At the Théâtre de Caen, Guy Cassiers signs the very current staging of the 17th century opera “The Indian Queen”

For two evenings, the Théâtre de Caen offers the public a work unknown, imagined by Henry Purcell more than 400 years ago, but no less powerful. This semi-opera, a combination of spoken and sung scenes, recounts the rivalry between two women. Against the background of conflicts between Aztecs and Incas, a queen and a princess are in love with the same man, General Montezuma. I’work refers to our own history, the period when Christopher Columbus arrived in the Central American islands and when the Carib Indians were in full conquest of territories.

The staging of The Indian Queen by Guy Cassiers mixes singing, music and videos at the same time. It is also an ode to baroque music, with the instrumental and vocal ensemble Le Concert d’Astrée, conducted by Emmanuelle Haïm. The theme of power that pollutes human relationships and destroys families, told in the 17th century, turns out to be totally topical. “We’re talking about a woman in charge of a country and at the same time, we’re talking about Putin, that’s what’s interesting“, the Belgian-Flemish director, Guy Cassiers.

A technical feat

Screen games with video projection, sets and costumes with baroque motifs, Guy Cassiers demonstrated inventiveness and innovation in the staging of the semi-opera. “I like to stimulate the viewer’s creativity. For me, it’s the soul of theatre. You have to create something at the same time and together“, he says.

This is one of the most complicated shows ever staged in Caen with two superimposed machinery, a veritable technical prowess according to Patrick Foll, director of the theater of Caen. “We are really in a screen choreography game. This is what Guy Cassiers wanted, he loves the mise en abyme, the theater in the theater and there, he is almost a model of the genre“, he explains.

The performances of this baroque semi-opera take place until Friday March 3, 2023 on the Caen scene.