Centaur Theatre 2016-2017 Season Swept Away Last
week, the Centaur theatre unveiled the upcoming program for its 48th Season
2016-2017. Since Centaur allots a metaphor for ieach season (for instance,
the present 47th season's metaphor is Luminous), the 48th season will be known
asSwept Away. It will present three international hits and three Canadian successes which will transport the audiences to diverse worlds, offering them new ways of seeing things, events, and relationships. .
The upcoming 48th season's program was presented by the Centaur Theatre's Director Roy Surette (on the right, image below), and the Director of Communications Eloi Savoie (on the left).
Below are six unique universes which Centaur theatre will offer to their audiences to explore and experience. Click on the poster images to enlarge them, in order to be able to read not only the names of the plays but also the names of their authors and directors, and the dates they will be performed.
Click on images to enlarge them. Visit Centaur Theatre website for more information on the present and future programs, and other activities.
The film
presents the short and tortuous life of the Italian late Renaissance
painter Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, simply known as Caravaggio
(Caravage in French). He trained as a painter in Milan under Simone
Peterzano who in turn had trained under Titian.
In 1600, in his twenties, Caravaggio moved to Rome,
and conquered the Rome’s
art scene with his first public commissions, the Martyrdom of Saint
Matthew and Calling of Saint Matthew. After that he never
lacked commissions or patrons but handled his success poorly. He often engaging
in street brawls, and in 1606 killed a man, most likely unintentionally. After
that he escaped to Naples,
and later to Malta.
But he did not stay long in Malta.
He once again participated in a brawl, and regardless of the great
success he had with his commissioned paintings, landed in a prison, from which
he managed to escape. His life was not too long after that.
The film describes all the
twists and turns of this very talented young artist’s life. It shows many of his
painting and gives details of who commissioned them and when. It draws a
parallel between the brutal biblical scenes he immortalized in his canvas and
his own life path.
Official Synopses:
"The life of Caravaggio (1571-1610) was brief and violent. After ten years of triumphs in Rome, lucrative commissions from powerful sources, a dangerous attraction to the lowest depths of society, endless quarrels, several imprisonments, a death sentence for murder and a forced exile on the run, this quick-tempered and irascible man died at the age of 39. His oeuvre as we know it today stems from the tireless work of historians. Of the more than 500 canvases attributed to him three centuries after his death, less than fifty were actually his. This film investigates 22 major works in Rome, Malta, Paris, Rouen and Montpellier."
Jean-Michel
Meurice
Jean-Michel
Meurice is a painter and filmmaker. He is a co-founder of ARTE, which he
directed from 1986 to 1989. He is also a producer, author and director of
monthly magazines devoted to the plastic arts on French television.
Filmography | Simon Hantaï, les silences rétiniens (1978)
; Pierre Soulages (1981), 1er FIFA ; Bram van Velde (1980), 20e FIFA ; Cory Aquino (1989) ; Solidarnosc (1990) ; Apartheid (1992) ; La parade des saigneurs (1995) ; Familles macabres (1996) ; Un doux rebelle : Julien Green, journal d'un
siècle (1997), 17e FIFA ; L'orchestre noir (1998) ; Alechinsky pris sur le vif (2004) ; Velickovic, les apparences de la peur (2005),
24e FIFA ; Le vrai pouvoir du Vatican (2010) ; Algérie, notre histoire (2011).
Production Team:
Cinematography Valentin
Caron Music Gérard
Cohen-Tannugi NarrationPhilippe
Faure, Anna Flori-Lamour Participation Sybille
Ebert-Schifferer, Michel Laclotte, Michel Hilaire Artists Le
Caravage, Sybille Ebert-Schifferer, Michel Laclotte, Michel Hilaire ProducerFabienne
Servan Schreiber, Laurence Miller, Emélie De Jong ProductionARTE
France, Cinétévé Distribution Poorhouse
International
For more information and film scheduling, visit
the Art FIFA website.
Chagall, Painter of the Music Film by Mathilde Deschamps Lotthé
France | French | 2015 | 53 min
NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE
This film,
full of colour and music, is wonderful to watch. It presents life and
work of Marc Chagall in a comprehensive and sensitive way. An
early modernist, he was associated with several major artistic
styles and created works in virtually every artistic medium, including
painting, book illustrations, stained glass, stage sets, costume designs,
ceramic, tapestries, and fine art prints. He produced windows for the
cathedrals of Reims and Metz, windows
for the UN, and the Jerusalem Windows in Israel.
