 | "Les Liaisons dangereuses" is a Broadway play written by Christopher Hampton and based on the book "Les Liaisons dangereuses" by Choderlos de Laclos. The book fascinates with its dark undertones. It is the story of the Marquise de Merteuil and the Vicomte de Valmont, two rivals who use sex as a weapon to humiliate and degrade others, all the while enjoying their cruel games. It also depicts the decadence of the French aristocracy shortly before the French Revolution; thus it is seen as a work that exposes the perversions of the so-called Ancien Régime. |
| The book is an epistolary novel, composed entirely of letters written by the various characters to each other. In particular, the letters between Valmont and the Marquise drive the plot, with those of other characters serving as illustrations to give the story its depth. The drama won the Olivier Award for Best Play in its 1985 London premiere and was the basis for the 1988 Academy Award-nominated film "Dangerous Liaisons." The film was directed by Stephen Frears and starring Glenn Close, John Malkovich, and Michelle Pfeiffer. It uses eighteenth-century costumes and dazzling shots of the Île-de-France region around Paris. Howard Davies directed the original 1987 Broadway production at the Music Box Theatre with Alan Rickman and Lindsay Duncan as the dueling duo. The work was nominated for the Best Play Tony Award; stars Rickman and Duncan were also Tony-nominated. Laura Leggett Linney (see photo) is a three-time Academy Award-nominated and two-time Emmy Award-winning American actress, active in movies, television, and theatre. Her extensive stage credits on Broadway and elsewhere include Hedda Gabler (for which she won a 1994 Joe A. Callaway Award), Holiday (based on the 1938 movie starring Katharine Hepburn), and she was nominated for a Tony Award in 2002 as Best Actress (Play) for The Crucible, and again in 2005 for Sight Unseen. Linney appeared for a role as La Marquise de Merteuil in the revival of Christopher Hampton's play Les Liaisons Dangereuses on May 1, 2008 at American Airlines Theatre. | |
Les Liaisons Dangereuses - American Airlines Theatre Opening Night Cast Laura Linney - La Marquise de Merteuil Ben Daniels - Le Vicomte de Valmont | |
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