Dom Juan (The Vaults, 2022)

By Molière,
Translated by Brett Bodemer
Directed by Anastasia Revi

The Vaults,London
11-29 May 2022

A co-production with Exchange Theatre to celebrate Molière’s 400th anniversary from 11-29 May 2022, alternately in English and French.

Charming… egocentric… philanderer… recently wed, Dom Juan is about to commit adultery against his new wife and sets out in pursuit of his next amorous conquest accompanied by his servant, Sganarelle. Dom Juan is remorseless, unrepentant and has a voracious libido. Sganarelle is clever, pious but ambitious and challenges his master’s libertine views as the pair engage in a deep and yet hilarious philosophical debate. DOM JUAN is a light, dangerous, charming and addictive comedy that follows the last day of the legendary playboy’s life.

Anastasia Revi’s direction is a feast for the senses where theatre, comedy, music and masks create a labyrinth, diving into the aesthetic of a Venetian carnival. French classical 17th century prose mix with masked Commedia Dell’Arte and a soundtrack from the Cinecitta era. Our show is a sensorial experience like a Fellini movie, where dreams and desires mix, making Molière more modern and Dom Juan more relevant than ever.

DOM JUAN has captured the imaginations of playwrights, poets and composers for stage, opera and screen such as Lord Byron, Mozart (Don Giovanni), Patrick Marber (Don Juan in Soho) and Johnny Depp (Don Juan de Marcos).

Credits

Creative and Production Team
Directed by Anastasia Revi
Set Design by Maira Vazeou
Costume Design by Valentina Sanna
Lighting Design by Marina Konta
Production by Fanny Dulin, Martina Reynolds
Assistant Director Sevi Filippidou
Technicians Kristiana Mitrollari, Lex Bluecairn
Stage Manager Nina Galesne
Press Officer Lucie Alméras
Assistant Set Designer Eirini Kariori

Production Photography by Hannan Images
PR by Kevin Wilson (KWPR)

Press

Entertainment gone mad… Anastasia Revi has directed it for the greatest amount of fun… .The most unusual evening I’ve had for ages. Memories of the Comedie Francaise and teenage passions including Gerard Philippe were abounding in an extremely entertaining and jolly evening.
ALINE WAITES REVIEWS ****

There’s never a dull moment during the production, which has a joyous mixture of farcical fight scenes, stylised slo-mo dance sequences and musical numbers throughout. This is a bold reimagining of Dom Juan, told with vigour and it is a wonderful opportunity to be able to enjoy some Molière in London, especially in French.
THE RECS ****

This show is a riot from our first introduction to Sganarelle (played joyously by David Furlong, pictured) as he greets the audience with snuff and bon homie, to the electrifying ending in which Dom Juan is so terribly torn from his life of vacuous excess (we can dream, eh?). Go along too for some good ole commedia dell’arte, masks and slapstick. Thank you, Director Anastasia Revi. If we gave out stars, we’d give it quite a few.
LONDON AT LARGE

The action is driven along at a brisk pace, with a magnificent soundtrack. The use of masks helps to create an atmosphere of intrigue and duplicity. It was wonderful to see expat French children in the audience, being immersed in Francophone culture. I hope that at the English language shows there are English kids being introduced to the joys of Molière and I hope that, in the age of Partygate, Dom Juan’s assertion that ‘hypocrisy is a fashionable vice, and all fashionable vices pass for virtues’ doesn’t ring too horribly true to them.
EVERYTHING THEATRE

Engaging and entertaining play, with several comedic moments landing well amidst a labyrinth of lust and desire…. The small yet talented ensemble members each perform multiple roles enabled by the frequent use of masks, which add an alluring quality to an overall immersive production.
THEATRE NEWS

True to its tradition of innovativeness, with lively performances by the cast, delicious costuming (Valentina Sanna), adaptable set (Maira Vazeou) and comedic style, Theatre Lab Company and Exchange Theatre’s version of Moliere’s Dom Juan under the inspired direction of Revi, is clever, funny and well adapted for contemporary audiences. Comedy, tragedy, intrigue packed into a fast-moving 90 minutes.
UK THEATRE NETWORK

This eclectic production from director Anastasia Revi certainly celebrates the breadth of the French writer’s influence.Valentina Sanna has created a striking array of masks, which inject the dance, movement and fight sequences with a lingering sense of eeriness. In particular, a comic mime performed in that most romantic of settings, a Venetian gondola, finds an interesting way to laugh at the absurdity of love.
THE GUARDIAN