Review: TARTUFFE (REMIXED), Marylebone Theatre
Photo credit: Mark Senior
Tartuffe, Moliere’s classic comedy written in 1664, is a brilliant farce about a con man disguised as a catholic priest in France and the way he inveigles his way into the family to rob them of their dignity and wealth. It was an excellent vehicle for Lee Mack to make his West End stage debut in the title role in 2017 and the character lends itself to an over-the-top, animated cartoonish troublemaker who we can all see is false but the others on stage are slow to recognise.
Darren Reynolds, as adapter and director for the Intermission Ensemble, has brilliantly reimagined the story for a diverse modern audience by setting it today in the UK as two families with Jamaican and Nigerian heritage meet ahead of the wedding of Sinclair (Ivandro Da Cruz Leite) and Adanna (Sara Mokonen) and the bride’s father, Oga (Usifu Jalloh), invites Pastor Blake, a ”prophet of our time”, to bless the couple. Oga and his mother-in-law (played by Suzette Llewellyn) fall for the Pastor’s faux religious fervour and hand over their wealth to the con man. Elmire, Oga’s second wife (Nakeba Buchanan), is left to risk all to expose the fake. Many of the cast are graduates of the Intermission Youth Scheme, which seeks to give people a life changing opportunity to experience theatre making and develop a passion for performance. Morenike Onajobi makes her West End debut as family friend Kemi, who is first to see through the con and fights to support her friend when the father turns against her. There is joy on the faces of all the cast as they deliver this exciting new interpretation.
It’s exciting on so many levels. The remix puts Jamaican and Nigerian culture and traditions on stage, providing insight into the challenges of cultures merging, clashing and attracting the diverse audience that theatre needs to appeal to for its future success. It weaves the themes of today’s society into the plot with ease and great skill. We see changing attitudes of generations to religion, sex and cultural heritage. We can feel the sense of grief and love that affects us all. We recognise the challenge of respecting and following parental guidance when it is against our natural instinct. And in an age when scammers seem to constantly try to intrude in our lives, we recognise the dangers of trusting a stranger because he represents a respected authority.
The writing honours the original in plot development and more importantly in verse, with much delivered in rhyming couplets adding to the fun. The cast feel authentic in their portrayals and accents (even if occasionally we lose the words or meaning of the Jamaican patois). They bring an energy to the stage that is infectious and look amazing in exquisite costumes by Ultz, Maybelle Laye and Shola Ajayi that reflect the family’s cultural heritage in colours and material. The scene changes are charmingly choreographed with small vignettes of business between the characters to cover the movement of furniture. The wedding breakfast scene, in which Sinclair is accidently drugged as he offers Grace before the meal, is absolute comic delight.
Of course, the show depends on us recognising instantly the duplicity of Tartuffe and from Mark Ryalance’s first hilarious entrance, we know he is a wrong-un. Rylance is a long-time supporter of Intermission and suggested that Raymond adapted Moliere, and he revels in the mischief making. As Pastor Blake, with large protruding upper teeth that give him a slight lisp, his face contorted and his eyes darting around the audience, it is a masterclass in physical comedy and facial reactions. We are the elders at the wedding, and he brilliantly draws us in, breaking the fourth wall with a look or pointed finger. Yes, it is over the top but that is part of the fun, just as past generations enjoyed a Brian Rix Whitehall Farce or TV audiences laughed at Dick Emery’s famous vicar creation. It is a masterclass in comedic performance and characterisation as he, at first, subtly tries to bend everything to his will but becomes bolder as he succeeds. Tartuffe is a shameless fraud, but Rylance makes him a loveable rogue who just goes too far. His comical use of pseudo religious nonsense reflects a decline in religion’s importance to a young generation while the older generation remain god fearing.
Marylebone Theatre is fortunate to attract this production to its theatre, which has only been open since 2022. But such is the appeal of Mark Rylance in anything, it must surely transfer into a larger West End theatre in 2027 and that would be a very big plus to widen the appeal of theatre to a more diverse audience while promoting and celebrating the work of the Intermission Youth and Ensemble.
**** Four stars
Reviewed by: Nick Wayne
Tartuffe (Remixed) plays at London’s Marylebone Theatre until 24 Oct, with further info here.
