It is difficult to reveal what’s behind a performance that works on the basis of surprise… Let’s just say that Béatrice Chaumier, Antoine Millotet, Mathias Walhem and Sébastien Bacquias have invented the concept of “IMR (Improvised Musical Reading)” to offer a “unique, surprising and unparalleled evening about the immediate and natural, basically improv in the most noble sense of the term.” Using a written work from an author chosen by the organiser, these four fearless performers dive into an improvised musical reading. And of course, coming from 26000 Couverts, there is no doubt that there will be laughter, surprises and major twists.
A series of coincidences are revealed and then multiplied, gradually changing our relationship to the text and the way it is read. Through a wonderful display of magic and a procession of embarrassing secrets, finishing with a grand finale that does away with all the traditional conventions of musical reading, these disturbances radically change our connection with time and reality. By innocently exploring the status of the text and the relationship between humans and words, and by questioning the foundations of the triptych of “a subject who speaks, a subject who listens and language itself”, the performance explores the symbolic empowerment of written language and its abrupt power over reality.
This first performance from the Mégastars company is a delicately-crafted humorous masterpiece that plays with the codes of theatre, music and false pretences.
BIOGRAPHY
Sébastien Bacquias, Aymeric Descharrières, Olivier Dureuil and Florence Nicolle are multi-disciplinary artists from Les Tombées de la Nuit’s much loved 26000 Couverts company (Dijon). They teamed up in June 2015 for an out-loud musical reading for a literary awards ceremony at the Société des Gens de Lettres. Amused by this specific form of musical reading in public, they founded their company, Mégastars, in 2018, appointing Florence Dell’Accio as chair and Gaëtan Billier as treasurer. Je n’ai rien à vous dire is their first performance, created with the help of Bernard Bacherot (author, storyteller and writing workshop teacher) for the texts and off-stage role of a fictional novelist and poet who doesn’t like actors, along with Gabor Rassov (author, scriptwriter, actor and director) and Sarah Douhaire (director). Since then, the company has developed Ripailles! and Trash info radio, continuing to explore the world of musical reading by playing with the codes of theatre, music and false pretences.
DISTRIBUTION
Avec Sébastien Bacquias (contrebasse), Aymeric Descharrières (saxophone), Olivier Dureuil et Florence Nicolle (comédiens) et Sarah Douhaire (regard extérieur), Bernard Bacherot (textes), Gabor Rassov (aide à la mise en scène).
