MOLIÈRE

For 13 years, Molière performed with his touring company on the marketplaces of the Parisian countryside. The group had been founded in 1643 under the name of L’Illustre Théâtre and impressed not only farmers and the bourgeoisie, but also the court of Ludwig XIV. Inspired by the Italian model of the Commedia dell´arte, in which coarse character types unite with music, dance, singing, pantomime and the notorious clumsiness of the servant pair, Molière perfectionated the art of transformation with split-second role and situation changes. It was his grandfather, who introduced Molière to the world of theatre as a child, taking him to the funfair. This first impression of the life as a bateleur should solidify later with the observation of the rural carnival. Ariane Mnouchkine has captured the passion of the French playwright, who was often not only author but also actor and director as well, in a four-hour long film in 1978. His life´s work consists of over 30 theater pieces in which in addition to themes such as excessive jealousy, medical satire, irascibility and criticism of religion, delusion and hypocrisy are recurring motifs.
After A GREEN BOY and FROM THE HEROIC LIFE OF THE BOURGEOIS, Frank Castorf takes on this convolute of world literature and Molière's dazzling personality in his third work at Schauspiel Köln.