OPENING NIGHT - APÉRO DÉSASTRES #25
Tuesday 13 May at 7.30pm, at l'Entre-Pont (Le 109).
Organised by Les En-jeux de la Marionnette.
Free admission, no booking required, Entre-Pont membership required (€3).
PROJECTION
Babylon: refugee routes
Sandglass Theatre (United States)
Film-captation by Eric Bass, followed by a discussion with Eric Bass and Ines Bass, co-founders of Sandglass Theater.
Duration: 1 hour
Babylon: refugee routes is a hybrid between a film and a recording of the show of the same name, created by the legendary US-based company Sandglass Theater.
The dynamic, high-energy production is a response to the global refugee crisis and its impact on communities in the United States. The Sandglass Theater team seeks to understand the challenges faced by refugees and asylum seekers. To this end, they have conducted research and interviews with new residents who have immigrated to the United States in order to gain a better understanding of their situation and the difficulties associated with their resettlement. Babylon explores the relationship between refugees and their homelands, both lost and new, and the conflicts that exist in the countries where they find refuge. Using puppets and animated panoramic scrolls, five actors/singers/puppeteers tell the refugees' stories through original four-part choral songs.
LIVE CINEMA
Interstice
Katia Vonna Beltran
Duration: 1 hour
Poetry and diversion are powerful levers for highlighting strategies of manipulation, while at the same time imagining alternatives that encourage individual autonomy and emancipation. Choosing to take the side roads, making our way through unmarked, unsupervised, unguarded spaces, getting away from the panopticon... means choosing to step into the gaps that are open to us, or to create them, but we still have to be able to imagine them. Interstice is an invitation to a sensory journey, a moment of collective letting go...
SHOWS
Le Petit Théâtre du Bout du Monde - Opus III
Théâtre de la Massue - Ézéquiel Garcia-Romeu company
Suitable for all ages from 10 upwards / Running time: 50 minutes
Wednesday 14, Thursday 15 and Friday 16 May at 8pm
National Theatre of Nice - Salle des Franciscains
Price: from €5 to €35
Le Petit Théâtre du Bout du Monde (The World's Edge's Little Theater) – Opus III presents the ruins left by the civilisation of iron, coal and oil. Scattered remnants of a world that retraced the chaotic path of utopias and the Cold War; memories of workers who lived to the rhythm of their hopes and engaged in endless struggles.
This show constructs a universe of impressions, filtered through a memory with holes in it; in the midst of this distant/recent past, and in this very particular aesthetic of the modern ruin, it seeks out the spectres left by entire lives given over to the factory and the workshop.
Le Théâtre de la Massue is a contemporary puppet company founded in 1985. It explores contemporary forms of puppetry and new stage writing. Its works are conceived as a paradigm within a creative theatrical laboratory. Since 2015, the trilogy "Le Petit Théâtre du Bout du Monde", work in progressestablishes new rules of play between installation art and the world of contemporary puppetry.
Concept and direction: Ézéquiel Garcia-Romeu / Dramaturgy and outside view: Laurent Caillon / Puppets: Ézéquiel Garcia-Romeu, Martine Le Saout, Daria Holovchanska / Sound: Thierry Hett / Lighting: Ézéquiel Garcia-Romeu / Acting and manipulation: Ézéquiel Garcia-Romeu, Roxane Merten-Pallanca, Simon T. Rann.
Little Mythologies
Anima Théâtre
Young audience from 5 years / Running time: 40 minutes
Wednesday 14 May at 2pm, 3pm and 4pm
L'Entre-Pont (Le 109)
Single price: €10
Since the dawn of humanity, our species has tried to interpret and tame the world. As a result, oral traditions have sprung up, and with them the divinities that inhabit nature, the forest and fire to become gods and goddesses. Greek mythology is a representation of cosmogony through a host of gods, heroes and monsters, giving rise to classical arts such as theatre and literature, and inspiring Renaissance art down the centuries. Mythology is represented in both children's literature and major film productions, such as the Marvel characters.
This show will explore this vast field through 3 performances based around the founding myths: The Argonauts (object theatre), Icarus and Daedalus (shadow theatre) and Ulysses and Polyphemus (object theatre).
ANIMA in Latin means breath, spirit, soul. Dynamic dialectic. Creative impulse. The company was born with the ambition of opening up and inventing links between Everything - the artistic field - and Everyone - groups and individuals. The project is driven by the desire to create a permanent resonance between societal, artistic, scientific and human issues, rather than a formal search for a choreographic signature.
With Hugues Cristianini, Fred Sechet, Yiorgos Karakantzas / Distribution and production: Les Gomères (Nadine Lapuyade) / Logistics and communication: Gatien Raimbault / Administration and production: in'8 circle - maison de production (Anne Rossignol & Carla Vasquez) / Produced in partnership with the Marseille Natural History Museum
The Tiger and the Monk
Yeung Faï
General public / Duration: 40 minutes
Friday 16 May at 7.30pm
Théâtre de La Semeuse
Price: €14 to €16 (€10 for schoolchildren)
Saturday 17 May at 5.30pm
Departmental Museum of Asian Arts
Free admission on reservation
This show is made up of several short scenes in the tradition of Chinese opera. Chinese opera deals with past history and folklore, combining music, acrobatic dance, theatre and flamboyant costumes. In abstract and symbolic gestures, the puppet characters embody the heroic, divine and animal world, often portrayed in military exploits.
