The cast of ‘The Imaginary Invalid’ brings to life the Moilere classic to LRSC. Photo by Andrew Benjamin.
“The Imaginary Invalid” is a play about a hypochondriac. The main character, Argon, is such a hypochondriac, that he decides to marry his daughter off to a doctor so he can get free medical care. But his daughter falls in love with someone else much to his chagrin. Thus is the plot of Moliere’s farcical comedy.
Directed by April Hubbard, she is bringing this classic French play to LRSC stage.
“It’s my favorite Moliere besides Tartuffe,” Hubbard said. “I think it’s just hilarious. I’ve always wanted to direct it.”
The play was written over 350 years ago, but that doesn’t mean it’s lost any of its charm. Written at a time when hospitals weren’t there to help patients, but where patients went to die, bloodletting was a common form of medical treatment, and Louis XIV was obsessed with enemas, the play pokes fun at both the doctors and patients. “Moliere was suspicious of doctors,” Hubbard said. “He’s very wary of the medical practices of the day.”
The characters are all played by students at LRSC and Hubbard said the young actors have adapted to the language of the show. “They are doing quite well in catching the tone and having a sense of fun,” she said. “They are enjoying the ridiculousness of the characters because all of them are exaggerations.”
Hubbard is taking some creative liberties with the characters. Instead of keeping the characters written as they were written for time period, she’s giving them a “timeless” feel. “I’m doing a timeless production. Different characters come from different time periods,” she said. “One character dresses as a real housewife of LA. There is a 1950s nerd. You can use stereotypes from different time periods and give them to different characters.”
It’s more than likely that the audience is seeing this show for the very first time. Hubbard hopes the audience leaves with a little self-reflection. “I hope they get a sense of fun. I hope they notice any hypocrisy within themselves. Each one of Moliere’s plays makes fun of a certain vice. It’s a humorous view of the vice of human folly.”
“The Imaginary Invalid” goes up at the Robert Fawcett Auditorium on Feb. 29 to March 2 at 7:30 p.m. March 3 will be a matinee show at 2 p.m. Adults are $10, seniors and children $5, and students are free.
