On the initiative of the Press Club 06 and its president, Paul Barelli, the press from the French Riviera met the new director of the TNN, Irina Brook. It was a pleasant meeting during which her professional skills and personal qualities as an artist were appreciated.
We can only confirm Christian Estrosi’s ‘lucky hand’ in choosing her to succeed Daniel Benoin, after the obvious support from the Mayor of Nice for him did not sway the Minister of Culture, Aurélie Filippetti.
Irina Brook seems to have perfectly integrated into the role, even though she was not accustomed to the world of public administration and ministry corridors, but rather belonged to the category of “rebels” (albeit with a delightful so-British attitude!).
But, as she herself states, her desire is to give the Nice theater “a dynamic in continuity to share with an audience that I feel is passionate, something alive.”
Her theater aims to be “popular of high quality,” and she sees no contradiction in her words because “if sometimes you cannot open the walls, it is always possible to open minds.” The proof comes from the intense activity planned in the city’s underprivileged neighborhoods and also in the villages of the hinterland.
As for novelties, a summer academy with a master class is among the new director’s plans, so as not to fall short in the transmission of knowledge with the appropriate pedagogy.
Finally, how can one not touch a sensitive nerve by talking about Shakespeare? After a first attempt with the Shake Nice program, Irina Brook’s eyes gleam at the prospect of seeing a Globe Theatre emerge and giving the “bard’s” works a permanent home.
Irina Brook admits without hesitation: “I am an idealist who doesn’t like rails”… watching her with her inspired smile as she says these words, one easily understands why.
Finally, life in Nice, she who’s used to Parisian boulevard theaters?
“Not at all, I grew up in an environment (editor’s note: Le Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord managed by her father) that is far removed from Parisian clichés. Then, my training took place in New York and in England, in France with my company we were always on the margins of traditional circuits. So, I am the least Parisian of Parisians. And besides, Nice is nice even if, in English, this word has a less flamboyant meaning.”
