THEATER : Lessons of ‘Liaisons’ Are Foreign, Domestic

The title doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue. After all, it’s French. And the time and place in which it happens isn’t exactly familiar territory. So what is it about Christopher Hampton’s play “Les Liaisons Dangereuses” (lay lee-a-zon-don-jer-rurz)--a depiction of decadent aristocrats in 18th-Century France--that has made it so popular with audiences?

Karen Hensel has a quick and ready answer: “It’s timeless. It doesn’t matter where it’s set. What Hampton is really doing is making a comment on politics and sex, today.

“He’s just doing it in a time when there was less technology--and much fancier clothes.”

With that, Hensel shifts in her chair and adjusts the flowing skirts of her elaborate gown, one of many she will wear in “Les Liaisons Dangereuses,” which will open the Grove Shakespeare Festival’s 1991 season at the Gem Theatre on Wednesday.

“Les Liaisons,” which is all about the manipulation and sexual games set in motion by two rich and self-absorbed members of French nobility, is directed by Thomas F. Bradac, the Grove’s producing artistic director. (This marks his 28th directorial assignment for the company).

Hensel stars as the calculating and venomous Marquise de Merteuil, opposite Carl Reggiardo as the equally calculating Le Vicomte de Valmont, for whom bed-hopping is a veritable profession. As a result of Merteuil’s scheming challenge, he agrees to pursue the righteous Tourvel (played by Nike Doukas), setting off a chain of events that leads to dark humor, love--and tragedy.

Giving this casting a special touch is the fact that its game-players are partnered in real life: Hensel and Reggiardo have been together for 17 years. “So, the (play’s) fight scene is a real thrill for us, since we never, ever quarrel,” deadpans Hensel.

She and Reggiardo were both costumed--and bewigged--for a recent interview at the theater. Which is to say they both looked terrifically elegant--and uncomfortable. As Hensel put it, “You practically need three servants to help you move your skirts around. It makes you wonder how anyone ever had time for quickie sex.”

It was a then-shocking 1782 novel by Choderlos de Laclos that first explored the lives and dalliances of Merteuil and Valmont.

Hampton’s play, adapted from the novel, was a hit on the stages of Broadway, London and Paris and, in 1988, Los Angeles. Then came the 1989 film adaptation of Hampton’s play, “Dangerous Liaisons,” starring Glenn Close, John Malkovich and Michelle Pfeiffer. Plus, in that same year, a rival screen version, “Valmont,” adapted from the novel (which is in the public domain) and starring Annette Bening, Colin Firth and Meg Tilly. (Decades earlier, the tale was explored by France’s Roger Vadim in a 1959 film starring Gerard Philippe and Jeanne Moreau.)

As Hensel acknowledges, “There’s been a lot of interest in these characters. . . . It’s always fascinating to watch people who are riding for a fall.” Adds Reggiardo, “This play is about people who are so far into artifice they don’t know what a real emotion is.”

Both Hensel and Reggiardo should be familiar to Orange County playgoers.

She has starred in many South Coast Repertory productions, including 1989’s “Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune.” Hensel, who has also done extensive TV work, quips that she’s best known for playing “bad women, crazed women and women with dialects.” Known for his Shakespearean work, Reggiardo appeared last season in Grove productions of “Much Ado About Nothing,” “As You Like It” and “Othello.” Several years back, the two teamed for “Cloud Nine” at SCR.

They are practicing their lines during their drive time from their home in Pasadena, which makes Hensel conclude, “I guess people in the other cars think we look slightly strange. . . .

“You know, the great plays always address a moral or philosophical question. That’s why this one was an important and instant classic. It’s a very moral play--it says the price you pay for promiscuity and manipulation is death,” Hensel says.

“You see how sexual manipulation can affect lives--innocent lives,” adds Reggiardo, who says he finds the play more darkly romantic than humorous, despite the fact that its dialogue is rife with wickedly amusing duels of words between Valmont and Merteuil. (That dialogue is delivered with the syntax and sound of 18th-Century conversation.)

As Reggiardo notes, “When Valmont finally comes in contact with genuine love, he’s afraid to allow it to happen. He fears he’ll lose control of his life and lose his identity. This is about a man who’s almost saved by love.”

“Les Liaisons” also addresses the situation in that period for women such as Merteuil, women who had few areas in which to focus their energy and intelligence. “Sex was their only avenue to power,” says Hensel, who believes that if Merteuil lived today, “she’d be an executive in the corporate world.”

Hensel also believes that all the gold and gilding--the “wretched excess”--of 18th-Century France has a modern-day counterpart in Las Vegas.

She also wonders if Merteuil and Valmont don’t have real-life counterparts among today’s celebrity circus. With a raised eyebrow, Hensel says, “How about Madonna and Warren Beatty?

“She’s a self-made woman who exploits her sexuality in a very cold-blooded way. He’s someone who pursues women as if they’re games.

“Think about it.”

“Les Liaisons Dangereuses” opens the Grove Shakespeare Festival’s 1991 season Wednesday at 8 p.m. and continues through June 15 at the Gem Theatre, 12852 Main St., Garden Grove. Performances at 8 p.m. Wednesday to Saturday; 3 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday. Tickets: $16 to $20. Because of mature subject matter, the play may not be suitable for younger audiences. Information: (714) 636-7213.