Tinamarie Ivey

The Misanthrope

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In this production the theme was excess, and entitlement, there is no escaping the characters' shallowness and obsession with society and class.  To emphasis this theme costumes and set were garish and all characters where far more interested in their outer appearance than the content of their hearts.   The actors trained in physical comedy with the use of improv games and commedia dell'arte lazzi.  Actors balanced the physical humor with the constraints of the 17th Century social reciprocals - this struggle proved to be the source of much of the humor. Also, music played a large part of creating the environment with a harpsichord directly placed on stage where it was often used by Philinte, the actor who was an accomplished pianist, as well as a violinist who underscored the entire production.