Description
Versailles 1669. Not far from the Château. Molière and his actors return to the humble barn they occupy during their stays at the Palace. The moment is an important one.
Five years after the original version was performed before the Court, the troupe has just presented the King with the third version of Tartuffe. And this time, at last, after all the years of prohibition, all the vain attempts to have his work accepted, all the rewrites, all the concessions made to the devout party, Molière has finally obtained the King's agreement to be able to perform his Tartuffe in public. But a reworked Tartuffe, because the serious comedy that has now received the King's approval is a far cry from the satirical farce that was the original Tartuffe ou l'Hypocrite. However, what neither Molière nor any member of the troupe suspects is that today, the first Tartuffe, in which Molière castigated the false devotees, in which he used farce and laughter ‘to correct the vices of men’ and which so pleased the King, is going to come to life again in an impromptu performance. The Tartuffe that is to be reborn and performed in this inn is still banned. So what will happen during this performance? Will it be able to go all the way? Which of the actors will have the courage to transgress the censorship? Who will be the others? What choices will the audience have to make? And how far will everyone be prepared to go to defend freedom of expression?
