Madame De Sade

And now, as someone famous once said, it’s time for something completely different. Translated from Yukio Mashima’s original Japanese by Donald Keene, this play is a remarkable retelling of the story of the Marquis De Sade as told through the eyes of six phenomenally interesting women. Much like Les Mis, this is a show set in a Paris which is tumbling towards violent revolt and revolution; we meet such characters like Renee, who refuses, despite her mother’s implorations, to leave her husband, the Marquis de Sade, who is imprisoned in the Bastille.

As if you needed any more reasons to check out this wonderfully innovative and vital piece of theatre, the incredible cast which has been assembled should be enough to pull you through the door and part with your money for Madame de Sade tickets, which are selling at very reasonable prices starting at £10 and going up to around £32. Dame Judi Dench, a national institution, is clearly the biggest name in the production; not just there for her famous face though, Dench always delivers a master class in acting and subtle emotion in whatever role she plays and this one promises to be no different. She is joined by other equally strong actresses such as the great Frances Barber and the newest edition to the cast, the wonderful Rosamund Pike.

Obviously this trip to the Wyndham’s Theatre would not be an easy evening off, it will be challenging and thought-provoking but that is clearly what Michael Grandage and his cast had in mind. The P.R for the show, the flyers and such like, feature dark backgrounds often emblazoned simply with a headshot of one of the actors, or perhaps simply just the name of the show itself. This is an intellectual powerhouse of a text and one which demands to be seen by all those who wish to understand this period of history, and also understand contemporary life, in a clearer way.

Clearly a performance of such integrity lends itself to be studied in education and thus, from the 19th March 2009, an educational study-guide will be available to help students and teachers alike explore the production further through a series of practical exercises. Even if you’re not going to study the show you should try and get hold of one of these to expand your understanding on the show. Light-entertainment it certainly isn’t. But brilliant it most certainly is.