Moliere's The Imaginary Invalid, a comedy satirising human hypocrisy in high society, is here to tickle the ribs of Thai audiences. It comes with a new name, Jao Rok, a new setting in the era of King Rama VI, and endless gags and intimacy between the actors and theatre-goers.
There were lots of jolly moments in the comedy Jao Rok , an adaptation of Moliere’s The Imaginary Invalid .
When the play premiered in 1673, playwright-cum-actor Moliere took a lead role but collapsed during his fourth performance and died soon after.
In contrast, the fourth show of the Thai adaptation at Democrazy Theatre Studio last Saturday came alive with the spirit of high comedy. The comedy of manners is filled with satire, exaggeration, and even self-mockery.
Even the title, Jao Rok, literally "The Hypochondriac", contains a double-meaning as it is a Thai homonym for a man's privates. Definitely, this sexual connotation would attract public attention. But if sex has something to do with this comedy involving love at first sight, a wilful second wife and homosexual jokes, it is purely deployed to ridicule characters and their unfortunate fates _ again in a ludicrous manner.
The Thai-styled comedy is a fairly faithful adaptation of the Moliere original since it maintains the major structure and important details. Set during the reign of King Rama VI _ known as an aficionado of contemporary plays from the West _ the comedy focuses on a hypochondriac aristocrat who arranges a marriage for his daughter with a young doctor, so his would-be in-law will be conveniently close. A slave to romanticism, the daughter sets her heart on a different man, while the would-be in-law and his family struggle to win her heart. With a twisted yet implausible climax, the show offers a happy ending _ though not for every character.
This production features 10 actors who are true gems. Of them, there is a ball of fire in the form of Kriangkrai Fukasem who plays a foxy servant, the hyper-animated and spicy Farida Jirapun as the spiteful wife, and sweet-faced Choladda Suriyayothin as the rebellious daughter. Setsiri Nirandorn is optimistic and natural as the potential son-in-law, while Jatuporn Suwansukhom is vivacious and perky as the calculating brother and the versatile Kemmanat Sermsookchareonchai plays three different roles. Thanks to their acting and stage survival skills, the comedy delivers on what it promises.
Throughout 150 minutes, it is evident that the cast had a particularly good time tickling the audience's funny bones. Full of energy, each flaunted their comical tricks and exercised their charms. When mistakes happened, everyone managed to recover with his or her own wisecracks and the cast helped each other out.
Occasionally, some actors looked as if they forgot their lines and strove to maintain their characters, but improvisation came to the rescue. Somehow, this even added special layers for audience to laugh at the reality the actors constructed and the comedy's inherent fantasy. Whether these flawed moments were intentional or not, the laughing audience did not seem to mind and was forgiving _ especially when these errors provide farcical yet jaunty results.
While the original play includes dance sequences and musical interludes, the Thai version keeps only the latter. Adding nostalgic flavour to the show are romantic love songs by Thanpuying Pongroi Apaiwongse, including Rak Ruk (First Love), Chan Oei (Dear Moon), Ta San Glom (Round Eyes), Nai Fun (In My Dream) and Pliew Jai (Lonely Heart). The selection definitely pays tribute to the god of romanticism, with a meaningful mimicry.
Director Parnrut Kritchanchai from New Theatre Society deserves the credit for managing to put together quality local talent and localising the original script. Also a playwright for this show, she smartly exploited the original's loose structure and unreasonable logic to produce a comedy with Thai spices and flavours.
She should have however dared adding some meat to the ending, instead of following the original that landed quite abruptly and absurdly. However faithful to the original script, adaptation allows some artistic freedom.
One factor that helps create jocular effects is the proximity between performers and playgoers. In a medium sized (7m x 7.5m), 50-people auditorium, the audience can see body and facial expression clearly while feeling the vibe of the characters. The set consists of two mobile panels, a fake piano, and three entrances are nicely maximised in the limited space.
Undeniably, Democrazy Theatre Studio is a small venue that fills with big talents. Jao Rok, produced as part of Democlassic Project Vol.2, aims to uplift the spirit of classic plays from the West through adaptations in order to please ears and eyes of Thai audience. Its series includes a Thai version of The Chairs by Eugene Ionesco, which was staged last month, and adaptations of Othello and Blue Room are coming in October and November respectively. The studio will also host another adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's An Enemy Of The People, or Beauty To Hell from July 6-16.
