Slave Island is based on an eighteenth-century (1761) English adaptation of Marivaux’s famous one-act comedy, L’Île des Esclaves (1725), by the actress Catherine Clive.
Marivaux’s play, which revolves around exchanging clothes and servant/master roles, was launched with great success at the Comédie-Italienne in Paris and was rediscovered in the twentieth century, when it was interpreted in a political way as foreshadowing the French Revolution.
In 1994, the renowned staging by Giorgio Strehler took the play across Europe and, in its turn, inspired productions by Juli Léal and Irina Brook, amongst others.
The original English version was presented by David Garrick’s company at the Drury Lane Theatre, London, with the title, The Island of Slaves. The unpublished text is retained in the archives of an American library (Huntington Library, San Marino): bringing it back to the stage today, prompts a reflection on the differences between the model of adapting a foreign text via translation melded with the inevitable cultural transfer of the adapting party, to create a new work, and the approach of crossing language barriers via simultaneously streaming to new countries, a single, immutable work, in its original language, with the support of surtitles. In Catherine Clive’s adaptation, Harlequin becomes Dromio in a reference to misunderstandings and identity exchanges. The play proposes a Marivaux of Shakespearean craftsmanship.
Pierre Carlet de Chamblain de Marivaux (1688-1763) was a novelist, journalist and playwright. Most of his plays were written for the Italian community of actors based in Paris at the time, Inspired by the practices of the Commedia dell’Arte, he developed an inimitable and unique dramaturgy and style.
The appreciation of his work has known varied fortunes: at times, considered loquacious and devoid of action, rooted in extremely refined gallant conversation that turns in circles (the marivaudage), with perpetually recycled plot devices (the surprises of love),and anaesthetic close to that of Watteau, the theatre of Marivaux was only read in its depth and in all its ambivalence from the second half of the twentieth century. A typical feature of the dramatic mechanism of his plays is his use of disguise to create the intrigue.
David Garrick attended performances of Marivaux’s plays on his 1751 trip to the French capital. This probably inspired the idea of adaptating L’île des Esclaves, a project he entrusted to Catherine Clive, a renowned actress of the troupe he founded at Drury Lane during his direction.
Helen Landau is a bilingual (French-English) actor and stage director, with a special interest in multilingual theatre. Together with Madelena Gonzalez she has coauthored a book documenting three conferences/interviews on multilingual and minority language theatre, Au-delà de la barrière de la langue (publication October 2024, Editions of Avignon University).
She was trained in acting in the Questors Theatre London, before becoming an acting member of the theatre, performing in productions such as The Sisterhood (Les Femmes Savantes, Molière, translation, Ranjit Bolt), Hindle Wakes (Houghton) and Daisy Pulls it off (Deegan) which toured to the Minack Theatre. Since moving to France in 1998, she has continued to perform and direct plays in French, English and multilingual versions.
Recent acting credits include Red Remembrance (Annis – Avignon Off 2023) and Les Aventures de Wairzmaï et Little-Mouse ( Annis – Festo Pitcho, Le Printemps Anglophone 2024, Avignon Off 2024) . Her directing credits include Tales without Morals (Saki, 2021), A woman of no importance (Wilde, 2022) and The Critic (Sheridan, 2023). She is artistic director of the theatre Au Chapeau Rouge and co-founder of the festival the Printemps Anglophone – a celebration of English language culture.
Helen Landau will be supported by Jérome Tomray (expert in combat staging) and Valentina Citterio (choreographer).
Approaching the staging of the 1761 version of Slave Island/L’île des Esclaves presents an intriguing challenge: to find a new vision for the play that not only honours such a treasure of French literature, but also captures the essence of the Drury Lane production.
It has been fascinating to study the original handwritten manuscript that Garrick’s troupe worked on more than two hundred and sixty years ago. Each crossed-out line, each adaptation, offers a glimpse into their dramatic interpretation of the play.
Examining this new version, we sense the hand of the legendary Catherine Clive (Kitty), who was, as her biography tells us “one of the most brilliant and spirited actresses” (P. Fitzgerald 1888) of her time. Kitty was known for her penchant for exposing the foibles and vanities of humankind, and for her great gift for comedy. We can also see what appear to be examples of her infamously bad spelling, with “duttiful” and “ribens” among other idiosyncratic touches to the manuscript.
