Inside the Ramsay family house, populated with eight children – including young James, who’s eagerly waiting for the weather to be clear enough for them to go to the lighthouse – a dialogue blossoms between the two women, in accordance with their stream of consciousness. Director Florent Siaud, who’s used to working with Évelyne de la Chenelière, notes the high quality of her writing, “replete with political and poetic motions which constantly evolve, mutually contradicting and solving each other, thanks to the author’s inventiveness in terms of style and ability to convey just how elusive reality can be.”
Whether for the theatre or the opera, in Quebec or in Europe, Florent Siaud, the director of the company Les songes turbulents, favours plastic beauty and dramaturgical clarity for his productions, as a way to disclose the deep meaning of the pieces he works on. In this production, the two actresses have their – dazzling – work cut out for them, embarking on a heartfelt, adventurous quest in which dreamlands are coated with biting wit. The stage is set between reality and fantasy worlds: Mrs Ramsay and Lily sprout in a space made for memories, or within a fleeting present. Their discussions sometimes make it seem like they’re talking to themselves, as they converse on their opinions on women, romantic relationships, arts, the passing of time, war wounds and those who have gone. As they muse on potentialities, they still manage to wonder: “What if the sun shines tomorrow?”

NEW PRODUCTION

Based on To The Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf

A Comédie-Française / Les songes turbulents co-production

Direction: Florent Siaud
Scenography: Romain Fabre
Costumes: Jean-Daniel Vuillermoz
Lighting: Nicolas Descôteaux
Video: Éric Maniengui
Sound: Vincent Legault and Maxime Gamache