Conn plays Dorante the lead role in the Shakespeare Theatre Company’s current production of “The Liar.” The 17th-century play was written by Frenchman Pierre Corneille and adapted by David Ives.
The play is called “The Liar.” To get ready for the role did you practice by lying a lot?
I try to keep that on the stage and less in my life.
What should people expect from the show?
It’s very rare that I read a script and laugh aloud alone while reading it. This is one of those plays that is just such a funny script and such a witty, brilliant adaptation. There’s a little bit for everyone. It’s a 17th-century French farce, you’ve got these wonderfully gorgeous costumes and the production values that all the Shakespeare Theatre audiences are used to. But you’ve got this really updated contemporary language, and it’s ultimately just a blast. … It’s rare that I’ve been onstage and heard the response that I hear every night from the audience.
What would Corneille would say if he saw the updated version?
If you had asked me what I thought of Corneille’s “The Liar” three years ago, I would have had no idea what you were talking about. … I knew Corneille as the father of French tragedy. I think the fact that Ives has now brought the audience to this particular play would be exciting to Corneille.
What’s your impression of the D.C. theater scene?
I think D.C. is one of the great theater towns in America. It’s got to be one of the top three or four — up there with New York, Chicago and San Francisco — for best theater towns in the country. It’s an exciting theater town. I’ve been lucky enough to see a lot of my New York friends because there’s a so much work down here.
– Alan Suderman