While much of the Drury Lane script remains a faithful translation of Marivaux’s original text, a core section has been substantially amended, most notably in scene 3. Here we see the role of Cleanthe, the female servant, has been developed and we see a more Anglo-Saxon edge to the humour. Although some sources suggest that she played the noble woman Euphrosine (London Stage, entry March 1761) it seems that the expanded role of Cleanthe was better placed to use her “inimitable talent for ridiculing the extravagant talent and impertinent consequence” of the leading ladies of her day.
While my aim was not to try to create a museum piece of the 1761 production, I wanted to preserve Clive’s ideas and retain this more vivid, impertinent and exuberant Cleanthe.
Another curiosity of this adaptation is the renaming of two characters. Marivaux’s Trivelin becomes Philo, while Harlequin adopts the name of Dromio, one of Shakespeare’s most notable servants (A comedy of Errors, ca. 1594). This rebaptism provides an interesting cultural transfer, evoking associations of familiar master-servant relationships, and the comedy of confusions, However, just as Shakespeare tells us “That which we would call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet”, Dromio’s character remains very much that of Marivaux’s Harlequin. There are few changes to his script, although we do see hints of a different relationship between him and Cleanthe. Similarly, Philo/Trivelin’s text remains largely a faithful translation of Marivaux’s.
As a staple of French theatrical repertoire Slave Island has been revisited numerous times, yet, the timeless themes of abuse of power continue to resonate and inspire reinvention. Despite considerable advances in labour rights, wherever imbalances of power exist, workers can find themselves reduced to mere “servitors”. The chains of slavery, while no longer physical, can still exist at a psychological level, while verbal beatings might not bruise the body, they can still hurt the soul. In this new adaptation, I wanted to explore these phenomena, in the context of today’s world.
Clive’s decision to stage the play during the tumultuous years of the Seven years’ war caused something of a political controversy. An anonymous letter to the newspapers criticised her for staging a French farce, “by a poor wretched author”. Her response was typically fiery, “I hope I may be indulged, though as a woman, to say though I have always despised French politics, yet I have never yet heard we were at war with their wit”.
Continuing on this theme, it seemed natural that Iphicrates and Dromio/Harlequin would come from the world of politics. Thus, they become a government minister and his parliamentary assistant en route to an international conference. They are joined by Euphrosine, a “media personality” of rather dubious renown and her long-suffering assistant Cleanthe. This juxtaposition of political and media figures in a strange island setting provides a rich opportunity to explore contemporary aspects of power and status, with a decidedly Anglo-Saxon approach to leveraging the humor within the play.
For the role of the mysterious Philo / Trivelin, the master of ceremonies for all that will happen on the island, I took inspiration from Garricks’s troupe and increased the indebtedness to Shakespeare, calling on another character marooned on an island, Prospero, the magician from the Tempest (Shakespeare 1610-1611). Thus, some characters have changed names, almost as much as others will change clothes. Of course, by now, the former slave owner has undergone a transformation, and it is a reformed Prospero that we find. He now stands as a militant defender for a cause he once played an opposing part in. Prospero retains his supernatural powers and brings a touch of magical realism to the staging.
The text will be presented with only minor adaptations from the Drury Lane version, complemented by a new prologue with dialogue from William Shakespeare and myself.
Cognizant of the diverse linguistic backgrounds of the public whether in Avignon, Berlin or Milan, and mindful that the formulations of 18th century English are not those of today, my intent is to present a meticulous work on body language and the physical aspects of staging. While keeping all the sensitivities of my instincts as a director of a fundamentally Stanislavskian tradition, I am placing great emphasis on all aspects of non-verbal communication. I am delighted to be collaborating with Jerome Tomray, a stage combat expert and Valentina Citterio a choreographer. The corporal language of status and humour provide a rich source of inspiration for our work,
We know Catherine Clive added a comic song to her adaptation. Music and dance have also an important place in this production, providing the opportunity to communicate with the audience at multiple sensory levels.
Although this production will be very different from that seen on the Drury Lane boards in 1761, it is intended as a homage to its predecessors. I hope that the beauty of Marivaux’s original text still shines and that the spirit of Kitty Clive’s exuberant adaptation will wink at us anew.
Time: TBD
On stage: 6 March 2025
Production: Au-délà du plateau/Les Rencontres du Chapeau Rouge/Curtain Call
Director: Helen Landau, with the assistance of Jerome Tomray, Valentina Citterio
Full cast: The students of masters théâtre et écritures (Avignon University) and the student association, Curtain Call
by Deverust Studio