For the premiere of the Romeo & Juliet show, the rain got involved. Despite a successful start, the performance stopped for the safety of the actors and spectators.
Romeo & Juliet stopped in their love. Thursday, July 28 was held the premiere of Shakespeare’s tragically famous play. Corinne Mathou, director of the show, revisited the story with “a more physical vision”. The festival wanted to emphasize the improbable encounters of the piece by adding a mixture of dance and musical genre. And the bet is successful… or almost.
The actors got wet
The hour is the hour. At 9 p.m., the play began, under a setting sun. For more than an hour the actors and musicians live on stage performed without the rain disturbing them. The few drops that fell on the stage did not seem to bother the actors who continued their performance. The rainy weather even embellished the first real romance scene between Romeo and Juliet. Alone on stage, with melancholic music and in front of the splendid Gavarnie circus, the two protagonists danced their impossible love, mixing contemporary dance and aerial lifts. As the secret marriage of the two lovers was regarding to be played out, thunder rumbled on the stage, as the sign of a cursed love. Unfortunately for the actors and the spectators, the performance had to stop for lack of security. Disappointed and frustrated, the public went back down to the parking lot without witnessing the tragic end that we know. But, the tickets are reusable for the next performances in case of rain.
The Gavarnie circus at the service of the show
The piece captures the decor in which it is located. It’s a challenge to play at the heart of the Gavarnie site. And a successful challenge for Corrine Mathou, who is not content to stay on the stage. The show continues to exist behind the stage, bringing added depth to the performance. The actors tumble from everywhere, from behind the bleachers, from above or behind a tree. Like the impression that the audience is part of the scene. The music performed live on the side accentuates the viewer’s immersion. Contemporary, hip-hop, electronic, the styles of dance and music mingle in a harmony that sublimates the history and the place so special.
