VÉRITÉ DE SOLDAT

VÉRITÉ DE SOLDAT
Exclusive North American engagement.
Dramatized docufiction, based on the book Ma vie de soldat (“My Life as a Soldier”) by Soungalo Samaké, adapted for the stage by Jean?Louis Sagot Duvauroux, directed by Patrick Le Mauff, with Adama Bagayoko (Soungalo), Michel Sangaré (Amadou) and Darrah Sanogo (Catherine). Artistic collaborators: Alioune Ifra Ndiaye, Chiaka Ouattara.
Produced by BlonBa (Bamako, Mali).
Coproduced by the National Arts Centre French Theatre.
With the support of Festival des francophonies en Limousin, Théâtre de l’Arlequin (Morsang?sur?Orge, France), Théâtre du Grand-Parquet (Paris, France), Espace Marcel Carné (Saint?Michel?sur?Orge, France), Centre international de rencontre de l’Abbaye de Neümunster à Luxembourg.
BlonBa is funded by the Conseil régional d’Île?de?France, the Conseil général de l'Essonne, La Communauté d’Agglomération du Val-d’Orge, la Ville de Morsang?sur?Orge.
Theatre, National Arts Centre, March 8–12 at 7:30 p.m.
Performed in Bambara and French.
Running time: approximately 1 hour 45 minutes.
 
 
Ottawa, February 25, 2011 – To coincide with Black History Month and to mark the 50th anniversary (last September 22) of Malian independence, the National Arts Centre (NAC) French Theatre is pleased to present the exclusive North American engagement of a new work originated in Africa by Alioune Ifra Ndiaye, artistic director of BlonBa, and further developed by two French artists: writer Jean?Louis Sagot?Duvauroux and director and actor Patrick Le Mauff (who played the father in Littoral).
 
Produced by the Malian theatre company BlonBa, Vérité de soldat is a dramatized docufiction based on the startling testimony of army captain Soungalo Samaké, the man who arrested Mali’s first president, Modibo Keita. Samaké’s tale of sound and fury was published by Amadou Traoré, a prominent figure in the first post-independence Malian republic, who was himself tortured by Samaké.
 
The play revolves around the unlikely relationship between the two men, and above all, the questions they ask themselves and each other. Declaration, confession or apology? A soldier’s chilling account intersects the self-scrutiny of contemporary Africa, haunted—one could even say cursed—by a recurrent history of violent and repressive regimes. The seventh original creation from BlonBa, Vérité de soldat examines the story of Africa at a time when 17 countries, including Mali, were celebrating 50 years of independence.
 
What compelled Soungalo Samaké to write openly about transgressions that could still land him in serious trouble? How could Amadou Traoré, a committed intellectual, bring himself to publish a work so unflattering to the image of contemporary Africa? How do Malians today feel about and respond to such a book?
 
As the creative team addressed these questions, they found themselves engaged in an investigation of the human soul that extended far beyond the boundaries of Africa. The process also opened the way to an examination of Mali’s three post-independence republics, and recontextualized a narrative which, in its original form and in spite of the violence it contained, could be seen as a collection of anecdotes. More than just a play, the production functions (in Mali and elsewhere) as a “truth commission” like those of post-apartheid South Africa, as a theatrical defence of the catharsis of independence. As such it echoes the traditional Malian forms of koteba and maana, which explore history and social issues through storytelling and acting.
 
With deep feeling, Patrick Le Mauff recalls the creative team’s artistic and civic process: “While we were developing the script in rehearsal, we met publisher Amadou Traoré, the protagonist of Soungalo Samaké’s story. The whole crew had gathered for a meal in a restaurant in Bamako to ask him questions and, most of all, to hear his incredible life story. As he sat in our midst, we listened intently to his clear, soft voice telling the mind-boggling story of a man who claimed to have erased hatred from his home and his heart. Everything about him indicated that this was no prepared speech, but the authentic report of a lived experience. Every now and then I glanced around at our group—friends, actors, producers, directors, writer—as you occasionally check out the audience during a performance to gauge the level of interest. And in this case it was incredible: an attentive silence as tangible as a heavy rock in your hand. Those two hours we spent together had to be the cornerstone of the play. How could we get the audience to listen as attentively? How could we preserve that focus, even just a shadow of that focus? How could we ensure that ‘dramatizing’ the experience wouldn’t mess everything up? In rehearsal we were constantly on guard against ‘overstaging’ the moment we had shared, and keenly aware of the need to preserve that memory as the guiding principle behind our work.
 
“Obviously, it required some adjusting: you can’t just throw life up there on stage willy?nilly. But in that process we found ourselves constantly questioning our practices, our little tricks, our fancy lighting, our stage shortcuts. Without that vigilance we ran the risk of diluting everything—the characters, the history; and that’s something we would have regretted for a long time.”
 
 
WHAT THE CRITICS ARE SAYING
 
Les Lettres françaises / Jean-Pierre Han: Truly captivating
“This is a true story about the convulsive evolution of an emerging country. As it is performed in Bambara and French, and directed with skill and a keen and sensitive sense of theatre by Patrick Le Mauff, the audience is truly captivated. The three actors, Adama Bagayoko, Maïmouna Doumbia (whose character, a woman born of a gang rape, really stands out) and Michel Sangaré, are perfectly cast. This eminently political show, the antithesis of the current preference for sound and fury, is a rare thing and worthy of our attention.”
RFI / La danse des mots / Yvan Amar: Powerful and moving
“An extremely powerful and moving show.... The deceptively simple staging is in fact quite sophisticated and clever, very accomplished in the way the dialogue moves between characters, and even between the video projections of characters and the archival images that appear occasionally.”
Le Populaire du Centre / Muriel Mingau: Much more than a play
“Much more than a play, this is a powerful, significant act.... The performers are outstanding, extremely moving. The viewer feels really connected to the details of their lives, their experiences, their feelings—and this is helped by the excellent direction. Sensitive and subtle, it elegantly remains in the background and allows the story to take centre stage.... The result of this alchemy is a stunning, richly meaningful work.”
RENCONTRE DU JEUDI
In a departure from our usual format, the post-show event on Thursday, March 10 will take the form of a discussion between the creative team and representatives from the Embassy of Mali and Canada, on the topic: “Africa at 50: independent, lively and elegant, or...?”
 
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