Who is the greater fool in this age of self-fashioning? Molière’s lovelorn melancholic – embodied by Jens Albinus – may offer a compelling answer.

Season 26/27

Old Stage

Duration

2 hours and 20 minutes incl. 1 intermission

Price

110 - 705 DKK

including servicefees

Performance dates

Molière’s timeless comedy travels from the court of the Sun King to our own era, where God has been replaced by Gucci, power wears Hermès instead of ermine, influence is gained by brushing shoulders with the right influencers, and surrendering to love remains just as perilous as ever.

At the centre stands Alceste: principled, intelligent and fiercely allergic to hypocrisy and superficiality – admirable enough, at first. The complication? He is hopelessly in love with the captivating Célimène, who moves effortlessly among the very social butterflies and smooth-tongued flatterers he cannot stand. When Alceste finally declares himself, it is his own uncompromising stubbornness that trips him up. He cannot – or will not – surrender to love unless Célimène agrees to become his ideal of sincerity.

The Misanthrope is therefore more than a portrait of a man who sees through hollow friendships and strategic cheek-kisses – and takes rather grim satisfaction in doing so. It is also a sparkling comedy in verse about love’s delightful contradictions, and a playful reminder of how easy it is to spot the speck in someone else’s eye while overlooking the beam in our own – particularly when it concerns the people we profess to despise.

Resident director Thomas Bendixen takes up the gauntlet from 1666 and, with sharp and piercing humour, relocates Molière’s self-exposing comedy of self-loathing, self-fashioning and the longing to be loved to the present day. He is joined by a formidable ensemble, including Laura Skjoldborg as Célimène, with music by artists including Oh Land.

Recommended from 10 years old

The Misanthrope

date 21.01.2027 - 25.02.2027

location Old Stage

Price 110 - 705 DKK