The scheming Béline (Emily Swallow) and De Bonnefoi (Manoel Felciano, right) appease Argan (Mark Linn-Baker) in Red Bull Theater's production of The Imaginary Invalid.
The Imaginary Invalid is of interest to theater historians not just because it is Molière’s last play and not just because Molière himself performed the lead role of Monsieur Argan. It is also due to the fact that, while Argan is a hypochondriac, Molière suffered from dire, real-life ailments that caused him to collapse on stage during just his fourth performance; he died soon afterward. Such dark irony does not haunt his lighthearted comedy, though, and so it has floated, for more than 350 years, from one fizzy reinterpretation to the next. The latest, adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher and produced by Red Bull Theater, is a loosey-goosey affair. The vibe is French farce à la The Marx Brothers. The company is a puff pastry stuffed with ham. And the story is King Lear, but with enema jokes.
The doltish Thomas (Russell Daniels) attempts to woo Angélique (Emilie Kouatchou).
Indeed, one cannot overstate the amount of enema humor packed into this tight, 80-minute romp. It manifests itself in the form of comic props, including a worrisome spray nozzle and an oversized black rubber glove. There are mano a mano physical gags that would have been best left to the imagination and more posterior pontification than you can shake a hose at (“The cheeks that speak. The slabs of flab. The cushion where you’re pushin’.”). The twisting plot serves as a vehicle for the slamming of doors, the mistaking of identities, the mockery of doctors and lawyers, and the revelation of true love, both romantic and familial.
Argan, here played by the totally healthy and spry Mark Linn-Baker, is convinced he is succumbing to a host of ailments, including the dreaded “numb buttocks,” which can only be treated by a trio of quack doctors, Purgon, Diaforius and Fleurant. They prescribe, among other abominations, frequent intestinal “evacuations” and a “strict regimen of birdseed and mist.” All three physicians are portrayed, in a flurry of accents and costume changes, by the very funny Arnie Burton. In one harrowing scene, he plays all three docs at once while the rest of the cast tries—though not very hard—to keep from breaking character.
Toinette (Sarah Stiles) talks sense to Argan (Linn-Baker). Photographs by Carol Rosegg.
With his medical bills piling up, Argan plots to marry off his daughter from his first marriage, Angélique (a sparkling Emilie Kouatchou), to Thomas (Russell Daniels, in full absurd mode), the son of Dr. Diafoirus. Thomas is an aspiring doctor himself but also a rotund dolt with zero social skills and a firm dislike of sick people. Nonetheless, Argan concludes that having a couple doctors in the family is the best cure for both his physical and fiscal woes. Little does he know that Angélique is in a secret tryst with the handsome, if dimwitted, Cléant (John Yi).
Meanwhile, Argan’s money-grubbing second wife, Béline (Emily Swallow), is carrying on with her lawyer/lover, De Bonnefoi (Manoel Felciano), when not busily tearing the house apart, in search of the cash Argan has told her he has misplaced somewhere within its walls.
If Argan is the crazy king of his crumbling castle, then his maid, Toinette (Sarah Stiles), is his fool, his foil and ultimately his savior. As the only one who understands the root cause of his troubles as well as the sole friend clever enough to know which of the women in Argan’s life truly love him, she spars with her master, trading barbs, insults and insights until he finally wills his way back to wellness. Stiles is perfectly cast in the role, which highlights her ability to charm through well-measured doses of sardonic wit.
In a like father, like son moment, Dr. Diaforius (Arnie Burton, left) shows Thomas (Daniels) how to behave.
As befitting a work that was originally written as a comédie-ballet, there are several musical interludes that interrupt the action with injections of utter silliness. Kouatchou, who was the first black actor to play Christine in Phantom of the Opera on Broadway, joins Yi in a parody of “I Dreamed A Dream” from Les Misérables. The company reworks Groucho Marx’s theme song from Animal Crackers, “Hooray for Captain Spaulding,” into a rollicking finale, while an extended mid-show chase sequence is a strange interlude falling somewhere between dream ballet and the Keystone Kops.
Red Bull founder Jesse Berger directs his veteran cast with a light hand, as they do their best to keep straight faces while tossing out asides to the audience that include contemporary references to concepts like working from home. And scenic designer Beowulf Boritt offers a striking period set, complete with footlights and a contraption that puts Sweeney Todd’s barber chair to shame: a daybed that folds, retracts, and spins, assuring Argan’s doctors easy access to any orifice that might need attending.
The Red Bull Theater production of The Imaginary Invalid runs through June 29 at New World Stages (340 W. 50th St.). Evening performances are at 7 p.m. Monday and Wednesday through Saturday; matinees are at 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. For tickets and information, visit redbulltheater.com.
Playwright: Molière, adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher
Direction: Jesse Berger
Sets: Beowulf Boritt
Costumes: Tilly Grimes
Lighting: Mextly Couzin
Sound: Nina Field & Greg Pliska
