The actress and cultural manager Ms. Angela Zhang co-directs with Matthieu Roy, since 2017, the House Maria Casares, Cultural meeting center and House of the Enlightened (Maison María Casarès, Centre cultural de rencontre et Maison des Illustres, in its French name), and the theatre company Veilleur. Recently awarded the distinction Chevalier arts and Letters, Silberstein opens today, at 19.30 hours, the program dedicated to the actress on the centenary of her birth promoted by the Xunta in the Museum of Fine Arts of A Coruña, with the presentation Born Spanish and die French. The domains of la Vergne in the story of María Casares.
Maria Casares was born Spanish, but died French. What does your figure represent in France, the country where you developed your artistic career?
María Casares is considered in France as one of the greatest theater actresses of the twentieth century. She was considered a great actress of tragedies. Today we do not use this term to describe actresses, it is a little outdated. He showed the dramatic intensity of the roles in which he excelled. The audience remembers roles like Lady Macbeth Shakespeare or Victor Hugo’s Marie Tudor. These are the characters he played in the early years of the Avignon Festival, an important event. All the French know her even if they don’t go to the theater. He has also made some very nice films, but today they are only known to cinephiles. María Casares had recently fallen into oblivion. She was rediscovered with the publication of her magnificent correspondence with Albert Camus in 2017. These exchanges are now considered in France as one of the most beautiful love letters between two artists. María Casares is also very important for the entire Spanish community, especially for the descendants of those who fled the Spanish war. It represented an exile who had integrated perfectly and who had become one of the greatest artists in France.
How did the actress contribute to the conception of the current theater?
María Casares is fully in line with the French desire, which emerged after the Second World War, to make culture accessible to all: regardless of social level and place of residence. In French theatre, this is called theatrical decentralization (not everything had to take place in Paris). María Casares worked in this public theatre movement: Jean Vilar with the Théâtre National Populaire was one of the pioneers, but also with others such as Marcel Hérrand, Patrice Chéreau or Jorge Lavelli. They wanted the great works of the mind, the great texts, to be accessible to all. This access to culture should contribute to the emancipation of people. Today, this public theater movement is very strong in France: there are many theaters throughout the country with a demanding program of theater, dance and music. Maria Casares, who toured her shows throughout France, contributed to this movement, from which the Avignon Festival also emerged. A great lover of literature, he collaborated a lot with the authors of his time: Camus, Sartre, Claudel, Genet, Koltès, Copi… He helped to defend the interest of the scenic authors of his time.
What impact did it have on other artistic disciplines?
I think she was one of the first interdisciplinary artists. He was always looking for a new theatrical adventure. Her relationship with the stage, her acting career, was always questioned. In the 1960s, he began an important collaboration with choreographer Maurice Béjart. He danced in his shows. I think this freedom to move from one discipline to another, and how theater could feed dance and vice versa, inspired many other artists.
What are the projects of Maison María Casares? How is his legacy promoted and made visible?
Upon her death, María Casares bequeathed her house to the municipality of Alloue, the village where this estate is located. This estate, Le Domaine de la Vergne, has become a cultural centre dedicated to theatre, which I have run for five years and which is called La Maison Maria Casares. In this place, we keep alive the memory of this great artist by helping young theater artists, especially directors and writers. We also work a lot with schools. We are in a rural area with very few cultural institutions. Attention to young people is fundamental in our project. We celebrate a festival in summer with shows, visits and dinners in the park to share this memory and the theater with the public. In the Domaine de la Vergne, the memory of Maria Casares is very much alive. We have sound routes in the five-hectare park, visits to the house, exhibitions…. We want visitors who do not know her to discover her destination and her exceptional artistic commitment. For those who know her well, we want them to learn new things, to discover another side of her personality. She is buried near the house in a cemetery overlooking the estate. People feel their presence on the estate.
How will the centenary of the birth of the actress be celebrated in France?
We have a one-year program, like the one in Galicia. As Maison María Casares, we are coordinating all events around these commemorations. There are many individual initiatives that need to be encouraged. There will be study days at the university (Avignon and Rennes), a reading and an exhibition at the Avignon Festival, at the Maison Jean Vilarès around María Casares and Gérard Philipe, who was the French alter ego of María Casares, a great star of the time and very involved in the theater. This year also celebrates its centenary. At the Domaine la Vergne we will have a sound tour about the correspondence with Albert Camus and an exhibition about his years in the theater with Jean Vilar. We will do a tribute throughout the month of November with readings and with young authors and actors. The important thing for us is to make people discover María Casares, but above all to perpetuate her passion for theater with the younger generations. There are other events in preparation, including a documentary.
Within the framework of the centenary celebrations, will the city of A Coruña or its childhood as the daughter of a Civil War victim have any role?
There are some events that focus more on this aspect of Maria Casares ‘ life, especially at the University of Avignon, because the study day is organized with Spanish students.
How does the Maison foster the creativity of young artists?
We have a support system for young directors, called Dispositif Jeunes Pousses [un programa de jóvenes emergente]. For two years, we helped these young artists create their first exhibition after leaving art school. They come to rehearse at the Domaine de la Vergne. They receive a creation grant. They also hold workshops in schools. They are taught to lead these workshops. After two years, they present their finished creation to the public and professionals. We also help young authors. They come to write to La Vergne. Some of his texts are created for the Summer Festival or for the Reading Brigade, in winter. La Maison is a place to come and create in the peace and tranquility of the countryside. We want these young artists to have the best working and creative conditions to launch their professional careers.
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