Event

The Hypochondriac

Abounding with hilarious characters and Moliere's incomparable wit, the cell presents a contemporary re-imagining of Moliere's last play, THE IMAGINARY INVALID. This production satirizes today's pill-popping culture and drug-driven health care system. THE HYPOCHONDRIAC takes place in a swank Manhattan apartment awash with art, which is now overgrown with pill bottles, bed pans and medical paraphernalia. Moliere's original musical interludes in the play are now replaced by faux drug commercials that promote questionable drug treatments and their unpleasant side effects.

The story revolves around Mr. Argan, a wealthy and eccentric hypochondriac, who is plagued by a gold-digging wife, an insolent maid, a rebellious young daughter and an infestation of drug-peddling, incompetent doctors. Argan is actually in fine health but is so doped up that the side effects alone have him convinced that he is dying. Through a series of hilarious tricks and outrageous disguises, Argans fast-talking maid and exasperated brother work furiously to cure Argan of his true malady. His doctors are the real disease.