MEDIATHEK

"Misanthrope is usually reckoned together with Tartuffe and The Miser to be Molière's masterpiece. At the same time it is a work which has aroused the most controversial interpretations from the time of its origin. There is no unambiguous answer to the question of who is this misanthrope, Alceste, the main protagonist and it is this that has given rise to the wealth of different interpretations. Against the background of all schemes the play presents a very contmporary theme: should a man adapt himself a pragmatic politicking, e. g. make profit, or express his protest at a distance - which means in a way of removing himself to a seclusion? None of these attitudes seems a decently dignified solution. Though the relation to the woman and the theme of love are pervasive here, Misanthrope is above all a comedy about people in a vulgar world; empty talk and gossip are always a form of poverty and the characters are multiplied visions of human nature which could be offered in a world we live in. The dark substance, declassified by Molière throughout the drama, urges to create a climate close to our times. We would wish the level of irreality provoked by this shift could strenghten the beauty of style and justify and legitimise fidelity to Molière. If Alceste wears a tie and if vehicles are drawn by horsepower fed on petrol, all this does not prevent the Misanthrope from continuing to develop his story in which human beings live together at the price of illusions about themselves and their values. The laughter emerges suddenly in those moments when it is not usually heard and it leaves us with a bitter smack of unattainable morals and wisdom."
(by Roman Císař)

Review:
"Zuzana Fialová covers up her Celimena's double-dealing and evasiveness with savage combativeness. From the look of her eyes we can read a determination not to put up with everything and not to let herself be driven into a corner. She faces Alceste's reproaches with physical adherence and passionate attacks, disarming her lover and paralysing his anger. In the company of her friends she reigns as a sovereign outplaying them with her smartness and wit. She is a Celimena of today, largely liberated. She does not need to proceed tactically at all costs in the struggle to keep her own free will.
(by Zdeněk Hořinek, Divadelní noviny)

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Cf. 11th International Festival Theatre Pilsen Booklet (Printed Edition)