Molière’s ‘Tartuffe’ Finds Renewed Relevance in Politically Divided America

If you don’t laugh, you’ll cry. That sentiment echoes through two new Off-Broadway productions of Molière’s “Tartuffe,” a 361-year-old satire that resonates with startling clarity in today’s polarized political landscape.

This fall, New York audiences will have two opportunities to experience this classic French farce through distinctly modern lenses. Tony winner André De Shields stars in an intimate 100-seat production at the House of the Redeemer running through November 23. Just days later, fellow Tony winner Matthew Broderick will don the title character’s robes at New York Theatre Workshop for a run scheduled from November 28 through January 11, 2026.

The timing couldn’t be more apt. “Tartuffe” follows a fraudulent religious zealot who ingratiates himself with a wealthy, gullible man named Orgon. While presenting himself as pious and virtuous, Tartuffe systematically manipulates his way into Orgon’s household, exploiting his trust while Orgon’s increasingly desperate family tries to expose the impostor.

“The second election night happened, I realized ‘oh my gosh, it’s happening right now,'” said Keaton Wooden, director of the House of the Redeemer production. “We’re watching ‘Tartuffe’ play out on a national scale.”

The play’s history reflects its provocative nature. When “Tartuffe” first premiered in 1664, it was actively suppressed by King Louis XIV at the behest of the Archbishop of Paris, who objected to its critique of religious hypocrisy. This censorship only strengthened the work’s reputation as a truth-telling mechanism against power abused.

Following the French Revolution, “Tartuffe” became the most frequently performed play in the repertoire of the Comédie-Française, France’s oldest active theater company. The character of Tartuffe has so permeated French culture that his name has become synonymous with hypocrites who feign virtue.

Despite this cultural significance in France, “Tartuffe” took centuries to gain traction in English-speaking theaters. The play didn’t reach Broadway until 1965, when Michael O’Sullivan performed the title role at the Repertory Theatre of Lincoln Center in a translation by Richard Wilbur.

While Wilbur’s translation became the standard English version throughout the latter half of the 20th century, it drew criticism for sacrificing much of Molière’s humor and wordplay in favor of maintaining the original’s strict form of rhyming couplets with 12-syllable lines. Two subsequent Broadway revivals of Wilbur’s translation—in 1977 with John Wood and in 2003 with Henry Goodman—failed to reach 100 performances despite their political relevance to post-Watergate America and the religious climate following 9/11.

A more direct attempt at contemporary relevance in 1996, with Freyda Thomas’s translation recasting Tartuffe as an American televangelist, closed after fewer than 30 performances. Producers often avoided drawing explicit political parallels, wary of alienating powerful patrons.

Today’s fractured political climate has changed that calculus. As misinformation proliferates and public discourse grows increasingly toxic, theater artists are finding renewed purpose in Molière’s examination of deception, willful ignorance, and the human tendency to believe comforting lies.

Both current productions employ fresh translations that aim to restore Molière’s biting humor while making the text accessible to contemporary audiences. The House of the Redeemer production uses British playwright Ranjit Bolt’s translation, while the New York Theatre Workshop premiere features a new translation by Tony-nominated playwright Lucas Hnath.

The casting of these productions amplifies their resonance. Both André De Shields and Matthew Broderick bring established personae and performance histories that align with Tartuffe’s charismatic manipulation. De Shields’s portrayal of the deceptive Wizard in “The Wiz” and Broderick’s mischievous Leo Bloom in “The Producers” demonstrate their ability to embody charlatans who win audience sympathy.

“Tartuffe is the ultimate villain and the ultimate performer. His entire power lies in his ability to put on such a good show that you forget that he’s full of shit,” notes Wooden. “André has sort of a meta power over our community that is useful, to make people realize that they are susceptible to influence as well.”

Originally written as a critique of corrupt Catholic officials, “Tartuffe” has evolved into a broader examination of any movement that demands moral purity while exempting its leaders from the same standards. The play’s enduring appeal lies in its recognition that humanity has faced such hypocrisy before—and survived.

In an era when news headlines often provoke despair, these productions offer a cathartic opportunity to laugh at the absurdities of human folly, if only for a few hours. As Wooden advocates, “I personally have this vision that ‘Tartuffe’ should be sort of part of the capital C canon of American theatre. The French and the Americans have a lot in common with regard to how they react to populism.”

For audiences navigating today’s complex political landscape, Molière’s centuries-old warning about the dangers of self-serving manipulation wrapped in moral righteousness feels startlingly prescient—a reminder that recognizing hypocrisy is the first step toward overcoming it.