You say, "clafoutis..."

A savvy, French-speaking patron wrote to us with the following question:

Just saw God of Carnage and was really bugged by a small detail. Why did the cast all mispronounce "clafoutis? Surely members of the aspirational class would know to put the accent on the last (NOT the second) syllable. Was this done intentionally to make them seem ignorant?

Brooks Ashmanskas enjoys
clafoutis in God of Carnage.
Photo: T. Charles Erickson

We turned to Charles Haugland (Artistic Programs and Dramaturgy), who often has the inside scoop on these sorts of decisions -- ones that are made in the rehearsal room by the director and actors as part of their process. He tells us:

[Director Daniel Goldstein] and the cast had a conversation about the pronunciation of "clafoutis" on the first day; they knew the "correct" French pronunciation, but had also heard the one they opted to use more often and casually in New York.

They decided it would be fussy to say it in perfect French, and to their mind, the pronunciation is not inaccurate so much as intentionally Americanized.


Of course, whether they should be eating clafoutis at all is a question, too. (Daniel questions translator Christopher Hampton's choice to leave clafoutis in the script when me moved the action from Paris to Brooklyn). Indeed in the movie, still set in Brooklyn but written by Yasmina Reza with director Polanski, they eat pear and apple cobbler, instead.

The Huntington Theatre Company's production of God of Carnage plays now through February 5, 2012 only at the B.U. Theatre. Get tickets and information or call our Box Office at 617 266 0800.

What Audiences Are Saying About GOD OF CARNAGE

Have you seen God of Carnage? Please share your comments with us.

• What do you think happens after the curtain goes down? Do the Raleighs bring their their son to apologize to the Novaks'? What happens next between the adults?

• Playwright Yasmina Reza weaves many symbols into her script, and scenic designer Dane Laffrey teases some of them out through his design. What symbols and scenic elements held meaning for you?

• Did you attend a post-show conversation? What comments surprised you or made you think differently about the play? Would you attend a post-show conversation again? What were you thinking about on the way home from the theatre?

Leave your comments here

The Huntington Theatre Company's presentation of God of Carnage plays now through February 5, 2012 only at the B.U. Theatre. Get tickets and information or call our Box Office at 617 266 0800.