He also did large-scale paintings, including part of the ceiling of
the Paris Opéra (see the photo above, click to enlarge). Film
shows convincingly how important music wasfor Chagall, and how music leitmotivs ran
throughout his creations. It contains many photographs, several
film clippings with Chagall commenting about his art, and many interviews with
the art expects and those who preserve his works. His granddaughter also
appears in the film. Chagall's poetic, figurative style made him one of
the most popular modern artists. His long life and the variety of his artistic
output made him one of the most internationally recognized.
Official Synopses:
"When we think of the Russian-French artist Marc Chagall
(1887-1985), what comes to mind are pairs of lovers in the sky, colourful
bouquets and dreamlike representations of transformed reality. What is less
known is that Chagall had a a close relationship with music, a passion that
came from a childhood steeped in Klezmer music and liturgical psalms. This film
shows how this passion was expressed in his work, from his recurring
representations of musical instruments to his sets and costumes for opera and
ballet."
Mathilde Deschamps Lotthé
Mathilde Deschamps Lotthé makes human-interest
documentaries, specializing over the last decade in subjects relating to
heritage and the arts. Filmography | Passion patrimoine : De l'Auvergne à la Lorraine (2011)
et De l'Auvergne à l'Alsace (2012),
émission Des Racines et des ailes ; Sur les pas de Mozart (2012) ; Picasso et les photographes (2013).
Production Team:
Screenplay Mathilde Deschamps Lotthé Cinematography Franck Carimalo, Jennifer Luby SoundBruno
Diego Artists Marc Chagall Production avec la participation de France 5, Eclectic Production Distribution Eclectic Production
For more information and film scheduling, visit the Art FIFA website.
If you would like to discover the DADA movement or simply learn more about it, this is the film to see. It goes into depth of what it was all about, of its raison d'etre, the artistic issues it addressed, and the social and political realities of the time that provoked its birth and sustained its argumentation. DADA movement was active for only 7 years, between 1916-1923. Yet it had a serious impact on the arts at large, on the philosophical and social issues it addressed through its nihilism, deconstruction of the standard perceptions, and through making collages and word assemblages that at once negated the reality as it was known, presented the absurdity of what was happening around them, commented on the standard human existence at large, and served as a new aesthetics of how to see the world and make art. The film portrays the leaders of the movement, documents the Dada activities which included public gatherings, demonstrations, publication of their manifestos as well as art and literary journals. It also points out that DADA type of thinking still persists and influences contemporary artists.
Official Synopses:
"In 1916, artists from across Europe came together around a pacifist ideal, calling themselves the Dadaists. This international, controversial artistic and literary movement would revolutionize art in the twentieth century. One hundred years later, this film allows the voices of the Dadaists - Tristan Tzara, Marcel Duchamp, Francis Picabia, Jean Arp and Man Ray - to be heard again, as subversive as ever. It also follows the completion of one of Tzara's major unfinished projects: Dadaglobe, a compendium and a genuine work of art.
If you want to discover more about the Dadaists and celebrate the centenary of the movement, you can visit the interactive website, digital cabaret, www.dada-data.net."
Régine Abadia Régine Abadia makes feature films and documentaries, as well as being a scriptwriter and photographer. Filmography | The Spirit of Gospel (2008) ; Pigalle nuit et jour (2000) ; Dalida, chez nous soyez reine (2002) ; Pourquoi marcher quand on peut rouler ? (2003) ; Berit (2006) ; Jenny Bel’air (2008) ; Yasmina et Mohammed (2012). Production Team:
Screenplay Régine Abadia Cinematography Dominique Colin, Dominique Fausset Sound Jean-François Mabire, Romain Parrault, Jules Evrard Editing Vincent Schmitt, Joseph Licidé Music Margarida Guia Narration Françoise Cadol Animation Ricardo Kump Graphic creation Ricardo Kump Artists Tristan Tzara, Marcel Duchamp, Francis Picabia, Jean Arp, Man Ray, Max Ernst, Raoul Hausmann, Hannah Höch, Hugo Ball Producer Sophie Parrault Production Bonne Pioche, Centre Pompidou, ARTE France Distribution Lucky You
For more information and film scheduling, visit the Art FIFA website.
