His predecessor Paul Berenger, a white Mauritian of French descent, became the island's first non-Hindu prime minister in 2003.

BBC: Mauritius profile

More to the point, he delivers a feverishly brilliant performance as King Berenger I, a 400-year-old monarch on his last wobbly legs.

ECONOMIST: Eug��ne Ionesco's ��Exit the King��: Forgotten gem | The

With the sunken eyes of a Munch painting and the floppy limbs that characterise the Marx brothers, Mr Rush's Berenger is a despot in decline.

ECONOMIST: Eug��ne Ionesco's ��Exit the King��: Forgotten gem | The

Former Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam of the Social Alliance returned to power after defeating Paul Berenger of the Mauritian Militant Movement in elections in July 2005.

BBC: Mauritius profile

The ruling alliance, which included Mr Ramgoolam's Labour Party and the Militant Socialist Movement, was re-elected in a closely fought vote in 2010, defeating the Mauritian Militant Movement led by Mr Berenger.

BBC: Mauritius profile