Various salons and boudoirs in hotels and châteaux in and around Paris and the Bois de Vincennes during an autumn and winter in the late 1780s
Les Liaisons dangereuses (French:[leljɛzɔ̃dɑ̃ʒ(ə)ʁøz]) is a 1985 play by Christopher Hampton adapted from the 1782 novel of the same title by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos. The plot focuses on the Marquise de Merteuil and the Vicomte de Valmont, rivals who use sex as a weapon of humiliation and degradation, all the while enjoying their cruel games. Their targets are the virtuous (and married) Madame de Tourvel and Cécile de Volanges, a young girl who has fallen in love with her music tutor, the Chevalier Danceny. In order to gain their trust, Merteuil and Valmont pretend to help the secret lovers so they can use them later in their own treacherous schemes.
Hampton's play was produced by the Sydney Theatre Company and performed at the Wharf Theatre as part of the 2012 season. The production was directed by Sam Strong,[7] with Hugo Weaving playing the Vicomte de Valmont and Pamela Rabe the Marquise de Merteuil. Strong said that he liked the line given to Rosamonde “The only thing which might surprise one is how little the world changes” because it "speaks directly to the timelessness of the piece's exploration of human behaviour, from the less savoury parts like betrayal and manipulation to the best parts like being in love." He also said he was "intrigued by the paradoxical nature of the Valmont and Tourvel story – the manner in which Valmont is both redeemed and destroyed by love at the same time". One reviewer noted that "Director Sam Strong's beautifully paced production emphasises gratification via the wielding of power rather than via lust."[8]
2016 revival
The play was revived at the Donmar Warehouse in the winter of 2015–16, the first time it had received a major outing in London since its 1986 premiere. The director was Josie Rourke, with the roles of Valmont and Mme de Merteuil played by Dominic West and Janet McTeer respectively.[9] The production transferred to Broadway in a limited engagement with McTeer joined by Liev Schreiber and Mary Beth Peil as Madame de Rosemonde. The play opened at the Booth Theatre on October 30, 2016.[10] The Broadway production closed earlier than expected, on January 8, 2017 (rather than on January 22.)[11]
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