#Dangerous liaisons broadway cast 2008 crack#
Whenever a teardrop of earnestness forms at the Vicomte's eye, or a faint crack appears in the Marquise's desire to enact the expected strait-laced role in public while pulling countless sexual strings in private, it's quickly replaced by a newfound resolve the maintain the chosen path. Whether actual feelings ever creep into view, from any angle, Hampton leaves deliberately and deliciously vague Norris and his two perfectly matched costars barely dare to speculate further. His dream: to win and keep the prudish Madame Tourvel (Jessica Collins). His challenge: to halt the marriage of the young Cécile Volanges (Mamie Gummer) to her unsuitable tutor, Danceny (Benjamin Walker) by any lurid means necessary. (Scott Pask's black-box-meets-mirrored-salon set, and Katrina Lindsay's restrained but titillating costumes meet the requirements nicely.) But to be sidelined by the play's insinuating anti-charm, you must be confronted at close distance with the lackadaisical evil these two wield with such facility.Ī boredom with their rote existences inspires the Marquise and the Vicomte on their endless rounds of bed-hopping - to say nothing of the possibility that the Marquise might again grant the Vicomte the opportunity to conquer her if succeeds in the task she sets for him. Not just because you need some sense of immediate opulence, though you do - the open hints of elegance, in both the sets and costumes, are vital to understanding that you're in danger specifically because you're dealing not with unarmed amateurs but ammo-laden aristocrats.
#Dangerous liaisons broadway cast 2008 full#
First seen on these shores 21 years ago, in an imported Royal Shakespeare Company production starring Lindsay Duncan and Alan Rickman, this story of erotic one-upmanship has captivated live as well as in a number of film adaptations ranging from the faithful ( Dangerous Liaisons, 1988, starring Glenn Close and John Malkovich) to the questionable ( Cruel Intentions, 1999, starring Sarah Michelle Gellar and Ryan Phillippe).įor the full impact, however, you must return to the source. That neither sees them as anything but toys, thus turning their many dalliances into the rarefied equivalent of hunting people for sport, is the coruscating conceit of Hampton's adaptation of Choderlos de Laclos's scandalous 1782 epistolary novel. For them, love and sex aren't mere weapons, but tactical nuclear devices. Linney and Daniels are as cold and unyielding as meter-thick blocks of ice, making their tendencies to melt in each other's gaze even more exciting - and devastating when they start looking in other directions. In his enveloping production, Rufus Norris has not made the neophyte's mistake of giving you any opportunity to sympathize with the Marquise and the Vicomte. Just don't expect to warm too much to these denizens of late 18th-century France. As given statuesque body and searing voice by Laura Linney and Ben Daniels, they also emit enough sparks to send most city fire marshals running for their lives. The demonic duo of the Marquise de Merteuil and the Vicomte de Valmont not only make the second circle of hell a prime vacation spot - they make the American Airlines this spring's must-visit theater. Nearly everyone has been ripped apart by love, but how often does the experience leave you slavering in anticipation of the responsible vulture's next flesh-tearing act? The uniquely human knack for being hurt and yet begging for more is the background music that warbles throughout Christopher Hampton's play Les Liaisons Dangereuses, shining the light of understanding (if not acceptability) on the two devils dueling away at its center. Running Time: 2 hours 45 minutes, with one 15 minute intermission.Īudience: Due to mature content, this play is not recommended for theatregoers under 17. Schedule: Tuesday through Saturday at 8 pm, Wedensday, Saturday, and Sunday at 2 pm. Theatre: American Airlines Theatre, 227 West 42 Street between 7th and 8th Avenues. Cast: Laura Linney, Ben Daniels, with Sian Phillips, Jessica Collins, Mamie Gummer, Kristine Nielsen, Benjamin Walker, Rosie Benton, Derek Cecil, Kevin Duda, Delphi Harrington, Tim McGeever, Nicole Orth-Pallavicini, Jane Pfitsch. Les Liaisons Dangereuses by Christopher Hampton.