ARCHIVES 2014 / Othello, Variation pour trois acteurs

When William Shakespeare wrote Othello, he based it on a 16th-century tale from Giraldi Cinthio's Hecatommithi. By translating and adapting Shakespeare's play, Olivier Saccomano and Nathalie Garraud continue this tradition of borrowing from other texts to bring something new to them. Their modern rereading of Othello only amplifies the power of a story so enigmatic that it remains open to various interpretations. This “variation for three actors” therefore focuses on three characters: Othello, the foreigner who belongs to Venice, the same way a ship or its cargo would; Iago, peerless rhetorician, an adviser to his friends and a seducer of his enemies; and Desdemona, who finds herself the object of the hatred of all those who accuse her of disobedience and insubordination. But by having the play revolve around the reality of the Venetian “system” rather than the psychology of the jealous Othello or the diabolical Iago, the writers choose to focus on the economic and political machine that made Venice the first capitalist power of the Mediterranean region. The figure of the foreigner, a foreigner in Venice, but above all a foreigner everywhere, takes on a new dimension in this play conceived as a travelling show. Standing as close as possible to the audience, in a small arena, the three actors play all the roles, reveal what's really at stakes here, and question our time thanks to the words of those mythical and immortal heroes.

Since 1998, Nathalie Garraud and Olivier Saccomano have worked on several creative cycles based on different themes. After “The Suppliants,” which focused on tragedy (2007-2010) and a cycle on youth, “It's Good, It's Bad” (2010-2013), they are now working on the “Spectres of Europe” (2013-2015). Each cycle is made up of short plays they call “study plays,” that lead to the creation of a final play. Othello, Variation for three actors is one of those study plays, designed as an itinerant show, thanks to a light set-up they can easily carry from one spot to the next. Before Othello, another study play, The Benefits of Spring, was created at the FabricA in Avignon in November 2013. This cycle will end with Suddenly the Night, in July 2015. This work ethic allows them to assert their company's existence. Meanwhile, Nathalie Garraud has started working with the Lebanese company Zoukak, and Olivia Saccomano continues a process of theoretical research that will lead to the publication of a book called Theatre as Thought in 2014.

Jean-François Perrier, April 2014

AN ITINERANT SHOW
The idea is simple: to offer a number of versatile shows, set up wherever they can be closest to a potential audience. The light set-ups and the quality of those shows are promises of an artistic decentralisation, a move towards what stands outside the Festival. During the Festival, Othello, Variation for three actors will be playing outside the walls, in the following locations: La Chartreuse in Villeneuve lez Avignon (July 9), l'Autre Scène du Grand Avigon in Vedène (10), Centre pénitentiaire du Pontet* (11), dealership BMW-MINI – Foch Automobile (12), community centre La Pastourelle Saint-Saturnin-lès-Avignon (13), Complexe socio-culturel de La Barbière (15), cultural centre Folard in Morière-lès-Avignon (16), sports complex Jean Galia in Rochefort-du-Gard (17), Festival Contre Courant CCAS Île de la Barthelasse (18), Éclat de Scène at the CLAEP of Rasteau (19), community centre of Saze (20), (room) Jacques Buravand in Boulbon (22), courtyard of the Vacqueyras castle (23), AFPA training centre in Pontet* (24), community centre of Roquemaure (25).

*No tickets are available for those shows.