In 1970, French director Ariane Mnouchkine established her own theater, which she intended to become a “laboratory for popular theater,” at a former munitions factory situated on the outskirts of Paris. Fifty years later, Mnouchkine still holds true to her statement. She has recently given five emerging companies a chance to showcase their talents for the Départ d’Incendies festival, meaning “Starting Fires,” without cost. Festival organizer and 28-year-old theater director Annabelle Zoubian had reached out to Mnouchkine and asked if the company could host an event dedicated to young troupes. Her request was promptly accepted. The festival runs through July 2 at a rehearsal hall belonging to Mnouchkine’s company, Théâtre du Soleil, which regularly hosts performances. The five groups that are participating have modeled their egalitarian approach to casting and staffing from Mnouchkine’s ensemble.
In this festival, I witnessed three productions that boasted large casts of up to 15 performers, which is a rarity for budding companies due to the costs involved. Although there were some blunders, the artists took some significant risks, which paid off in exciting ways. Sébastien Kheroufi, a first-time director, has a bright future ahead; he puts his personal touch on Sophocles’ ancient play, “Antigone,” by weaving in his own fractured family history. Kheroufi met the chorus of four amateur women who have experienced exile while working with an emergency shelter. In one scene, each woman curses Creon in a different language, presented with arresting gravitas.
Another director, Zoubian, takes on a classic drama, “Platonov,” which happens to be Anton Chekhov’s first four-act play from 1878. The characters’ chaotic energy, coupled with their drinking and partying around Platonov, makes the play well-suited for young actors. The cast needed time to settle into the marathon play, and there were some technical glitches. Nonetheless, the production soldiered on, thanks to some outstanding performances, particularly Léo Nivet and Romane Bonnardin.
“Macabre Carnival,” another production featured in the festival, was performed outdoors in a parking lot corner. It was adapted from the Tupamaros, a far-left revolutionary movement based in Uruguay in the 1960s and 1970s. This show, which had its premiere in 2021 and featured artists born in Chile, France, Peru, and Uruguay had its roots inspired by Mnouchkine, who was named as an inspiration several times in the playbill. The cast used only a handful of platforms on wheels along with drawings on a blackboard to highlight the main characters and the political background and were a hit due to the talents of Stephane Bensimon and the cast’s music, dance, and acrobatic abilities.
The festival’s utopian streak made “Macabre Carnival” wholly engrossing, eliciting a warm welcome from Starting Fires, a new platform for showcasing young French companies’ talents, especially as many are venturing out to rural areas. The festival deserves to be a permanent fixture on the summer festival calendar.
