PHILIPPE QUESNE (FR)

All is quiet; time stopped due to a technical problem. Set up in a cotton place, the dragons and their dog will find Snow White, and build a minimalist and multifunctional amusement park. A projector, a smoke machine, a few wigs, the Scorpions’ hit “Still Loving You” playing in the radio/recorder: anything can be wonderful, as long as one embarks on a common dream. Melancholy isn’t just an embarrassment; it may result in moments of unique ecstasy.
The work of Philippe Quesne follows the rule of thumb of dominoes: the last scene in a performance sets the tone for the first scene of the following performance, thus unlocking a broad field for reflection. The beginning of the performance refers us to the end of “L’effet de Serge”, where the character on stage came up with minor special effects in his apartment. This performance is full of literary, musical and pictorial references, including Dürer’s engraving “Melancholy”: his mind sends out several projections based on a dream(s) body. The issue is therefore put on the table: how does one organise life around a melancholic body?


PHILIPPE QUESNE • After his training in visual arts, and a decade working as set designer for theatre plays and exhibitions, Philippe Quesne founded the company Vivarium Studio in 2003, bringing together a workgroup comprising actors, visual artists and musicians. They started by working out a contemporary dramaturgy based on scenic devices found in their work studios, the “Vivarium spaces”, in order to study human micro-cosmos. The repertoire includes performances such as “La démangeaison des ailes” (2004), “Des expériences” (2004), “D’après nature” (2006), “L’effet de Serge” (2007), “La mélancolie des dragons” (2008), and “Swamp Club” (2013), presented at Teatro Rivoli in 2015.
In parallel, Quesne creates performances for public spaces and presentations for more unusual spaces, like in the midst of nature. He is the director of the Théâtre Nanterre-Amandiers, in France, since 2014.