Born into extraordinary wealth during the reign of Louis XIV, French writer Jean-François Regnard traveled widely—and for a while, involuntarily, when he was captured by Barbary pirates and sold into slavery. Ransomed, he continued his travels, spending time with the Sami people of Lapland. Then he took a cushy government job that left him free to write Molière-esque plays for Molière’s old theater, the Comédie-Française. Regnard died under ambiguous circumstances (suicide? horse pills?) at age 54, but even that didn’t end his adventures. His disinterred skull was discovered in the 1830s by some kids, who, the story goes, used it as a soccer ball.
Regnard was famous for his unprincipled heroes, and, sure enough, Eraste and Crispin’s lack of compunction is the most interesting thing about them. Ives, however, sets their immorality play amid anachronistic references (Godzilla, Tonto and his kemosabe) and intentionally fudged verse that foster a generic hilarity rather than inciting anarchy, as the same devices do in other Ives “transladaptations.” Similarly, Joe Pesci lookalike Cliff Saunders pushes his antics as Crispin—which dominate the play’s long midsection—to a one-note and therefore self-defeating point of hysteria. It’s a great relief when Whitehead is onstage, using his subtler comic skills to bring some modulation to the proceedings. v
Through 1/17: Wed 1 and 7:30 PM, Thu-Fri 7:30 PM (no shows 12/24, 12/25, and 1/1), Sat 3 and 8 PM, Sun 2 PM, Tue 7:30 PM; also Thu 1/14, 1 PM Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Navy Pier 800 E. Grand 312-595-5600chicagoshakes.com $48-$88
