The return of Serebrennikov, the opening of a new room, black streets with people. The Avignon festival, which starts on Thursday July 7, has reason to rejoice after two years of health crisis, even if it remains on alert due to the recovery of the epidemic. . A day before the start of the world’s most famous theater festival, the traditional parade also returned on Wednesday for the first time since 2019.
“This is our first Avignon, we are very happy. We took advantage of the detention to stage our show.”rejoices Christophe Gillis, the musician and director who came from Belgium to present the Mozart vs. Mozart show.“musical humor” with his family members. Covid. “We’re not going to spoil the festival, we have to be on stage and we’re all going to be very careful.”During the parade, the artist dressed in period costumes adds:
A compact crowd of artists in costumes and to the sound of drums crossed the streets of the “Paper City”, where many festival goers were already there. “We feel like we’re getting a little bit back to normal, hopefully Avignon will be back.”confirmed by Olivier Schmidt, a member of the troupe “Les Joyeux de la Couronne”, representing: In the Shadow of Oz, a musical show about Judy Garland’s journey. This is one of the 1,500 shows of “off”, France’s largest live performance in the “market”, which takes place alongside the official festival and which has returned to its abundant offer before the pandemic. Added to this is the opening of a new venue, La Scala Provence.
Come to the festival trying on the mask in the halls. »
Festival delegate director Paul Rondi
Next to the Avignon festival, more international and more specialized than the “separate”, we want to be reassuring about health measures, while calling for vigilance. “Contagiousness (current) such that we have made it mandatory for our teams to wear masks because we cannot afford to have infections.”Paul Rondin, delegate director of the Festival, told AFP. “There will be hundreds of thousands of people in Avignon for 20 days and we don’t want to cause anxiety, but we are telling people: “Come to the festival, trying to wear a mask in the halls,” he adds. Testing and vaccination centers will be established in the city.
The 2022 edition will also be the last for Olivier Pi, who has led the festival for nine years, and will be replaced by Portugal’s Thiago Rodríguez. Since 2013, he has invited artists from different backgrounds, emphasizing the political side of theater in the broadest sense of the word. Artists like Kirill Serebrennikov, whom he invites for the fourth time, under special circumstances. although the idea was born before the Ukrainian war, the Russian filmmaker and director, who has been in exile in Europe since spring, will open on Thursday; Black monk by Chekhov in the Palace of Honor of the festival’s iconic venue, the Palais des Congrès. Serebrennikov recently made a remarkable appearance, and Ukrainians were in contention at the Cannes Film Festival, where he presented his film; Tchaikovsky’s wife.
As a sign of solidarity with Ukraine, Olivier Pi will perform in his show as a farewell ceremony with the punk band Dakh Daughters from Kyiv. Miss Knife. The festival is also proud of the Middle East this year, with the participation of Iranian Amir Reza Kohestani, another regular Arab poets, and Lebanese artists. “Everyone can find a living experience, be it with Serebrennikov, (non binary artist) Kae Tempest, Little Red Riding Hood (by Das Plateau Collective)or Arab poetesses”, says Paul Rondin. And for lovers of river shows, a tradition of the festival, playwright Simon Falgier offers Ash’s nest, a 13-hour epic. With four breaks and two breaks.
Source: Le Figaro
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.