A timeless comedy

Monsieur Jourdaine strikes with fork and spoon on his 'morning dinner'

The 17th century French playwright Jean Baptiste Poquelin de Molière (1622-1675) has remained popular over the centuries for his wonderful witty comedies that always have a twist on the social hypocrisies and pretensions. And his influence has been omnipresent in literature of all languages. His plays have been translated and adapted across the globe. Nevertheless his 17th century satires have not worn out.

In Bangladesh too several of this playwright's timeless plays have been adapted by the frontline professional theatre groups. The NSUCDC also previously staged one of Molière's plays--Bidogdho Romonikul (Les Précieuses Ridicules). This time the club has come up with another Molière title--The Would-Be Gentleman. Translated by Abdus Selim, a noted translator of foreign plays and Faculty Adviser of CDC, and directed by Dr Israfil Shaheen who teaches Dramatics at NSU, the play is the club's 14th production.

The play depicts the consequences of interest of Monsieur Jourdain, a bourgeois, in becoming a 'gentleman'. The motivation is partly to become a fashionable person in the society and partly because he wants to be worthy of a lady he has fallen in love with. A married man, Monsieur Jourdain appoints masters to learn music, dance, philosophy, language, even fencing. Opportunist people around Jourdain are also apt in manipulating him. His expressions are as funny as his peculiar ways of dressing.

A subplot centres round the love affairs between Jourdain's daughter Lucile and Cléonte, the housemaid Nicole and Covielle, and Dorante, an opportunist, and Dorimène, the woman of Jourdain's interest.

The most attractive parts of the production were the costume and the music. Although a few actors fumbled a little in the beginning of the play, almost all of them eventually came up with quite a good performance. Especially, Monwar, Rashed and Moum were superb in portraying the characters of Jourdain, Covielle and Cléonte. Elita, Porna and Arif also did well in the roles of Dorimène, Nicole and Dorante.

With excellent translation and a stylish set, the production proved that simple translation, not adaptation, can also make a play relevant to our society--to any society in fact. For, 'the strength of the play lies in its rich comic invention and its underlying themes for social striving, financial greed, and lover's ingenuity,' which can be observed in our society too, concluded the translator Abdus Selim.