It was a pity that the audience for Tartuffe was so thin on the performance that I attended, but it was no doubt a reflection of the Easter holidays. This was a real shame because we witnessed a cracking performance of this 350 year-old farce. Molière is famously difficult to translate because he wrote in rhyming alexandrines, or 12-syllable couplets. Ranjit Bolt chose to keep the rhyming structure, but to use the more familiar (to British ears) 8-syllable line. The only downside of this is that it can end up sounding rather like a Rupert Bear story. To the cast's credit they largely avoided this elephant trap.

Fozia Khaliq's set was the ultimate in simplicity and it served the action well. I wasn't totally convinced, however, of the need to play the piece completely in the round, as I must confess to having been a little distracted by the audience members sitting directly opposite me.

Tartuffe is, of course, an elaborate piece of fluff, like so many Molière plays. It lacks the seriousness of Le Misanthrope or Don Juan, but goes beyond the pure farce of some other plays such as Les Fourberies de Scapin. Gigi Robarts' direction showed a firm grasp of the comedy and kept up a furious pace. After all, Molière obeyed the classic rules; the action must take place in one location and within 24 hours.

The eponymous central character in the play, whose name derives from the Italian for truffle is supposedly a dévôt, a "holier-than-thou" feature of seventeenth century France that Molière was keen to satirise. It is a touch of genius on Molière's part that he delayed the first entrance of this character until Act III in order to build the audience's curiosity. Andy Murton, fresh from his Manchester pub, gave a beautifully obsequious performance in the role, as he winkled his way into the affections and pockets of both Monsieur Orgon and his mother Madame Pernelle (I've always wondered why they have different names). Michael Mayne was suitably conned as Orgon, and gave a big blustering performance, although I did think he was possibly a little too old to convincingly be the son of Alison Liney. Molière, himself was only 42 when he created the role for himself.

In the part originally played by Armande Béjart (Mrs Molière), new member Lynne O'Sullivan was a delightful Elmire, as she played the seductress in order to unmask the lecherous Tartuffe. Fine, well-tuned performances too from the Orgon children; Sharita Oomeer as the lovesick Mariane and Ben Lawson as her bumptious brother Damis. I did wince a bit, however at the pronunciation of the latter's name. It's Bolt's fault I know, and the rhymes dictated it, but the name should surely be pronounced “Dameece” rather than “Damee”. Just think of the Three Musketeers.

Jonathan Wober drew the short straw in a way in playing the "Mr Reasonable" character, Cléante. So many plays by Molière, have such a character, the dull voice of reason in the middle of all the humour and mayhem. To Mr Wober's credit he made the most of what was there. New member, Alex Kearley-Shiers had an almost equally thankless role as Valère, Mariane's intended, but gave a totally competent performance, as did the other new Company member Paul Spencer doubling as the bailiff and the King's messenger.

The stand-out performance for me, however, was that of Jeanette Clarke as Dorine, the maid, a part created for the star of the Illustre Théâtre, Madeleine Béjart. With perfect comic timing, and a beautiful crisp delivery, Ms Clarke was a joy to watch as she connived to thwart Tartuffe's plans and to reconcile the lovebirds. Such a shame that her role in the second half was so much less than in the first Which reminds me; I was so glad that, despite the relatively short length of the play, the director chose to insert an interval. It's an increasing gripe of mine that too many Tower shows (and professional shows for that matter) are played straight through without a half-time break. Moaning over, revenons à nos moutons (as they say in France).

I was unsure about the initial tableau with the cast all wearing carnival masks. For one thing it was too short to really register anything of the characters. Maybe Ms Robarts was trying to stress the essential commedia dell'arte elements of Molière's play. Molière knew the Italian comedy well and borrowed extensively from it – he seemed blissfully unaware of English Elizabethan and Jacobean theatre.

Having decided not to set the play specifically in 1660s Paris, Ms Robarts went for a contemporary look for the costumes with some quirky elements; Damis wearing an animal costume onesie, Cléante and Valère in the loudest shirts I've seen for some time, and Tartuffe himself in a sort of 70s hippie garb before changing into a black singlet. The latter at least allowed a quick strip-off before assaulting the hapless Elmire. The head under the skirts scene was made all the more humorous by the fact that Elmire was wearing a fairly short dress at the time.

I was surprised to read in the programme just how few Molière plays the Tower has performed. Maybe it's time to investigate a few more. After the largely serous nature of our last few productions, this was a welcome antidote.

Photography by David Sprecher