Concluding its successful 2005/06 Season, Berkeley Repertory Theatre gets the last laugh with Molire's "The Miser." This savagely funny comedy about a love affair between a man and his money arrives in an exuberant production from Theatre de la Jeune Lune, recipient of the 2005 Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre. In a hilarious and contemporary new adaptation from David Ball, "The Miser" is staged in the Roda Theatre by Jeune Lune's artistic director, Dominique Serrand and features Steven Epp as the titular tightwad.

The show closes June 25.

"I'm pleased to welcome Theatre de la Jeune Lune back to Berkeley Rep and to have an opportunity to celebrate their new Tony Award with them," says Tony Taccone, artistic director of Berkeley Rep. "This remarkable team has once again taken a classic text and, in their inimitable fashion, transformed it into something fresh, vivid, and vibrant. As 'The Miser' arrives in Berkeley, I'm in New York preparing to open our production of 'Brundibar' in Times Square. This seems apropos for the culmination of a very busy and successful season at Berkeley Rep, and I'm tremendously grateful for the audiences that made the journey with us."

"Theatre de la Jeune Lune is grateful to be back at Berkeley Rep with 'The Miser,'" Serrand said. "Molire understood the comedy of tragedy. He liked to find the most pathetic situations, the most difficult situations, and make them funny. In this show, there's an odd dance between humor and the darker sides of our humanity that makes us laugh."

Greed is good! Or so thinks the Miser. He's a paranoid buffoon and the incarnation of bourgeois greed, who's beggared his family to safeguard his hefty stash of cash. But now his frustrated children must outsmart the old man to get the money they need to marry the mates they want. Can Harpagon hold onto his hoard (and get himself a hot young bride in the bargain), or will his offspring loosen his stranglehold on the family fortune? Founded by graduates of the famed Jacques Lecoq School of Physical Theatre in Paris, Theatre de la Jeune Lune transforms classic texts into dazzling new creations that are physically, visually, and theatrically spectacular. According to the Boston Globe, this production has "such grace and wit that it's churlish to be miserly with one's praise."

So make an investment in 'The Miser' -- you'll earn laughter with interest.

At the age of 21, Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (1622-1673) decided to dedicate his life to theater: He founded the Illustrious Theatre with friends and changed his name to Molire, probably to spare his parents the embarrassment of having an actor in the family. At first the company was an embarrassment, failing miserably. Struggling to survive, the troupe left Paris to tour the provinces -- and Molire began writing plays which proved surprisingly popular. The company returned triumphantly to the capital, performing one of Molire's scripts for Louis XIV, who was so pleased he granted them their own theater.

For the next 13 years, the group thrived, with Molire directing his own plays and often playing the lead role. He left behind a body of work which not only changed the face of contemporary comedy in his country, but went on to influence dramatists around the world. His scripts are still hilariously relevant today and frequently performed, particularly "The School for Husbands" (1661), "The School for Wives" (1662), "The Misanthrope" (1666), "The Doctor in Spite of Himself" (1666), Tartuffe (1664, 1667, 1669), "The Miser" (1668), and "The Imaginary Invalid" (1673). Ignoring the pleas of his loved ones, Molire insisted on performing Invalid while feeling ill himself, and -- in the ultimate culmination of his commitment to the art -- died after the curtain came down.

Also a native of Paris, Dominique Serrand (director) is artistic director and co-founder of Theatre de la Jeune Lune. He studied at the National Circus School and the Ecole Jacques Lecoq in Paris, where he met many of his future Jeune Lune collaborators. Serrand has acted in, conceived, directed, or designed most of the company's productions for more than 25 years, concentrating primarily on directing.

There will be a wealth of special events during the Berkeley run of "The Miser." Three post-play discussions moderated by theater professionals follow the performances on June 1, 13 and16.

Tickets for "The Miser" are priced from $10 to $59 and are on sale now. For penny-pinchers, discounted seats are available for groups of 15 or more, as well as half-price rush tickets for students and seniors. For every weekday performance, 20 half-price HotTix go on sale that day at noon at the Berkeley Rep box office (cash only). Berkeley Rep also offers half-price tickets for anyone under 30; this discount is subject to some restrictions, and valid identification is required.

Berkeley Rep's Roda Theatre is at 2015 Addison St., one block from Berkeley's downtown BART station and close to AC Transit bus lines. The theater is accessible to the handicapped, offering wheelchair seating and special services for those with hearing- or vision-impairment. The box office is next door at 2025 Addison St. For tickets or information, call (510) 647.2949 or toll-free at 888.4.BRT.Tix or click berkeleyrep.org.