Q&A: Tartuffe

Oliver Dennis (centre) with cast of Tartuffe. Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann.

Soulpepper revisits Moliere's famous comedy Tartuffe this season in a new production directed by contemporary theatre director László Marton. The word "Tartuffe" is defined as a hypocrite, especially a person who displays excessive piety. In the play, Tartuffe (played by Diego Matamoros) feigns virtue, deceiving his host Orgon (Oliver Dennis) while attempting to seduce Orgon's wife Elmire (Raquel Duffy) and gain an inheritance.

Here, we chat with the ever amusing Dennis about his role in this hilarious classic.

Theatromania: How would you describe Laszlo Marton’s take on Moliere’s famous comedy?

OD: This is Laszlo’s first time directing Tartuffe and he’s obviously been thinking about it a lot. It’s a very fresh, updated look at the play, heavily influenced by his experiences living in an eastern European country. Secrets, paranoia, and power all get their treatment in our production. Tartuffe is obviously known as a comedy and there are a ton of laughs in it, but our production doesn’t shy away from the dark qualities that are inherent in the play. In fact, we embrace them.

Theatromania: You play Orgon, head of the house and husband of Elmire. What motivates your character?

OD: Orgon is motivated by his devotion to Tartuffe. From the moment he walks into the play, all he thinks about is the health and well being of his new man crush. Orgon is duped because his religious zeal is matched and then some by a feigning Tartuffe. Some might say that Orgon is gullible, in fact, his whole family does say that, but he is so blinded by his love for his new bestie that he ignores all the warnings. Some of my fondest memories of this show will be the descriptions and expressions of ecstasy Laszlo used when describing how much Orgon is in love with Tartuffe.

Theatromania: How did you prepare for this role?

OD: Honestly, there wasn’t much preparation for me. I did learn the lines (mostly) before rehearsals started. It’s quite a lot of work but it makes rehearsing so much more pleasant. It’s not everybody’s taste, but more and more I’m thinking that you can get to the fun part of acting, the playing, earlier in the rehearsal process so that the thoughts have more of a chance to get deeper and more a part of me. The less I play AT it, the more I can be IN it, the more fun and fulfilling for me and I hope for the audience as well.

Theatromania: What are some of the challenges in staging this particular play?

OD: There is the famous scene in which Orgon is concealed under a table while Tartuffe tries to seduce Elmire, Orgon’s wife. I kept having the urge to want to have my story apparent, you know, peaking out, making noises, etc. Laszlo gently said it would be perfectly easy to make this a vaudeville, but that is not what we are doing. Which indicates that restraint is essential with this play. Also, we have a very bright, witty, difficult adaptation by Richard Wilbur. It is written, as was the Moliere, in rhyming couplets. And the challenge there is to make the rhymes apparent without letting them take control. If it’s done correctly the audience can be delighted by the writer’s ingenuity and perhaps, at times, the actor’s skill.

Theatromania: Have you learned anything new about Moliere from working on this production?

OD: I don’t know that I learned anything new but Laszlo’s direction and our work impressed upon me that Moliere wrote for his time and all time because of his ability to tell us more about ourselves than we care to know.

Tartuffe runs until September 20 at the Young Centre for the Performing Arts. Visit soulpepper.ca for more information and to buy tickets.

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