Will you be willing to sit in the theater for six hours? This is the absolutely insane bet with director Brigitte Haentjens Romea six-hour epic that will bring together five of Shakespeare’s tragedies and see more than 25 actors and actresses parade on stage.
We get along, madness really […] but why not?said Brigitte Haentjens over the phone, less than a year from the first presentation of her new piece at Usine C, scheduled for April 2023.
Rome meet the same night The Rape of Lucretius, Coriolanus, Titus Andronicus, Julius Caesar at Anthony and Cleopatrafive tragedies by William Shakespeare translated and adapted for the occasion by playwright and screenwriter Jean Marc Dalpé.
Co-produced by Sibyllines, a company founded by Brigitte Haentjens, and the French Theater of the Center du Théâtre d’Aujourd’hui, the play will invite the public to dive into the rise and fall of Roman civilization. I want to treat it as a kind of epic in the history of Rome or of democracy, depending on which side you lean on.summarizes the director.
The play will feature an impressive number of performers, such as Paul Ahmarani, Marc Béland, Céline Bonnier, Leïla Donabelle Kaze, Sylvie Drapeau, Irdens Exantus, Sébastien Ricard and many more.
trust the public
Although she admits presenting a six -hour play may seem difficult, Brigitte Haentjens, who aspires to make theater for the general public, believes people will face the challenge. Of course, theater has always been demanding, not song, not cinema, it still needs vigilance. But I don’t care about thathe explained.
The play will be greeted by at least two intervals, which will be put in place to maintain fluidity between Shakespeare’s five tragedies. We want it to be a continuous story, so maybe the intervals aren’t at the end of a play, or in the middle. We want to make sure there is fluidity in all of this.
Place for order and diversity
Of the 27 actors and actresses who will step on the board of Usine C, almost half will come from the next generation. This is very important to me. I wanted to work with people who had been accomplices for years, but I found it important that young people were in the room as well.said Ms. Haentjens.
” That’s the beauty of theater. A youngster who came out of theater school and found himself playing Marc Béland, on an equal footing, that was great. “
Concern for equality is also reflected at the level of roles. The performers will play different characters depending on the Shakespeare play to be put on, and the director promises that not everyone will be given the same lead roles. If you play Coriolanus, in the next play you will play a small role. It’s all there all the time actuallysummarizes the director.
There are women who also play men, because in Shakespeare often the good roles are men, so I wanted to have a mix.
And why did you choose to take an interest in Shakespeare’s work for this monumental work? For Brigitte Haentjens, the answer to this question is first and foremost in extreme depth British playwright texts.
What I like about Shakespeare are the paradoxes. It’s not “people are good and others are bad”, there are always many sides to things.
While Jean Marc Dalpé’s final text is on hand, the director is currently in the exploration laboratory phase with the actors and actresses. The team will begin rehearsal in August and the game Rome will be shown from April 5 to 16. Tickets are already on sale on the Usine C website (New window).
Source: Radio-Canada
