Le Rire des Moineaux
(The Laughter of the Sparrows)
Zineb is a young girl from French Flanders. Great changes have been taking place all around her in recent months. Her brother Jack feels the malaise more and more severly, sensing sadness and fear in the people close to him. He would like to be able to heal all wounds, and this longing pierces his heart ever deeper. Initially it was accompanied by pangs in the region of the heart, but the pain is now spreading. So is the impact. Time after time he loses his heart. The result is a tunnel in his torso. Red, coagulated blood clots roll out of that draughty place, hard as lava. They have a force that enables them to generate energy eleven thousand times more powerful than uranium. When the sparrows eat them up, they begin to laugh. No matter where Jack goes, he is followed by a growing flock of laughing sparrows. Not only that. Schoolmates and neighbours are also fascinated by the changes occurring in him. He is pursued, hounded, wanted. As Zineb continues telling the story of what is happening to her brother, she receives reinforcements. An increasing number of people and sparrows rally around her and recount – along with her – all that is currently happening to her brother Jack.
Written and directed by Pieter De Buysser
With Thalia Otmanetelba
Scenography by Sarah De Smedt, Herman Sorgeloos & Pieter De Buysser
Technique by Aureliane Pazzaglia
French translation by Martine Bom
Produced by ROBIN
Co-produced by Théâtre de la Bastille, Paris
With the support of Flanders Literature
Performance in French
Human Heart © Sienna Morris
"Il y a du joueur de flûte d'Hamelin dans cette errance. Il y a du talent dans ce jeu, de la force et beaucoup de puissance dans cette écriture." -- I/O Gazette
Premiere
17, 18, 19, 20 & 21 May 2017
Théâtre de la Bastille, Paris (F)
Past dates
10 November 2017 - Belgian premiere
La Montagne Magique, Brussels (B), Ménage à deux Festival (with Bronks)