Jean-Michel Ribes: in the face of obscurantism, "any cultural act is an act of resistance"

INTERVIEW

"Culture, from the moment its mission is to disrupt and bring fresh air, is an act of resistance," said Jean-Michel Ribes, actor, director and director of the Théâtre du Rond -Point, Sunday on Europe 1, evoking the "absolute stupidity of obscurantism".

He was a guest on the special "Together with the performing arts for culture and freedom of expression", live from the same theater.

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"The defense of freedom, the absolute defense of expression, of creation"

Two days after the death of a history teacher, beheaded after showing his students caricatures of Muhammad as part of a course on freedom of expression, one of Jean-Michel Ribes' sentences was resumed here and there during tribute gatherings.

"We do not prevent you from believing, you will not prevent us from thinking".

At the origin of these words, the director who himself pushed the freedom of expression very far by programming, in 2011, the play

, which earned him to be prosecuted for provoking hatred towards Christians.

Will he adapt his programming as closely as possible to this news?

"Our programming is eternally in this direction," he replies.

"On the defense of freedom, on the absolute defense of expression, of creation."

The latter notably cites pieces like

, by Larry Kramer, but also pieces by Rodrigo Garcia.

In 2011, following the programming of

, Jean-Michel Ribes was finally released on the grounds that the pejorative presentation of Jesus could not be read as a general provocation towards believers.

Today, the director does not exclude making interventions on the subject of freedom of expression and "to invite people to a double talk around this theme".