Each May, St. Barth plays host to a series of performances and plays put on by local actors along with those from neighboring islands and France during the St. Barth Theatre Festival. Hosted at the island’s beloved Théâtre du Paradis in Gustavia, the multi-day event is sponsored by SB Artists, a local nonprofit theater troupe, and is completely volunteer-driven, aiming to encourage the exchange and diversity of theatre through local community involvement.
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In keeping with its tradition, the 2019 festival consisted of three featured plays, headlined by solo actors purveying multiple characters on a single stage. Here’s an inside look at the one-man performances, delivered with passion to the captive audiences of the island.
A Bag of Marbles
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On the evenings of May 20 and 21, the Théâtre du Paradis hosted a unique adaptation of Joseph Joffo’s acclaimed 1973 autobiographical novel, A Bag of Marbles. A touching and, at times heart-wrenching, true account of the French-Jewish author’s flight with his brother from Nazi-occupied Paris, it’s an enduring tale about doubt, love, and adventure.
Reimagined in play form by renowned Parisian director, Freddy Viau, and staged by director and comedian, Stéphane Daurat, this cheeky and inventive version was performed by actor James Groguelin, who used his talents to seamlessly switch between characters for an intimate moving portrait of a family caught in the machinery of war.
The Law of Wonders
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In back-to-back performances of The Law of Wonders on May 22 and 23, actor François de Brauer artfully told his self-written tale of Rémi Goutard, a fictional deputy-dictator seeking to purge the world of all its art.
Using only a chair, some melodies, and his impressive range of acting, de Brauer delivered memorable performances while seamlessly alternating between ten distinct characters, including a suicidal father, a depressed mother, an ego-driven artist, a hopeless romantic, and a pitiful clown. Through the various lenses of these diverse personalities, the actor brought to life the artist-hating Goutard in a string of rich monologues, inspiring the audience to contemplate art’s role in this supposed society compared to our own reality.
We’re Not Dogs
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To wrap up the festival on May 24 and 25, were twin presentations of director Mathieu Quintin’s We’re Not Dogs, an endearing and comical ensemble of colorful personas performed by French actor and stand-up comedian Jean-Rémi Chaize.
While all the characters that Chaise portrayed were unique, their main similarity lied in their irrepressible need to speak their minds. In doing so, they weaved an articulate, comical, and sometimes cynical world that highlighted their shared humanity.
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