Friday, February 11th, Saturday, February 12th at 9 PM and Sunday, February 13th at 3 PM
at Théâtre de la Tour, 63 Blvd. Gorbella in Nice
“HÔTEL DU NORD”
First-ever stage adaptation,
The pre-war dramatic comedy by Marcel CARNE, revisited…
With: KARIM BADI, CLAIRE DEVAL, ALI BOUDIAF
The story
A modest hotel, on the banks of the Saint-Martin canal, houses a colorful popular clientele. One day, Pierre and Renée, who have decided to end their lives, rent a room at the Hôtel du Nord. A gunshot rings out… In the room next door, Raymonde, a cheeky prostitute, and Edmond, her small-time crook pimp with whom she is “shacked up,” find themselves unwittingly entangled in the tragic love story of the despairing lovers.
A little background…
It’s the story of an encounter one night, the atmosphere of the moment, reunions, a gift of life, chance or not, north and south, lovely winks from destiny.
At the beginning of the summer, I had the pleasure of seeing Karim Badi (singer of the Dum Dum Boys) on stage at Nikaïa. This eclectic artist (a resident of the La Station collective in Nice) impressed me immensely with his undeniable stage presence. Watching him, I had a spark: Karim must also be an excellent actor. I couldn’t help but go congratulate him in his dressing room and share my desire to work with him. He revealed to me his initial artistic ambitions: acting, and finally, music presented itself to him. He was very enthusiastic about a theatrical venture together. He disclosed his love for pre-war film classics and mentioned “Hôtel du Nord” by Marcel Carné… I watched the film multiple times, and the temptation to adapt this masterpiece into a play was irresistible. Finding the idea appealing, several directors encouraged me to carry out this project, which is also a huge challenge.
Strangely, this cult film has never been adapted for the theater. For this, I envision the show in the form of tableaux (for the intimate scenes of the two couples played by Karim and myself), which will be filled by a comic and touching narrator between scenes: Ali Boudiaf, who will embody Bernard Blier and two other colorful characters, will portray them marvelously with his Audiard-like speech and natural Parisian flair. This excellent, self-taught, and atypical actor has performed brilliantly in “Les poings qui volent” by Israël Horovitz at the Théâtre National de Nice and La Criée in Marseille as well as in “Noces de sable” by Didier Van Cauwelaert, in several theaters in Nice (Le Semeuse, L’Espace Magnan, Théâtre de la Cité, and the Tour Gorbella).
Regarding the adaptation, I had the chance to meet two exceptional people who carried out an enormous amount of work with passion and enthusiasm: Jean-Marc Thérond (author, screenwriter, and actor, whose fine pen cannot leave one indifferent) and Stéphanie Charles (a passionate writer, avid film enthusiast and brilliant student in ethnology).
Paul Laurent (already approached by me for other projects) will oversee the stage direction. This wonderful actor and creative director, whom we’ve often seen perform at the Théâtre National de Nice, has always fascinated and touched me with his talent, humility, and humanity. Equipped with rich experience, Jean-Marc Thérond (general management), Laurent Messer (scenography), and Laurent Royer (lighting) will enhance his work beautifully.
A little nod to fate: I had the chance to perform in 2003 at this magnificent Hôtel du Nord with my show “La Jaja” (it was my dream). An unforgettable memory… During a recent visit to Paris, I went there with, I confess, a certain emotion. The team managers (whom I have invited to attend our premieres at the Théâtre Francis Gag in April 2010) showed a certain interest in this event. Being able to perform in this mythical venue would be a beautiful reward…
Many people around me are ready to support us (Nice Matin, La Strada, La Semaine des Spectacles, Radio France Bleu…). These media outlets have been faithful to me over the past few years.
In Nice, the association La Source, usually reserved for promoting music, is putting the Volume (its dissemination and creation space) at our disposal for rehearsals.
On this note, I would like to share that a demonstration video was professionally produced in this venue thanks to its entire technical team.
Two choice artists: Eric Antolinos (a graphic designer with striking and original ideas) and Elvio (a talented photographer from Fotografista) also collaborated through their work on the image creation.
I would particularly like to thank Mr. Pierre Ballay (director of the Théâtre Francis Gag), who once again shows me great loyalty and trust (the first major theater in Nice that hosted my previous creation “La Jaja” in 2001). We have the privilege of launching our very first performances in his beautiful, historic theater.
Also very present in this venture was Mr. Phillipe Roustan (director of the Théâtre de La Tour Gorbella) as well as Tonyo (stage manager, programmer), who generously lent us their theater for three months of rehearsals. I emphasize the importance of their support for local companies in general.
I trust the wonderful personalities who surround and support us.
Passion, elegance, poetry, and humor will be there.
So, that was the little background… and it’s just beginning.
Atmosphere, atmosphere, when it grips us…
Adaptation intention note for HÔTEL DU NORD
Authors: Stéphanie Charles / Jean-Marc Thérond
“Hôtel du Nord,” this great classic of pre-war French cinema revealing the Arletty/Jouvet couple, has never before been adapted to the theater. The idea, born from a meeting between Claire Deval and Karim Badi, immediately seemed appealing to us.
Our primary wish is to recreate the atmosphere of Carné’s film in its context, while also adapting it to the stage space. Leaving behind the idea of using excerpts of the film’s original score, we have chosen to utilize a completely original soundtrack (music and sound effects). This not only allows us to adjust but also illustrate the necessary ellipses for the adaptation imposed by the directorial choice to have three actors play the retained seven characters for the play, against the original twenty-two and the crowd of extras in the film. We have also chosen to retain certain particularly interesting lines from Auranche and Jeanson, the book’s screen adapters, by transposing them into the mouths of characters kept in the play’s cast.
As for the plot, it focuses on the Arletty/Jouvet (Raymonde and Edmond) and Anabella/Aumont (Renée and Pierre) axis. The contrast between these two love stories is thus highlighted. One, starting to flirt with death and cowardice, is ultimately saved by the depth of feelings and forgiveness, while the other, plagued by interest, betrayal, and revenge, leads inevitably to a tragic end.
In the play, we’ve also aimed to give a new dimension to the character of Prosper Trimault (played by Bernard Blier in the film). Through new scenes and dialogues (some passages retrieved from the script and cut in editing), we discover a character closer to the version in Eugène Dabit’s novel than Carné’s film. These scenes also have a dramatic function as they serve as a link and sometimes a revelation to the plot while maintaining the film’s fast pace through a sequence of sometimes quick scenes, requiring constant performance from the actors.