It’s a familiar story: A charismatic figure rises to power by making others feel sinful and and in need of salvation. Then, inevitably, the world finds out that this moral leader is just an opportunist, guilty of far worse than whatever he was denouncing. But in this case we’re not talking about a televangelist or member of Congress. Molière wrote the bitingly satirical Tartuffe back in 1664, and his portrayal of sanctimonious hypocrisy struck such a nerve that the play was immediately banned. The Archbishop of Paris even decreed that anyone who performed, watched or read Tartuffe would be excommunicated.
Nowadays, of course, the comedy is a venerated classic, and nobody’s going to excommunicate Berkeley Repertory Theatre for presenting Tartuffe. But those familiar with the play or Molière’s work in general might be shocked by how grim this particular production is.

Berkeley Rep relies on a handful of favorite out-of-town actors and directors who return again and again, and high on that list is comedic actor Steven Epp, of Minneapolis’ now-defunct Theatre de la Jeune Lune. Epp has starred in five productions at Berkeley Rep over the years, from Don Juan Giovanni in 1994 to Accidental Death of an Anarchist a year ago, and now he’s back for a sixth. This production also brings back Dominique Serrand, a cofounder of Jeune Lune and now co-artistic director with Epp of the Moving Company (also based in Minneapolis). Serrand directed some of Epp’s most finely crafted shows at the Rep, including Figaro and The Miser. This is their third production of Tartuffe over the years (albeit their first in the Bay Area), and this time they’re focusing on how dark and disturbing the story really is.
The wealthy Orgon (a loud and bullheaded Luverne Seifert) has become enthralled with the supposed holy man Tartuffe (Epp). Orgon doesn’t care that his wife is ill; he doesn’t care whether he’s promised to marry his daughter to her true love; he cares for nothing but Tartuffe, hanging on his every word and giving him everything without the huckster even having to ask for it. Meanwhile, Orgon’s entire family is miserable, knowing Tartuffe for the gluttonous, lustful fraud he is and watching helplessly as he tries to seduce Orgon’s beautiful young wife.
Serrand’s staging is somber and deliberate, which sometimes adds resonance to the proceedings and at other times simply feels slow. It’s all set in a grand hall by Serrand and Tom Buderwitz, with high, elegant walls and a Spartan scarcity of furnishings. Corinne Carrillo’s sound design is full of austere church music.