Michael T. Weiss and Louisa Krause in "Les Liaisons Dangereuses." (photo: Derek Kouyoumjian)

"Les Liaisons Dangereuses," the novel written by Choderlos de Laclos, has inspired countless reimaginings on stage and on screen. There was "Dangerous Liaisons" featuring John Malkovich and Glenn Close attempting to one-up each other in games of love and seduction; "Valmont," featuring Colin Firth and Annette Benning; "Cruel Intentions" ("Liaisons" light) with Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillipe, and even a well-reviewed adult film released this past summer.

But the reason Michael T. Weiss (most commonly remembered as Jarod from the television series "The Pretender," and from his roles in the films "Jeffrey" and "Freeway") is in Boston and again working with the Huntington Theatre Company (he was last in Huntington's staging of "Burn This" at the beginning of 2005), is the award-winning Christopher Hampton's stage adaptation "Les Liaisons Dangereuses."

While the story is well known - the beautiful and cunning La Marquise de Merteuil enlists her partner-in-crime Le Vicomte de Valmont (played by Weiss) to seduce her lover's bride to be. Valmont soon becomes caught up in an intrigue of love and lust and seduction which eventually leads to his death and the Marquise's humiliation and fall from social grace - the Huntington staging, with its stylish, non-classical approach, and its use of an array of mirrors, staircases, and spirals, promises something for everyone, even those familiar with the other adaptations.

When Weiss strolls into a room at the Huntington's administrative offices, he's wearing a blue sweater, a tan vest, a golden scarf tied just-so around his neck, and a cap. He hasn't shaved in a couple of days, though his sideburns are long and appear carefully groomed and he's sporting a weeks-old soul patch on his chin. While he drinks his coffee black, throughout this late December interview, he plays with the proffered sugar packets and creamer container.

He has opinions on the current political regime and the ripples he predicts will lead to a better government, eventually. And while he imagines that there are obvious links between the politics of the 18th and 21st centuries, he's not here to stump for any specific political ideology and attempts, more than once, to steer the conversation back to the show itself.

"It's a classic. It sort of transcends time," he says. "It's about human relationships and the manipulation of such for personal gain. It's about men and women and the sexual game we tend to play with each other, but shows how nobody wins in the game of love."

He thinks Valmont is the most difficult role he's played - calling it sexy and challenging and something from which he is learning daily. Just four days into rehearsals and he already has hours of fencing under his belt with countless more to go to ensure audiences believe the show's sword fights look realistic.

While there is nudity in the play, "Liaisons" does not have GLBT content per say (as opposed to "Cruel Intentions" which did include an out character played by Joshua Jackson who "tricks" pivotal information out of a trick for the movie's Valmont character), Weiss is no stranger to the GLBT community. His role as a gay man in "Jeffrey," he said, released in 1995, brought with it the usual spotlight focused on straight actors playing gay roles, but such attention wasn't exactly unexpected.

"It was cutting-edge at the time," Weiss said, "but, as an actor, I believe the full spectrum of humanity should be imagined."

Weiss is coy about the play's promised nudity, declining to comment on whether it is he who goes full Monty, but he laughs at the thought that someone would choose to come to the show solely to see skin. Come for the sexy adaptation or for the bitter rivalries, come for the seduction or for the attempt at equalizing the sexual power of the two genders, but don't just come for the nudity.

As this is his second stint at Huntington, Weiss is finding himself more and more drawn to Boston and its thriving arts community, he said. He spent a portion of this past summer at Harvard taking an art history class and it was during this time, after already accepting the role of Valmont, that he began researching this specific time period of history.

And the Huntington, for its part, was pleased to get Weiss to return to its stage.

"I have always loved this brilliant, sensuous play," said Nicholas Martin, the theatre's artistic director, "and Michael T. Weiss starring as the dangerous Vicomte Valmont, hot on the heels of his remarkable performance in 'Burn This,' is a coup for the Huntington."

What Weiss next plans to do remains unclear, though he hints at a show in New York. While his play "Streams of Consciousness" was produced at The Met Theater in Los Angeles recently, and his one-man photography and art show "sold out in almost four hours," he said, he is solely focused right now on bringing to life one of history's most unlikable yet strangely sympathetic villains, or tragic heroes, depending on your point of view.

"This adaptation is remarkable and concise and people are in for a great night of theater," he said. "Valmont appears to be an angel on the outside but is a devil on the inside, like anyone who sets out to break someone's heart. I'm drawn to characters that have different layers, and especially to Valmont, who becomes ensnared by his own manipulations."

"Les Liaisons Dangereuses" runs from Jan. 6 to Feb. 5 at the Boston University Theatre, 264 Huntington Avenue, Boston. Performances are scheduled on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings at 7:30 p.m. (except Jan. 17), Friday and Saturdays at 8 p.m., and Sundays at 7 p.m. (Jan. 8 and Jan. 22 only). Matinees are scheduled for Wednesdays, Jan. 18 and Feb. 1, at 2 p.m., and on Saturdays and Sundays at 2 p.m., (except Jan. 7 and 8). Ticket prices range from $15 to $70 and can be purchased online at huntingtontheatre.org or BostonTheatreScene.com, by phone at 617-266-0800, or in person at the Boston University Theatre Box Office, 264 Huntington Ave., or the Stanford Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts, 527 Tremont Street, Boston.