Picasso, naissance d'une icône The Making of the Icon
Film by Hopi Lebel
France | French | subtitled English | 2015 | 54 min
NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE
This film brings to life Pablo Picasso (1881 – 1973) who is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential artists of the 20th century. He was a Spanish painter, sculptor,printmaker,ceramicist andstage designer who spent most of his life in France. He is known for co-founding theCubistmovement, and also for the wide variety of styles that he helped to develop and explore.
Among Picasso’s most famous works are Les Demoiselles d'Avignon (1907), andGuernica (1937) which portrays the Bombing of the Basque town Guernicaby the German and Italian air forces at the request of theSpanish nationalist governmentduring theSpanish Civil War. Both masterpieces are discussed in the film.
The film exams the artist’s life, presents many photographs and video clips of his public appearances and from his private life, and attempts to uncover how Picasso conquered the imagination of people not only with his art but also with his personality and self-promotion. Yet no replicable formula of his success was uncovered. He was a very unique man. No one could replicate his success by following his example in attempting to achieve fame and artistic recognition as Picasso did. And this comes out loud and clear in the film.
Official Synopses:
“Picasso is a towering figure in contemporary art and in contemporary mindsets, not only because of his boundless creativity, but because of his innate talent for communication. His need to nurture his own public image became evident and essential to him very early on. Intercut with previously unreleased archival material and interviews with specialists and those who knew him, this film sheds new light on how the most famous painter in the world was able to mould his own legend and become the universal embodiment of the creative genius.”
Hopi Lebel
After studies in art history and philosophy, Hopi Lebel became a writer-director. All of his films have been shown on French television. Filmography | Helsinki (2000) ; Goa (2001) ; Francis Picabia (2002), 21e FIFA ; Vuillard (2003), 22e FIFA; Avec Vincent Lindon (2002) ; Qui a tué dada ? (2005), 24e FIFA ; Clint Eastwood (2007), 26e FIFA, coréal. Michael Wilson ; Édouard Manet, une inquiétante étrangeté (2011), 30e FIFA. Production Team:
Screenplay Stéphane
Guéguan, Hopi Lebel Cinematography Denis Gaubert Editing Marine Benveniste Music Manuel
Peskine Participation Olivier Widmaier Picasso, Jeff Koons, Maya
Widmaier Picasso, Diana Widmaier Picasso, John Richardson, Guy Scarpetta,
Didier Ottinger, Glenn D. Lowry, Nathalie Heinich, Philippe Dagen, Émilie
Bouvard, Stéphane Guéguan Artists Pablo Picasso, Olivier Widmaier-Picasso, Jeff Koons, Maya Widmaier
Picasso, Diana Widmaier Picasso, John Richardson, Guy Scarpetta, Didier
Ottinger, Glenn D. Lowry, Nathalie Heinich, Philippe Dagen, Émilie Bouvard,
Stéphane Guéguan Producer Sylvie Cazin Production INA, Welcome, RMN-Grand Palais Distribution INA
For more information and film scheduling, visit the Art FIFA website.
The film presents a life of El Greco and shows many of his painting. It discusses his artistic path and difficulties to secure a place with the art patrons of the time. Despite being only 30 minutes long, the film succeeds in drawing a compelling portrait of El Greco as a man and an artist with a very individual perception and sensibility of how to paint.
El Greco was born with a name Doménikos Theotokópoulos (1541 – 1614). He was a painter, sculptor and architectof the Spanish Renaissance. He is best known for his painting with elongated figures some of the in tortuous poses, as well as his specific coloration. El Greco is characterized by modern scholars as an artist so individual that he belongs to no conventional school or art movement.
His nickname "El Greco" refers both to his Greek origin and Spanish citizenship. However, he signed his panting with his full birth name in Greek letters, often adding the word "Cretan" since he was born in Crete, which was at the time part of theRepublic of Venice.
At the age of 26, he travelled to Venice, which was then the center of Post-Byzantine art. In 1570 he moved toRome, where he opened a workshop and painted a series of commissioned works. In 1577, he moved toToledo, Spain, where he lived and worked until his death, and produced his best-known paintings.
El Greco's unique dramatic style was not recognized by his contemporaries as of great value. After his death, he fell into an oblivion which lasted for over three centuries. He finally found appreciation in the 20th century, due to his expressionistic style. Now, he is regarded as a precursor of both Expressionism and Cubism. His personality and works were a source of inspiration for poets and writers, among themRainer Maria Rilke and Nikos Kazantzakis.
