Molière – der eingebildete Tote
Comedy in the style of Molière by Nona Fernández
Translated by Friederike von Criegern
Nobody really dies in theatre. But what if? Molière does and remains on stage, under the impression that he is still alive. He must watch as a competitor takes over his troupe. This must be prevented. A Molière comedy about Molière.
When the curtain falls in theatre, the dead will rise again for the curtain call. According to theatre lore, Molière died on stage.
Nona Fernández based her comedy on this rumour. As the imaginary invalid, Molière plays dead. But when the script calls for him to rise again - nothing happens. He really is dead. But shortly thereafter, Molière rises as an undead, rejecting the idea that he is, in fact, dead. When a scheming patron tries to take over his theatre group, Molières ghost fights him with everything he has.
Molière – Der eingebildete Tote is a play that has everything a comedy by Molière would have: the human element, the all too human element, deceit, and slapstick.
Age recommendation
14 and older
Molière – der eingebildete Tote in simple language
An actor has to play dead on stage. Then he should get up again. But he does not. He is really dead. Then he becomes a ghost. But he thinks he is alive.
The play is about people who perform a play. One actor dies. He comes back as a ghost. The others can not see him. His name is Molière. A rich man wants to buy the theatre. The ghost Molière tries to prevent it.
In the play, a lot of funny things happen, a lot of things go wrong.
Molière was a real person who lived a long time ago. He wrote funny plays. One of the plays is: "The Imaginary Invalid". This means: a person thinks he is ill, but he is not. There is a story that says Molière died on a theatre stage. But it is a made up story. Nona Fernández wrote this play about the invented story. She called it: "The Imaginary Dead".
Cast
Directed by: Jule Kracht
Stage & costume design: Christian Robert Müller