No audience, no direct, but winners anyway: health constraints have transformed the Molières 2020 into a new edition, broadcast Tuesday evening on France 2 after being pre-recorded over four days before a handful of nominees. The ceremony, which awards the most prestigious theater awards in France each year, took place in two stages to respect social distancing, at a time when almost all of the stages, already at the end of the season and still subject to a gauge restriction, are stopped.
"The theater is like original sin, it reproduces, and it will rise again"
It was the play "Electre des bas-fonds" by Simon Abkarian, which was playing at the Théâtre du Soleil by Ariane Mnouchkine, which won the Molière for public theater, the Molière for staging (in the public theater) and the Molière of the living French-speaking author. "Without artists, life would be deadly. And theater is like original sin, it reproduces, and it will rise again," said Simon Abkarian.
"La Mouche", a success at Bouffes du Nord attended by the Macron couple in January before being exfiltrated from the theater due to a demonstration, was also awarded three Molières, including those of the best comedians and actresses in the audience , the Belgian Christian Hecq and the plastic artist Valérie Lesort, who also signed the production.
"Best-of" and tribute to Guy Bedos
The 19 prizes, dance, song and music performances were recorded at the Théâtre du Châtelet for four days. The whole was then mixed by adding a "best of" of the highlights of the Molières since their creation in 1987, with in particular a tribute to the humorist Guy Bedos. The "making of" took place in a strange atmosphere, but good-natured. At each session, a handful of nominees, in suits and evening dresses, entered in a dropper, filmed by masked cameramen, and settled in the floor of the 2,000-seat room.
Among them, Alexis Michalik, the gifted of the French theater who won the Molière for the best director in the private theater for "A love story", Niels Arestrup, best actor in the private, Alex Lutz (Molière of the humor), Pierre Richard (Molière on stage alone) or even the great lady of the Comédie-Française Dominique Blanc (best actress in a supporting role).
The complete list of Molière 2020:
Molière of the public theater: "Electre des bas-fonds", by Simon Abkarian, staging Simon Abkarian, Compagnie des 5 Roues
Molière of the private theater: "Marie des poules - governante chez George Sand", by Gérard Savoisien, staging Arnaud Denis, Théâtre du Petit Montparnasse
Molière of the director of a public theater show: Simon Abkarian ("Electre des bas-fonds")
Molière of the director of a private theater show: Alexis Michalik ("A story of love ")
Molière of the actress of a public theater show: Christine Murillo (" La Mouche ")
Molière of the actor of a public theater show: Christian Hecq (" La Mouche ")
Molière of the actress of a private show: Béatrice Agenin ("Marie des poules")
Molière from the actor of a private show: Niels Arestrup ("Rouge")
Molière Alone on stage: "Monsieur X", with Pierre Richard, by Mathilda May, stage director Mathilda May, Theater of the Atelier
Molière of the actor in a supporting role: Jean Franco ("Pl us haut que le ciel ")
Molière of the actress in a supporting role: Dominique Blanc (" Angels in America ")
Female revelation: Elodie Menant (" Do I have a mouth of Arletty? ")
Male revelation: Brice Hillairet ("La Souricière")
Molière from comedy: "La vie trépidante de Brigitte Tornade", by Camille Kohler, directed by Eléonore Joncquez, Tristan Bernard
Molière Theater of humor: Alex Lutz, by Alex Lutz and Tom Dingler, directed by Tom Dingler
Molière of the living French-speaking author: Simon Abkarian ("Electre des bas-fonds")
Molière of visual creation: "La Mouche"
Molière of the musical show: "Do I have a gueule d'Arletty? ", by Eric Bu and Elodie Menant, directed by Johanna Boyé, Théâtre du Petit Monparnasse
Molière for young audiences: " La petite sirène ", after Hans Christian Andersen, directed by Géraldine Martineau, Studio -Theater of the Comédie-Française