Passion, vanity and celebrity intertwine in the Iowa State Theatre production of “The Misanthrope,” written my Moliere and adapted by Neil Bartlett.

Bartlett’s adaptation sets Moliere’s classic tale of a man discontent with the shallowness of society in present day Hollywood.

Gregg Henry, director of “The Misanthrope,” said he felt ISU theater needed to tackle Moliere again.

“It was about time to work on a play about image,” Henry said. “This adaptation deals with image and being scrupulously honest.”

Although this production is an adaptation, Henry said it is very true to Moliere’s original text.

“It’s the best translation possible, really,” Henry said. “By putting it in Hollywood today with the glitter and glam, you get the perfect parallel with Moliere’s time.

“This adaptation is extraordinarily true,” he added. “It keeps the 12-syllable line and the rhyming couplet. The script hasn’t changed the play.”

Henry said there have been some unusual quirks to the rehearsal process, but he feels they have strengthened the show.

“We had a long time [to rehearse] this, but it was kind of hiccuping,” Henry said. “We’d work for a while, then stop, work, stop. We had a lot of time for the words to sink in; we had a lot of time to consider it.”

Due to a number of events going on at Fisher Theater, the cast had to do a lot of rehearsing outside of the theater.

“We worked for three or four weeks with no scenic design,” Henry said. “We’d put a chair at one end of the room, and a sofa at the other and say ‘lets do it.’ [The actors] were really dealing with each other. They didn’t get locked into stand here and say this.”

Jack Meggers, senior in performing arts, plays the character of Alceste in the production. Meggers said the process has been personally challenging.

“It’s been bumpy because I lost my voice for a week,” Meggers said. “I can only speak for myself, but the process of discovering who the character is was harder because the [rehearsal process] has been a lot more condensed [than in other shows].”

Meggers said Alceste stands for honesty and equality.

“[Alceste] is opposed to the pretentiousness and falseness of the people around him,” he explained. “He’s disgusted by the behavior of people who say one thing and mean another. He reaches a breaking point.”

Complicating Alceste’s situation is his infatuation with a woman who Henry called “the Madonna of her age.”

“I’ve found this play is about messy human beings, which is what we all are,” Henry said. “We can laugh at it as well as with it. At the same time we go, ‘Oh, I’ve done that.'”

Henry said as he’s worked on the play, his interpretation of its meaning has changed.

“I thought it was about telling the truth at all costs, but it’s really about who we fall in love with,” Henry said. “The fucked up love story has been fascinating. We all get ourselves in that situation, and all our intelligence can’t help us.”

Meggers hopes people will learn from Alceste’s mistakes.

“I’d like people to be able to leave, take a look at their own lives, and see where they display false behavior,” he said. “At the same time, they have to accept that that goes on. Raging out doesn’t really do any good.

“For all Alceste’s rage, he really doesn’t go a hell of a lot of good.”

Henry is also interested to see what people’s reaction to the show will be.

“This is Moliere’s most serious comedy,” Henry said. “It leans closest to tragedy. Is this a comedy or a tragedy? It depends who you empathize with.”

“The Misanthrope” will be performed at Fisher Theater Friday and Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. Tickets are $4.50 for students and $7 general admission.