Le Balcon

To write and perform L'opéra de quat'sous is to give a voice to those who have none, to the beggars, to those whose bodies are crushed and exploited. Deleuze quotes Artaud as saying: "I write for the illiterate; that is to say, not with the intention of, but in the place of. For Kurt Weill, the role of the composer, like that of radio, is perhaps just that: to give a voice.



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Text by Bertolt Brecht and music by Kurt Weill
with the collaboration of Elisabeth Hauptmann
based on The Beggar's Opera by John Gay
First performed August 31, 1928 at Theater am Schiffbauerdamm, Berlin
New translation by Alexandre Pateau

Read the interview with Maxime Pascal and Alexandre Pateau.

Maxime Pascal, musical direction
Alternating with : Alphonse Cemin, Vincent Leterme, Delphine Dussaux
Thomas Ostermeier, stage director
Magda Willi, Set Designer
Florence Von Gerkan, Costumes
Urs Schönebaum, Lighting Designer
Johanna Lemke, Choreographer
Sébastien Dupouey, Video Designer
Florent Derex, Sound
Elisa Leroy, Dramaturgy and artistic collaboration

Troupe de la Comédie-Française
Véronique Vella, Celia Peachum, wife of Jonathan Jeremiah Peachum
Elsa Lepoivre, Jenny, known as la Tripoteuse, a prostitute
Christian Hecq, Jonathan Jeremiah Peachum, leader of a gang of beggars
Nicolas Lormeau, Robert, dit la Découpe, Macheath's man and Smith, first police officer
Benjamin Lavernhe, alternating with Stephane Varupenne, Tiger Brown (police chief)
Birane Ba, Macheath, leader of a criminal gang
Claïna Clavaron, Lucy, Brown's daughter
Marie Oppert, Polly Peachum, daughter of Celia and Jonathan Jeremiah Peachum
Sefa Yeboah, Filch, one of Peachum's beggars and Saul, known as Saule-Pleureur, man of Macheath
Jordan Rezgui, Matthias, called Matt-la- Mitraille, man of Macheath
and Nicolas Chupin, Jacob, dit Coco-la-Pince, man of Macheath

Le Balcon

Iris Zerdoud, Clarinet, alternating with Juliette Adam and Joséphine Besançon.
Valentine Michaud, Antonin Pommel, alternating with Juliette Herbet and Paul Lamarque Saxophones
Henri Deléger, Matthias Champon alternating with Jérémy Lecomte, Trumpets
Mathieu Adam alternating with Nicolas Desvois, Trombone, tenor horn
Alphonse Cemin alternating with Vincent Leterme, Delphine Dussaux, and Véronique Briel, Piano, harmonium, celesta, synthesizer
Pierre Michel alternates with Francois Xavier Plancqueel and Valentin Dubois, Percussion
Giani Caserotto alternating with Benjamin Garson, Guitars, banjo, balalaïka prima
Simon Drappier alternating with Mathias Lopez, Double bass, electric bass, bass balalaika

Passerelles amateur choir

Produced by Festival d'Aix-en-Provence and Comédie-Française.

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This show will be released on CD by Alpha. Release date: September 22, 2023!