And if it was his most beautiful role? 23 years after her debut as an actress, Laetitia Casta amazes at the theater in Clara Haskil, prelude & fuguea single-in-stage where she embodies the pianist of Bulgarian origin unknown to the general public and yet called a genius by his contemporaries. Charlie Chaplin had, moreover, affirmed that he had met three geniuses in his life: Alfred Einstein, Winston Churchill and Clara Haskil.
In this play written by Serge Kribus and directed by Safy Nebbou, Laetitia Casta embodies several roles and at different times in their lives, playing with intonations, her voice and writing to make viewers understand that she slips from one character to another. A stunning performance that earned the actress a Molières nomination last year and allowed the show to go on tour in the regions before returning next month to Paris. “You have to be focused but above all gathered, I put myself in airplane mode”, explains Laetitia Casta to talk about her work on stage.
Born in Bucharest, trained in Paris, Clara Haskil had an atypical career interrupted by two world wars. “There are places where we could agree Clara Haskil and me. The requirement of this character, tortured but also humble at the same time, and with a lot of generosity asked me a lot of resilience”, says the actress.
Alone on stage, a first
For this fourth role in the theater, Laetitia Casta is alone on stage, a first. “It was the unknown but I’m a bit like the kids, as long as I don’t touch the fire I can’t know it’s burning and that’s after I’m like ‘oh my god’, s’ she amuses at the microphone of RTL.
Dyslexic in life, the actress does not suffer from it on the boards. “When we’re on stage, we don’t have that problem. It’s at home, it only happens at home and I make everyone laugh with that.”, laughs the wife of Louis Garrel .
Laetitia Casta went on stage for the first time in 2004. However, the theater is a childhood passion because she started at the age of 12 in Noisy-le-Grand. For her, it was a “revelation, I was very shy. Exposing myself in front of others. It was as if I had lit a chimney fire that had never been extinguished. It was not at all cerebral but physical”.
A feminist role
After Ondine, Arletty or Brigitte Bardot, Laetitia Casta adds a new strong and feminist role to her biography. Yet she never wanted to use the feminist card: “I don’t need to claim it ’cause it’s a part of me. I was more exposed to the world, I didn’t really protect myself; also because I met incredible beings who gave me a very, very strong spine.”
Along with her acting career, Laetitia Casta continues her modeling career. She continues to make the cover of major fashion magazines like Vogue or Elle last year. “To choose is to die. I said to myself in the name of what and for whom would I stop?”. Having two careers and two professions is a way for her to “flourish”. “I don’t see why I should make a choice.”
Especially since the former muse of Yves Saint Laurent sees similarities between his two passions. “I have a memory of Dominique Issermann (a great fashion photographer, editor’s note) who said to me one day ‘it is very important that everything you look at, be deep and come from afar’ and that thing struck me.” “What I have always been asked to do is to interpret and not just be an object”, emphasizes Laetitia Casta.
She’s not afraid of growing old
While her two jobs are linked to her physique, she feels no fear of aging: “I have only aged throughout my work since I started at 14 and a half, inevitably I aged. So it’s part of my job. I realized that there are things you lose and things you gain. And the things you win you have to make your strength, so no I’m not afraid of growing old.”
