LES RENARDS DES SURFACES

2014

CAST

Concept: Perrine Valli & Francine Jacob
Staging & choreography: Perrine Valli
In association with: Jean-Baptiste André, Jérome Andrieu, Tamara Bacci, Guillaume Béguin, Aurélie Charon, Foofwa d’Imobilité, Fred Jacot-Guillarmod, Polar, David Saada, Stanley Weber
With the participation of: Denis Podalydès, sociétaire of the Comédie-Française
Sound: Polar
Lighting: Laurent Schaer
Set construction: Ateliers Théâre Vidy-Lausanne
Administration: Pâquis Production
Photo: ©Jeanne Guye

Description

Perrine Valli twists Freud’s famous words, “women are a dark continent” by adding “and so are men”. She thus places the male – which should certainly be plural here – at the heart of her choreographic reflection, inviting some ten male artists to focus on an aspect of their identity. Sex and gender, XY. The project was initially called No Man’s Land, to signify that in terms of feminism, men are absent from the debate as well as the struggle. She ultimately settled on a footballing expression, since this sport metaphorically serves to mark the stage and codify the narrative of this hybrid show. Thus, the work is entitled Les Renards des surfaces (“Foxes in the box”), an image that qualifies cunning footballers and great goal-scorers, in short, men that are truly virile.

Opposite the female presence of dancer Tamara Bacci, the men on stage have prepared something to say, do, show, sing or dance, some even adding voice-overs. Guillaume Béguin, Fred Jacot-Guillarmod, Denis Podalydès, Jean-Baptiste André, David Saada, Jérôme Andrieu, Stanley Weber, Foofwa d’Imobilité and Polar, who has produced the show’s rock environment, began by answering France Culture producer Aurélie Charon’s questions for the show. Each then structured their participation in conversation with Perrin Valli, who had several realities in mind, such as Elisabeth Badinter’s book XY: On Masculine Identity. Nevertheless, Les Renards des surfaces does not end up as a dissertation or a manifesto: Through these invitations handed to young men, as she calls them, Perrine Valli mainly seeks evocations, impressions and intuitions about the major issue that is the relationship between men and women.

THÉÂTRE DE VIDY

Dates

6-8 March 2015: Arc-en-Scènes, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland
25 September 2015: Maison des Arts de Créteil, Les plateaux de la Briqueterie / CDC du Val-de Marne, France
12-17 September 2014: Festival de la Bâtie, Théâtre de Vidy, Lausanne, Switzerland
19-20 December 2014: Théâtre du Grütli, Geneva, Switzerland

Press

L’Express, GeneActive