An intriguing selection of delicious morsels

A sweet, simple story from a century ago, presented to the Finborough’s usual excellent standards.

A brisk jaunt through the life of Dom Juan.

Pros: Very entertaining and well acted performance which reminds us how relevant Molière’s plays still are today. Cons: The political point that Furlong tries to make is forced and doesn’t fit the play. In his preface to Tartuffe, Jean Poquelin, better known as Molière, wrote that “if the purpose of comedy is to correct men’s vices, I do not see why any group of men should have special privileges. If this were so, it would have a far more dangerous social consequence ...

Pros: A skilled ensemble whose evident enjoyment is infectious. A great soundtrack featuring the great Gainsbourg. Cons: Cluttered staging and an auditorium that (on one of the warmest evenings of the year) was like being at the centre of the earth. Celimène drunk, throwing up in a bucket, Acaste and Clitandre hoofing coke off a studio desk, Éliante and Philinte sharing a tender moment on the breakfast TV couch. Yes, obviously, it’s Le Misanthrope, Molière’s satire on the 17th century French ...

Boisterous and engaging, but the modern setting does heighten awareness of the play’s anachronistic morality.