Podcast Summary: "Matthew Broderick Stars as 'Tartuffe' off-Broadway"

All Of It (WNYC) — December 16, 2025
Host: David Fuerst (in for Alison Stewart)
Guests: Matthew Broderick (Lead, Tartuffe), Lisa Kron (Performer), Sarah Benson (Director)

Overview

This episode explores the contemporary off-Broadway revival of Molière’s “Tartuffe” at the New York Theatre Workshop (through January 24), with host David Fuerst interviewing Tony Award winner Matthew Broderick, celebrated playwright and performer Lisa Kron, and innovative director Sarah Benson. The conversation delves into why this centuries-old satirical comedy about deception and belief is as relevant as ever, the creative adaptation process, the dynamics of the cast, and the unique comic energy defining this production.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Relevance of "Tartuffe" in 2025

• Timeless Satire and Modern Parallels
  • Broderick and Benson remark on the persistent freshness of Molière’s 1664 script, spotlighting its commentary on charlatanism and gullibility, which, as Benson notes, are “unfortunately not” outdated.
  • Benson: “The play is this sort of fascinating document, looking at what makes someone believe what they believe and the kind of slippery nature of belief itself... it just felt like a very ripe time to be interrogating that and asking those questions, inside such a strong comedic envelope.” [03:46]
  • The production draws parallels to contemporary climates of misinformation and shifting moral authority.

Adaptation and Language

• Rhymed Couplets with a Twist
  • The script, adapted by Lucas Hnath, updates the language while retaining rhymed couplets, but with irregular meter for a lively, surprising effect.
  • Benson: “We wanted to locate the language in a contemporary space... landed on this incredible language that Lucas has found, which is rhymed couplet but has an irregular meter. So the comedy is sort of surprising... you’re sort of falling into the comedy.” [04:40]
  • Kron: “Lucas has filled this structure with relatively quotidian language... it does something sort of classical and timeless, and then also kind of engagingly contemporary at the same time.” [12:52]

Casting and Ensemble Dynamics

• A Comedic and Diverse Powerhouse
  • The cast features Matthew Broderick (Tartuffe), David Cross (Orgon), Lisa Kron (the maid), Bianca Del Rio, Frances Jue, and others.
  • Kron highlights the “real cohesion” despite diverse styles: “People’s performance styles and energies are really quite particular... that is having a very, I think, delightful synergy.” [05:54]
  • Benson emphasizes the thrill of working with comedians who are also writers/creators: “There’s so many generators in the company... the minds around comedy have been a very sort of rich, synergistic place.” [06:58]

The Joy (and Challenge) of Playing Villains

• Broderick on Embodying Tartuffe
  • Broderick enjoys the complexity: “I approach them the same way... most villains don’t think of themselves as villains, you know, so I don’t think Tartuffe—well, Tartuffe probably does know he’s full of crap… But it’s fun to play people who are sort of awful or duplicitous.” [08:59; 09:24]
  • Memorable quote: “The inner scoundrel is becoming more outer, which I’m enjoying.” (Broderick) [10:14]

Comedy, Satire, and Emotional Truth

• Balancing Laughs with Substance
  • The play walks a fine line between farce and heartbreaking realism, as family members fall for Tartuffe’s cons:
  • Benson: “It’s impossible to watch the play today and not relate to the slippery reality we’re all living inside of... it was initially banned... you sort of see Molière, like, wrestling with political authority and the question of, like, who gets to define what morality is...” [10:51, 11:54]
  • Broderick underscores that the comedy lands because “it’s serious and upsetting sometimes... But it’s only funny if you’re also believing the serious side of it, I think.” [22:07]

Performing in Verse

• Challenges and Accidental Comedy
  • Kron discusses the technical and energetic demand of rapid, rhymed speech.
  • “Our challenge in making it was to talk very fast... so we had to really learn it. Still working to get my lines exactly right every time. The speed, how to attack the language as a company, that was a thing that we worked on together...” [12:52]
  • Entertaining stage mishap:
    • Broderick: “Two nights ago I said, the best thing you can do is throw me out in the street. And I’m supposed to say, throw me out of this house. Otherwise there’s a very good chance I’ll do something bad to your spouse. But spouse and street did not rhyme. So I just stood there for a long time while David stared at me...” [15:52]
  • Kron: “In one early preview, one unforgettable moment, you... just said, ‘No, sir.’ And it was really a classic moment.” [16:23]

