Médée

The outstanding intelligence of Jean-Louis Martinelli's direction has led to the perfect staging of a work which is a masterpiece of poetry

- Karim Haouadeg, Europe

In 2001, Jean-Louis Martinelli, playwright and director of the Théâtre Nanterre-Amandiers, travelled to Burkina Faso where he was deeply moved by the tragic situation in Africa. He decided to bring to the stage the version of Médée (Medea) by Max Rouquette, who was inspired by the classic work of the tragic Greek poet, Euripides.

In its African setting, magic and superstition intermingle with day-to-day life. The mythical perception of reality, the stuttering democracies, the brutality of the ethnic conflicts and the fragile frontiers all combine to give a special resonance to this universal tragedy about exile and belonging. In an African refugee camp, Martinelli's Medea awaits Jason's return. A choir of Bambara women respond to her cries, with songs specially composed by celebrated Congolese musician, Ray Lema. When the leader of the Argonauts puts power and glory before his wife's devotion for him, the betrayal is converted into vengeance, a vengeance which has reverberated across the centuries in the collective imagination.

www.nanterre-amandiers.com