Official Synopses:
“BorninCrete, El Greco (1541-1614) began his career as a painter of icons for Byzantine churches. Moving toItalyand then toSpain, his work combined lessons learned from the glories ofByzantiumwith the ravishing colour of Venetian art and the elegant artificialities of Roman mannerism. InToledo, he created a series of works in a visionary style charged with emotion and drama. Although his work puzzled many contemporaries, later artists such as Picasso considered him a prophet of modernism. This film coincided with the exhibition El Greco in the National Gallery of Art and Washington-Area Collections: A 400th Anniversary Celebration.”
David Hammer Born in Washington, David Hammer received an M.A. in directing fromColumbiaUniversityinNew York. He has worked in film and television for more than 20 years. In 2010, he joined the production unit of the National Gallery of Art. Filmography |First Movie (1993) ; Becky and Pete (1999) ; Three-Quarters of the World (1999) ; Magic and Loss (2002) ; Pigeon Cove (2003) ; To Remember Him (2005) ; George Bellows (2012), 31e FIFA. Production Team: Screenplay Carroll Moore Cinematography Patrick Duval, Richard Numeroff Editing Barbara Burst Narration Adrien Brody Artists El Greco Producer Carroll Moore, Susan Arensberg Production National Gallery of Art Distribution National Gallery of Art
For more information and film scheduling, visit the Art FIFA website. FILM TRAILER
Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun,Self-portrait in a
Straw Hat, 1782
Le fabuleux destin d'Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun, peintre
de Marie-Antoinette
Film by Arnaud Xainte
France | language: French | 2015 | 94 min
NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE
ElisabethVigée Le Brun left a legacy of more than 600 portraits, 200 landscapes, and drawings. In addition to private collections, her works are displayed by major museums, such as the Russia's Hermitage Museum, London's National Gallery, and museums in continental Europe and the United States.
A child prodigy, she became a professional portrait painter at the age of 14. She was the daughter of a portraitist and fan painter Louis Vigée, who adored his daughter and started instructing her in the arts of portrait painting when she was 6 years old. Ambitious and independent, she rose above her middle class beginnings, through the Frances's high class circles, to become a private painter of Marie-Antoinette. Since no photography existed at that time, portrait painting was the only way to capture a person's likeness and preserve it for the posterity.
The film documents Vigée Le Brun's life, from her birth until her death in 1832 at the age of 86. It discloses her character, her private life, her career as a painter, and documents her 12 years in exile when she fled France after the arrest of the royal family during the French Revolution. During those exhile years, she lived and worked in Italy, Austria, and Russia, where her experience in dealing with an aristocratic clientèle proved to be useful. Later on in life, she travelled to London where she also painted portraits.
Here is an intriguing quoit from her Memoirs, "Avant la Révolution, les femmes avaient le pouvoir. La Révolution les a détrônées." Or in English, "Before the Revolution, women had power. The Revolution dethroned them."
The film also discusses other prominent women portraitists of the period, and the fact they were forgotten in the art history narrative compiled by men.
Official Synopses:
“Born into a middle-class family, Elisabeth Vigée le Brun (1755-1842) painted the most famous portraits of Marie-Antoinette. In exile during the Revolution, she returned under the Empire and took part in both the Restoration and the July Monarchy. Welcomed into all the courts of Europe, she created 650 portraits and 150 drawings, commanding the highest fees of her era. Historical reconstructions, fictional scenes and interviews with historians combine to form this rich portrait.”
Arnaud Xainte
After studies in law and finance, Arnaud Xainte studied screenwriting and filmmaking at the Sorbonne Nouvelle. He currently works as a producer, writer and director Filmography |Bourse, ton univers impitoyable (2011) ; Cocteau, je reste avec vous (2013) ; Cartier la petite boîte rouge (2013) ; Jésuites (2014) ; Rita Hayworth, et l'homme créa la déesse (2014), 33e FIFA.
Production Team: Screenplay Jean-Frédéric Thibault Cinematography Thomas Jacquet, Thomas Lallier Sound Frédéric Dabo, Pierre Excoffier, Valentin Excoffier Editing Stéphane Rolland Music Hélène Blazy Narration Stéphane Ronchewski Artists Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun Producer Laure Bernard Production Illégitime Défense Distribution Illégitime Défense For more information and film scheduling, visit the Art FIFA website. FILM TRAILER
