Tartuffe at The Estates Theatre

A timeless play about a hypocrite and manipulator who under the pretext of striving for absolute purity of soul and character engages in scheming, violence and fraud. Tartuffe is a story about the sanctimonious hankering for power. The fate of the play, which despite its weightiness and depth of cognition is still after all a comedy, was complex and marked the direction the rest of the author’s life would take. The Tartuffe theme is archetypal. The characters in this furious comedy, above all that of the titular hero himself, can be found in all centuries and all over the world. Molière’s poignant play has always met with a response and been able to intrigue and rouse the audience from lethargy. It will return to the Estates Theatre after many years and round off a cross-section of Molière’s drama. From Don Juan through Monsieur de Pourceaugnac to Tartuffe, the most buoyant and pungent comedy. The production will be directed by Gábor Tompa, whose work is familiar to us from the recent performances of Ionecso’s Rhinoceros at the New Stage. He has created at least as many productions abroad as at home, with the highest number of those made in France. As a connoisseur of Francophone culture, Tompa is an ideal interpreter of Tartuffe. At the same time, he and us are connected by similar historical experience. Tompa’s take on Tartuffe will undoubtedly make for a remarkable production.