Highlights on the Cast and Specific Roles

• Comedic Standouts and Experimental Casting
  • Benson elaborates on the decision to have Ike Ufomadu play multiple comic roles in Act 5, utilizing his “most incredible deadpan delivery” [17:29] and noting Bianca Del Rio’s casting as Madame Pernell was tailored for her:
  • “...Bianca Del Rio, the most amazing drag performer who... Lucas really wrote it for her, and we were like, well, Bianca Del Rio would be our dream Madame Pernell. Would she ever come do it? And so we asked, and she said yes.” [18:56]
  • The opening scene with Del Rio is described as a celebrity roast: “We began to imagine this as her, you know, reading the room, essentially... she sort of takes that out in the form of these roasts of everyone...” [19:37]

Set Design and Theatrical Space

• Volleys Both Literal and Figurative
  • The tennis-court-inspired set draws on Molière’s history and mirrors the play’s back-and-forth dynamics:
    • Benson: “Molière’s company... used to perform in tennis courts... I wanted to bring forward that question... the idea of the game would be very vivid... that’s what we put on stage.” [23:57]

The Intimacy of Theater

• Onstage and Offstage Camaraderie
  • Kron reflects on company closeness: “...in the first rehearsal I remember looking around and thinking, you know, in a matter of weeks, we’re gonna know so much about each other... We get dressed together, we eat together, and we take naps together... It’s the ultimate trust exercise in a certain way...” [25:53]

Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• Sarah Benson (on belief and comedy):

  “The play is this sort of fascinating document looking at what makes someone believe what they believe and the kind of slippery nature of belief itself... to be doing it inside such a strong comedic envelope just feels like... the moment to be doing that.” [03:46]

• Matthew Broderick (on playing villains):

  “Most villains don’t think of themselves as villains... so I try to approach from their point of view... it’s fun to play people who are awful or duplicitous...” [09:00]

• Lisa Kron (on ensemble energy):

  “The cast — it’s got a real cohesion. But people are quite different... that is having a very, I think, delightful synergy.” [05:54]

• Memorable onstage mishap:

  Broderick: “But spouse and street did not rhyme. So I just stood there for a long time while David stared at me, not saying the next thing just to try to make me think of something that rhymed with street. And I, of course, could not until the next day.” [15:52]

• On casting and Bianca Del Rio:

  “Bianca Del Rio, the most amazing drag performer... Lucas really wrote it for her, and we were like, well, Bianca Del Rio would be our dream Madame Pernell. Would she ever come do it? And so we asked, and she said yes.” [18:56]

• On set design and game:

  “I got fascinated by... what must that site have done for this idea of the volleys back and forth and... I wanted to bring forward that question... the idea of the game would be very vivid.” [23:57]

• On theater as intimacy:

  “It is very intimate being in a show... it’s the ultimate trust exercise...” (Kron) [25:53]

Key Timestamps

• Opening/Introduction of Tartuffe [01:01-02:00]
• Discussion of play’s enduring relevance [03:30-04:25]
• Language and adaptation choices [04:36-05:36]
• Cast dynamics and comedic synergy [05:43-07:35]
• Broderick on villainy and performance approach [08:59-10:13]
• Believability, reality, and comic tension [10:51-11:59]
• Performing in verse, mishaps, and comic rhythm [12:48-16:43]
• Ike Ufomadu and comedic structure [17:29-18:48]
• Bianca Del Rio’s “roast” opening [19:26-20:29]
• Set design and tennis court inspiration [23:52-24:53]
• Ensemble intimacy and closing thoughts [25:53-26:34]

Conclusion

This episode captures the electric creativity driving “Tartuffe’s” revival: a team of acclaimed comics and writers, sharp direction, and a centuries-old text updated for today’s fractured realities. Designed as a comic but deeply resonant theatrical experience, the production and this podcast reveal how classic satire can still jab at our most modern vulnerabilities. Whether you’re drawn to comedy, language, or questions about why we believe what we believe, this “Tartuffe” — and this conversation — serves up “all of it.”