At the corner of Columbus Avenue and 63rd, our hexagonal chauvinism reaches its climax. In front of us, the David H. Koch Theater proudly displays its program of the month: ““Notre-Dame de Paris”, The must-see, pop-rock blockbuster”. The class. In the lobby, a small crowd proudly pose for photos, order drinks and eye goodies from the souvenir shop, where “I Love New York” has turned into “I Cloche Notre-Dame”.
In France, we would have smiled. Here, it’s “so chic”. “We really wanted to see the show,” says a Polish couple living in Staten Island, who are celebrating the young woman’s birthday with bad white wine. “We miss Europe. In Poland, we read Victor Hugo at school, we know his work well and we like French musical comedies. I loved “Romeo and Juliet”, you see what it is? » How can I tell you, madam, that « Loving » is our national anthem, just like « Lighting the fire » by Johnny.
At the David H. Koch Theater, June 23. © Eva Sakellarides
Enough chatter, it’s time to see what’s going on behind the scenes. Only, for that, it is already necessary to find the troop. Between the elevators, the stairs and the endless maze of spiraling corridors, it’s not that simple. Passing in front of a closed box, we hear the sound of the piano as a female voice resounds in the distance. It seems that we have finally arrived at our destination. At the refreshment station – hearing a kettle and three madeleines in a wicker basket – Jay, already made up as Clopin, chats with Daniel Lavoie, our national Frollo. “I’m going to make myself a ginger and honey tea, do you want one?” he says. “It’s a great luxury,” replies Lavoie, teasingly. It will be one of the rare times when we will hear the language of Molière spoken.
“Notre-Dame de Paris” has formed its team over the tours
Like any big world production, “Notre-Dame de Paris” formed its team over the tours. Because if, from Gaul, we are not aware of it, the spectacle inspired by the work of Victor Hugo has largely invaded the world. Canada, United Kingdom, Spain, Russia, Taiwan, Singapore, Belgium, Japan, Turkey, United States… It has been exported everywhere. “In Asia, the success is crazy, it’s sold out all the time,” says Jay, a former Poetic Lover who has appeared in the show for eight years. In France, it does not have the same scope, moreover the public is more difficult with us. “Notre-Dame” is played mainly in French with subtitles, tests with foreign languages not having been conclusive.
Behind Luc Plamondon (center) and Daniel Lavoie (left), part of the troupe in Central Park. © Eva Sakellarides
“Luc Plamondon’s words have too many nuances to be translated faithfully,” says Daniel Lavoie, the troupe’s only original performer. Two countries are exceptions: South Korea and Italy have their translated version and have even surpassed France in terms of the number of performances (respectively 850 and 1,000, compared to 750 here).
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Fleur-de-Lys evolves from naïve to beastly, and you have to manage to make the change understood in just three songs.
Alyzee Lalande
On the floor below, Angelo Del Vecchio, alias Quasimodo, is in full preparation. Her character is the one that needs the most work. It takes twenty minutes to put on his horrible blood-red shaggy wig and thirty minutes of makeup to make him look ugly. The discussion alternates between the miracle cures to preserve his voice and the role of Phoebus. “He’s the big bad guy in the story, do we agree? Jaime Bono, perfect as an indomitable Esmeralda, nods.
Next to her, a hairdresser arranges the golden hair of Alyzée Lalande (Fleur-de-Lys), which we notably saw in “Grease” in Mogador. “The duality of my character is interesting. Fleur-de-Lys evolves from naïve to beastly, and you have to manage to make the change understood in just three songs. »
Angelo Del Vecchio, alias Quasimodo, in full preparation. © Eva Sakellarides
Another touch-up or two and off we go behind the scenes. Placed in the back of the space, the bells of the cathedral, larger than life, wait patiently, silently. While, on the beds that furnish the merry brothel where that incorrigible romantic Phoebus takes Esmeralda, a few artists have stretched out. “Ah, we make the most of them! they joke.
To their left, chairs in a circle each bear a name. On their file, piles of clothes and shoes on the ground. So everyone can change quickly during the show. Here, no dresser. The team is the same since 2017, some have been there for much longer than that, they know the song, no need to provide them with any assistance.
People like to see the same thing again, it reassures them that nothing is changing. And, above all, it’s always a good show!
Daniel Lavoie
Especially since few changes have been made since the Paris premiere in 1998. The costumes of the police have been modernized but the rest is identical. The original set is still running, it is currently in Albania. The one in New York, its carbon copy, has been resisting since 2016. Minimalist, it is still more than 8 meters high and requires a lot of organization to be set up and moved, hence the need for several sets. This lack of change can be explained, according to Daniel Lavoie, by two factors: “People like to see the same thing again, it reassures them that nothing is changing. And, above all, it’s always a good show! »
Lavoie was 49 years old when he lent his features for the first time to the man of the Church torn between his faith and his desire for Esmeralda the gypsy. “I was going through an existential crisis, this show gave me a taste for the stage. He remembers the first performances and the “collective hysteria” around the casting. “Thousands of people were waiting for us at the exit every evening, it was excessive. »
Gringoire (Gian Marco Schiaretti) and Fleur-de-Lys (Alyzée Lalande), accomplices behind the scenes. © Eva Sakellarides
He abandons us to put himself in place, the show is about to begin. At the first notes of “Time of the Cathedrals”, the nostalgia is immediate. “The world has entered a new millennium,” intones Gringoire. Then come “Les sans-papiers”, “Gypsy”, “La cour des miracles”. These well-heard pieces are given a second youth. Even “Belle”, sung more or less in tune in all the tele-hooks in France, triggers some shivers.
We don’t call it a comedy but a musical show, because we don’t tick all the boxes of the genre.
Daniel Lavoie
Hats off to Luc Plamondon and Richard Cocciante for these timeless lyrics and melodies. The subject is also more topical than ever (immigration, racism, demonstrations, police violence), as is the staging that accompanies them. Using this immense wall to create modular niches, sometimes a prison, sometimes a cathedral, and allowing the acrobats to cling to it reveals a rare simplicity and ingenuity. Same observation for the choreographies of Martino Müller, whimsical and deliberately rough, which have not aged a bit.
“The form is monolithic, it’s a recital of songs, furnished with choreography”, describes Daniel Lavoie. “We don’t call it a comedy but a musical show, because we don’t tick all the boxes of the genre. There are no dialogues for example. That’s why we’re not on Broadway, ”explains the producer, Nicolas Talar, cut by a tall, concerned gentleman, notebook in hand. The question seems important…
No room for improvisation
Playing here rhymes with concern. Not that the gauge has trouble filling up – the two passages of “Notre-Dame” in the Big Apple have been great successes – but you have to juggle with the “unions”, the local unions. The contracts are extremely sharp, each break is very regulated, which leaves no room for improvisation if there is the slightest hiccup.
Absolute aberration for our Frenchies minds: the French technical team must be there full time and in full, but has no right to touch anything; she is there only to explain to the local technicians what they must do. “Over time, we’ve learned to work together, it’s more fluid, but it’s still more complex than with Asia… We have a reputation for rebels, that doesn’t help us,” says the producer.
In New York, the work of Victor Hugo seems more alive than ever. Just like the French revolutionary spirit, obviously.
In Paris (Palais des Congrès) from November 15, then on tour. © DR
2023-08-11 18:15:04
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