‘Triumph’ Rewards The Attentive
“The Triumph of Love” Friday, Oct. 25, at Interplayers
French playwrights from the 1700s may not be household names compared to such dramatic artistes as Schwarzenegger and Willis, but here’s proof that when it comes to pure entertainment, Pierre Carlet de Chamblain de Marivaux can still keep a theater rocking with laughter.
The Interplayers’ version of Marivaux’s 1732 “The Triumph of Love” offers plenty of laughs, plus some deeper rewards for those willing to work at it.
The work involves paying close attention, especially during the first 20 minutes, which consists almost entirely of exposition. Suffice to say that the young and headstrong Princess Leonide has resolved to win the heart of Prince Agis. And the way she does this is to insinuate herself onto his estate and then declare herself madly in love with practically everybody in the place. At one point, she agrees to marry three different people, one of whom is a woman (who thinks Leonide is a man).
As situation comedies go, that’s quite a situation.
The ending is obvious to all (the title gives it away), but it remains consistently bright and funny throughout, partly because of the excellent modern translation by Stephen Wadsworth. The dialogue never sounds archaic or declamatory - it sounds like real conversation. Also, the direction by Joan Welch is bubbly and clever throughout, filled with inspired bits of comic business.
And the cast is first-rate all the way. The bulk of the play belongs to Kate Witt as Leonide, who has self-confidence and comic savvy to spare. She invests every line with sly meaning, and her expressive face never stops working. One or two times, I thought she was overdoing the grins and grimaces - she reminded me of Candace Bergen in a Sprint commercial. But on reflection this was perfectly in character, and in any case, I couldn’t take my eyes off her.
Rebecca Hankoff is delightful as the servant Corine, Jonn Jorgensen is stolidly hilarious as the gardener Dimas, Scot Charles Anderson is believable as Agis, and Linda Montalvo is painfully real as Leontine.
Two Interplayers veterans turn in some of their best performances ever: Gary Pierce is note-perfect as the jester-figure Harlequin; and David Heath creates a stern and living character as the philosopher Hermocrate.
, DataTimes MEMO: “The Triumph of Love” continues through Nov. 16 at the Interplayers Ensemble. Call 455-PLAY.