West and McTeer indulge themselves, rolling words around in their mouths and running their hands over surfaces like cartoon villains. To be more than a literary Playboy serial, however, “Les Liaisons” needs grounding in reality. She exacts her revenge with the only weapon she knows. Valmont falls for de Tourvel despite himself, leaving the Marquis jealous and vengeful. However, sometimes lust shortcircuits love, and sometimes vice versa. Valmont slithers snake-like into Cecile’s bed, despite her protestations, then, cannily, patiently, spins de Tourvel into a tizzy. The pleasure comes from the entrapments and entanglements. Should he succeed, with written proof, the Marquis offers herself as a reward. Valmont is charged to seduce a virginal 15-year-old, Cecile (Morfydd Clark), who’s due to marry one of the Marquis’s ex-lovers, while also going after the chaste Madame de Tourvel (Elaine Cassidy) simply by way of a challenge. Callously, they screw people over - usually over chaise longues and writing desks. The story centers on Valmont and the Marquis de Merteuil, a malicious pair who use sex to control and manipulate others. Its several relationships reflect one another to reveal a specification of sexual politics and practices. Hampton manages to retain the secrecy and disclosure, while reconstructing the action to reveal an elegant, classical symmetry beneath the surface. Its plot unfolds through a criss-cross of letters, and it thrives by its form, showing us deceits spun and swallowed. Pierre Choderlos de Laclos’ original book is arguably the ultimate epistolary novel. It’s like a one-night stand: gratifying enough, but more or less meaningless.įirst staged 30 years ago by the Royal Shakespeare Company, Hampton’s stage version seems ingenious largely because it’s such an improbable thing. In the intimacy of the Donmar Warehouse, Christopher Hampton’s adaptation becomes sultry and sensuous, but lacks substance and a sense of reality. What is “Les Liaisons Dangereuses”? A delicious slice of scandalous eroticism - pure sauce and spleen - or something more intricate? Josie Rourke leans towards the former, encouraging Janet McTeer and Dominic West into pantomime villainy as the Marquis de Merteuil and the Vicomte de Valmont.