The Misanthrope

Angry playwright Alceste detests the superficial world of show business and has an uncomfortable habit of speaking his mind even when it is against his own best interests. The trouble is he has fallen passionately in love with a twenty year old Hollywood starlet who, while claiming to reciprocate his feelings, continues to flirt outrageously with a whole series of influential media personalities in order to further her career. Will love triumph over cynicism and the individual over the pack or are they set on a cruel collision course? Martin Crimp whisks Moliere’s 17th-century masterpiece from the court of Louis XIV straight into the heart of the contemporary London media scene to explore the conflict between integrity and success. Losing none of the biting flavour of the original, Crimp’s version is fast, witty and complete with rhyming couplets.