering ways that the audience might receive texts, selfies, and social media updates from characters on stage. And that’s not the play’s only interactive opportunity. At intermission, audience members are encouraged to go on stage and belly up to the bar for a non-alcoholic beverage.
“This is not your grandmother’s Molière,” Abram-Copenhaver joked. “Or your great-great-great-great-great-grandmother’s Molière,” Bialko quiped.
To chat about it on social media, please include the hashtag #SMCmisanthrope.
About Saint Mary’s College: Saint Mary’s College, Notre Dame, Ind., is a four-year, Catholic, residential, women’s liberal arts college offering five bachelor’s degrees and more than 30 major areas of study, such as business, nursing, art, chemistry, and social work. The College’s single-gender environment has been proven, in study after study, to foster confidence, ethical leadership, and strong academic success. Saint Mary’s College ranks among the top 100 Best National Liberal Arts Colleges for 2015 published by U.S. News & World Report. Founded in 1844 by the Sisters of the Holy Cross, Saint Mary’s College’s mission is to educate women and prepare them for postgraduate success whether it’s a first job, graduate school, or postgraduate service.