'The Liar'

The Whitefish Theatre Co. will present “The Liar” as the first mainstage theater production of the 2017-2018 season. “The Liar” will be performed at the O’Shaughnessy Center in Whitefish at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 20, 21, 26, 27 and 28 and at 4 p.m. Oct. 22. A sneak preview performance will be held at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 19.

“The Liar” is an adaptation of Pierre Cornielle’s 17th-century French comedy from the mind of David Ives, one of the leading humorists in contemporary American theater who is best known for hilarious adaptations and plays such as “All In The Timing” and “Venus in Fur.” “The Liar” is one of Ives’ “translaptations,” a combination of translation and adaptation that he spins out entirely in outrageously clever verse.

At the center of the farce is Dorante, a charming young man who wins admirers everywhere he goes, as long as he doesn’t have to tell them the truth. With each person he encounters, Dorante exaggerates and spins the truth further and further out of recognizable shape — not out of malice, mind you, but essentially because he gets carried away. The fun begins when Dorante meets Cliton, a manservant who is pathologically honest. The two embark on an adventure of mistaken identities, breathtakingly intricate lies, duels, identical-twin lady’s maids, and multiple marriage proposals that all combine to create a hilarious urban romance that will leave you laughing long after the final curtain.

The New York Times calls “The Liar” an “effervescent delight ... Mr. Ives’ lyric and comic invention never falters” while the Washington Examiner praised “The Liar” for being “astonishingly fresh, funny, and totally appealing to modern audiences.”

“In the world that often seems to devalue standards of dress, proper speech and civil behavior, what a privilege it has been to work on ‘The Liar’ as an alternative reality of wit, style, and intelligent language,” said Director David Ackroyd. “The characters in ‘The Liar’ dress and move with style, and what’s more, they speak poetry, hilarious poetry, rife with witty word play and sly double entendres that has all been wonderfully reimagined by David Ives’ from the original 17th-century script.”

The production features Christopher Fannon, Corey Burke, Madison Wambeke, Tony Hernandez, Ashley Halle, Angie Green, Bob Fleischman and Stuart Green.

“It has been wonderful for the cast to immerse themselves in a society that valued a code of high fashion, social propriety and poetic discourse,” Ackroyd said. “We are all thoroughly enjoying this nonstop linguistic masterpiece of a play.”

Tickets are $20 for adults, $18 for seniors, and $10 for students, with reserved seating. Tickets for the sneak preview performance on Oct. 19 are $10 with tickets sold only at the door. Tickets can be purchased at the Box Office, 1 Central Ave., Whitefish, or by calling 406-862-5371. Box office hours are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and one hour before performance times.

Tickets and more information can also be found at https://www.whitefishtheatreco.org.