The paradox of desire

A sparkling quartet, overflowing with energy, in which each of the actors immediately draws you into the dance, in a frenzied farandole that keeps you in suspense until the end… the whirlwind of life!

“We knew each other, we recognized each other, we lost sight of each other, we lost sight of each other again” … we know the song.
Iris, the charming diva, Alice, the ethereal young theater critic, Robert, the kéké director, Anton, the tormented successful novelist, meet to discuss the editing of a play written by Anton for Iris, which would be staged on stage by Robert, assisted by Alice…

A disturbing reunion…
For funny and touching characters, played respectively by Codrina Pricopoia who also directs, by Alexia Séféroglou, by Samy Rahal and by Geoffroy Vernin, four artists full of enthusiasm and particularly convincing!
Casually, through dialogues with subtle nuances, the play humorously addresses the questions of the choice of the author, the actors, the director.

And there, personal stories burst in, past loves, passions and disappointments, misunderstandings, which will interfere with the negotiations.
Iris’s flirtatious looks no longer seduce Robert, who has a crush on Alice, who is infatuated with Anton, who is in love with Iris… A crossover full of eroticism and fantasy that leaves everyone bloodless .

While Iris drowns her spleen in retsina, Robert, sporty, cock-shaped and flowered shirt, coos loudly to Alice « It’s a place that looks like Louisiana, like Italy » for her. lure to his country house to… work on the staging…
Rake ! Rateau also for Alice, who leaves Anton unmoved.
“Man only becomes aware of his desires when they are not satisfied,” Schopenhauer tells us.

The paradox of desire! A subject at the heart of life.
Desire ! Source of suffering, but essential engine of life.
Complexity of romantic desire, frustrations, illusions, hopes, impossible happiness? Would it always end badly?
Iris, the actress, does not accept it. For Anton’s play, she wants a happy ending. “Tired of playing in front of empty rooms!”
Pleasing the public is what matters to him!
Anton, the author, is strongly opposed to it. He wants to tell a story, to focus on the truth of feelings.

Does an author write to caress the audience or to provoke them, surprise them, encourage them to think, to appeal to their emotions and their own story?
The play thus questions writing, theater, through the exploration of the feeling of love.
And finally, how does it end? …
Iris and Anton, lovingly entwined, set off again into the whirlwind of life, both entwined, both entwined… both entwined…

A play by Ana-Maria Bamberger, beautifully written, intelligent and funny, soberly and effectively directed by Codrina Pricopoaia.
Until February 25, 2024 at the Guichet Montparnasse 15 rue du Maine Paris 14th.
Fridays and Saturdays at 7 p.m., Sundays at 3 p.m.

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Gerard CROSSAY

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