The 10 shows that marked me in 2018

Between New York, London, Paris and Avignon, here are the 10 shows that marked me this year and made me think deeply.

1. Hamilton

About a year passed between the day I bought my tickets and the day I finally discovered Lin-Manuel Miranda's masterpiece. I have to say “the hype is real” because it was one of the best musicals I've seen.
The danced, sung, raped numbers follow one another and we discover all the characters around Alexandre Hamilton. The choreography is very rhythmic and the scenography very ingenious. Obviously the music is incredible and we understand why the show won 11 Tony Awards.
We laugh, we cry, we applaud and we come out smarter: it's really great.

The show is still being performed at the Victoria Palace Theater in London (to buy your tickets, it's here) and at the Richard Rodgers Theater in New York (tickets on sale here!).

2. The Jungle

The Jungle traces the history of migrants of different nationalities as well as English and French volunteers in the Calais camp nicknamed La Jungle. The public is seated in an Afghan café, around long tables that become play areas where history evolves. We are in a witness position to see the evolution of the situation in Calais and the complicated relations between the different nationalities, the volunteers and the threatening government.
We discover the unique and poignant journey of each of these migrants, who escaped the horror of their native countries to be refused entry into Europe.
The play prompts us to reflect on government policies on the migrant crisis and what we can do to help from near or far.

The play is being played until January 4, 2019 at St. Ann's Warehouse theater, an off-Broadway theater in New York (the show is sold out, and we can see why!)

3. War Horse

You can discover the criticism of the show here!
The show created in 2007 at the National Theater is back in England to commemorate the centenary of the First World War.
It is the touching story between a boy, Albert, and Joey, his young horse. In 1912, Joey was sold to the military as a warhorse. Albert decides to go in search of his horse in the misery of warring France.
The play features magnificent puppets animated with life-size animals that one would think are alive and that are dazzling.
The piece is absolutely captivating and it is a true masterpiece.

The show runs until January 5, 2019 at the National Theater (tickets here!) before leaving for a British tour (reserve your places).

4. Company

Discover the review of the show here!
For this staging of Stephen Sondheim's musical, Marianne Elliott had the very ingenious idea of reversing the genre of a few characters. Bobbi becomes a 35-year-old woman, whose friends absolutely want to find her a husband when she has no plans to get married anytime soon.
With a scenography by Bunny Christie and a very minimalist staging, Marianne Elliott has created a magnificent show in keeping with the times and which celebrates the original score by Stephen Sondheim.

Company is playing at the Gielgud Theater until March 30, 2019. You can reserve your places here.

5. Antigone

For this play, Olivier Py went to work with prisoners from the Avignon-Pontet prison center. All these men interpreted the tragedy of Sophocles, without importance given to the sex of the characters.
It was very moving to see these men, get naked in front of the public, sometimes awkwardly and to read their pains through that of Antigone. This moving and imperfect portrayal brought out the moral of Greek tragedy: a man is a man no matter what he did.
This piece makes us think a lot and questions us about the concept of freedom.
A deeply moving spectacle on a human level.

6. Hello, Dolly!

I was able to discover for the first time on stage, the mythical musical comedy of Jerry Herman. The show won 10 Tony Awards in 1964, and the 1969 film starred Barbra Streisand. The musical was revived in 2017 on Broadway at the Shubert Theater and performed 550 performances.
I was lucky enough to be able to admire Bernadette Peters in the lead role: simply fantastic.
It was a real pleasure to see an “old school” musical comedy that is not out of date.
The situational comedy and the choreographic and scenic prowess were remarkable. And of course, the music we love “Put On Your Sunday Clothes”, “So Long, Dearie” was performed with brio.
A real experience of the American musical!

7. A man who smokes is healthier

Seven siblings reunite for their father's funeral after being lost to follow-up for years. The show brings down family secrets and the unspoken one by one.
The show perfectly captures the spirit of a large family from childhood to old age.
A beautiful contemporary theater show that is very fair, funny and touching while dealing with a family tragedy.

8. The Great Gatsby

My first immersive theater experience and not the least!
As an audience, we play the role of guest at Gatsby's party, with a dress code required! Each spectator has a different experience: the audience is separated and taken by the characters in a unique experience. We discover the different points of view of the characters and this allows a real interaction between spectators and character.
An unforgettable evening, we learn to dance the Charleston, we drink gin in Gatsby's office and we discover the love between Gatsby and Daisy.

9. Fun home

This musical is adapted from the autobiographical comic strip by Alison Bechdel and subtitled "a family tragicomedy".
We follow Alison at three points in her life, each age and played by a different actress. The story presents Alison discovering her homosexuality and the relationship with her father, also a repressed homosexual, which will push him to suicide. Yet the musical has some real comedic moments which are all real and touching.
The musical offers a level of emotional honesty rare in the world of American musical comedy.
Jeanine Tesori's score produces extraordinary moments like "Changing My Major", "Telephone Wire". A real theatrical and musical revelation.

10. Six

To finish this list, here is a show a little different from the others. I would rather classify it as a theatrical pop concert.
The plot brings together the 6 women of Henry VIII, in a pop song battle to determine which of the women had to endure the most bullcrap from Henry VII. But they realize that this struggle is futile and they rewrite history to stop being defined by their common husband. A very feminist and girl power show that refreshes!
A 75-minute show during which the 6 actresses-singers-dancers do not stop. The pop music is rhythmic, very funny and sassy with fantastic choreography and costumes.