Robert Wilson
Fables de La Fontaine La Comédie-Française, Director: Robert Wilson Jan. 31 - Mid May 2004
As a counterpoint to the vanity of the courtly world, Les Fables, which were hugely successful the moment they appeared, have over the last three centuries become a popular work giving people across the board, from West to East, the possibility of learning something while having fun. Although they may be read to children and often shown as audio-visuals, their apparent simplicity is the fruit of great art and a free and cheerful mind. They are a digest of several forms, including oral tradition, poetical song, conversational art, argumentation, precise visual effect, and animal phantasmagoria. They are a pleasure at every turn, feeding the imagination and strengthening reasoning. They are wonderful pieces for actors to practise on, given that their concise dramatic energy, sharp argumentation, and perfect story flow require versatility, precision and eloquence. In the purest French, La Fontaine gives the power of speech to the whole world: people, animals, plants and gods.