The Tiger and the Monk also pays great attention to the way in which the characters are portrayed and shows their character, seeking to combine appearance and state of mind. Sophisticated acrobatic movements, somersaults and all manner of pirouettes and acrobatics are also reminiscent of the performing arts and martial arts. The puppets become real acrobats whose battles are punctuated by impressive feats.
Thanks to its technical mastery, Yeung Faï manages to accurately express the spirit, character and feelings of the character he is playing. Alone on stage behind his castelet, accompanied by traditional music, and taking up short stories from Chinese folklore, he performs an exercise in style that highlights the skill, dexterity and fluidity of his manipulation. But this is not complete traditionalism, and it is with humour that Yeung Faï gives his version of Chinese opera.
La Semplicità ingannata (Simplicity betrayed)
Marta Cuscunà
Suitable for all ages 14 and over / Running time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Saturday 17 May at 7.30pm
Espace Magnan
Price: €14 to €16
La Semplicità ingannata, freely inspired by the works of Arcangela Tarabotti and the story of the Poor Clares of Udine, traces the origins of the feminist struggle in fifteenth-century Italy, in reaction to the patriarchal and religious domination that reigned in convents. At that time, the Poor Clares of Udine transformed their convent into a place of protest and freedom of thought, where religious dogma and male culture were desecrated.
This show brings to life the testimonies of some of the young women who, at that time, fought against social conventions, demanding freedom of thought and developing a critical spirit towards the dogmas of masculine and macho culture; and above all the freedom to invent an alternative model for women to the one that men had always imposed on the other half of humanity.
Marta Cuscunà, an actress by training, has included puppets in her work from the start, exploring the themes of female independence and resistance in her plays. It is a great honour for us to welcome this emblematic and committed figure of contemporary Italian puppetry to this one-woman show, accompanied by her puppets.
TRAINING
Handling Chinese glove puppets
Hosted by puppeteer Yeung Faï
For experienced or professional puppeteers
Duration: 6 hours
Wednesday 14 May from 10am to 5pm
L'Entre-Pont (Le 109)
Price: €80
Introduce yourself to the art of Chinese puppetry with Yeung Faï. This workshop will help you improve your dexterity and flexibility through finger exercises and hand yoga, essential for effective puppet manipulation. Immerse yourself in the thousand-year-old history of Chinese puppetry, exploring its traditional styles and cultural richness, while getting hands-on experience with glove puppets in fun and instructive workshops. Designed for professionals and advanced amateurs alike, this workshop combines technique, artistic expression and inspiration.
FAMILY WORKSHOP
Floating heroes
Building and manipulating puppets from driftwood
Hosted by puppeteer Julianà Dubovskà
Family audience, from 5 years / Duration: 2 hours
Wednesday 14 May from 10am to 12pm
L'Entre-Pont (Le 109)
Price: €10
Juliána Dubovská likes to use natural materials in her puppets, particularly driftwood. Picked up on the beach, it has unique, highly aesthetic shapes that allow her to imprint the memory of the landscape in her creations.
During the workshop, you will compose characters from driftwood and other natural materials, guided by your imagination, and then bring your creations to life with an introduction to puppet handling and group theatrical improvisation exercises. The workshop will begin with the construction of the puppet, with the choice of elements such as the body, head and arms, then their assembly and decoration. This will be followed by an introduction to puppet handling, exploring movement, voice and the character's story, and then a theatrical improvisation session in small groups to explore the expressive possibilities of puppets.
PROJECTION
Yeung Faï: a last puppet master
Documentary film by Christian Passuello, in the presence of the director and Yeung Faï
For all audiences aged 10 and over / Running time: 52 minutes.
Thursday 15 May at 9pm
La Gaya Scienza
Free admission
Yeung Faï represents the fifth generation of a great family of Chinese puppeteers shattered by the Cultural Revolution. His shows tell us about the China of yesterday and today. Between tradition and modernity, he uses all his art to convey the reality of a child from a great dynasty caught in the throes of history.
This documentary is inspired by the wonder of Yeung Faï's performances. It is the portrait of an artist who has succeeded in making his mark thanks to his determination and perseverance. The narrative structure of the film is constructed between the imaginary, that of theatrical creation, and the reality, that of exile and its consequences, those that Yeung Faï had to face for years before being able to achieve the status of an international artist.
MOMENT PERFORMED
Apéro DésAstres #26: Les En-jeux s'éclairent
Performances by Les En-jeux de la Marionnette, with Laurie Camous, Lisa Cruz, Lucille Delbecque and Katia Vonna Beltran
All ages / Duration: 30 minutes.
Friday 16 May at 9pm
La Providence Cultural Centre
Free admission
The Les En-jeux de la Marionnette collective invites you to (re)discover the diversity of their artistic worlds, through a series of encounters, performances and spotlights on their respective practices. Between light and shadow, objects, materials and puppets, let yourself be carried away!
Les En-Jeux de la Marionnette is a group of visual artists, set designers, puppeteers, clowns, stage directors, actors and creators, united around the practice of new stage languages and contemporary art. Throughout the year, the collective organises a range of public events aimed at bringing the contemporary puppetry arts to the attention of as many people as possible, notably through their Apéro DésAstres.
