Is putting on a show entirely in English a risky undertaking?
The first time, without a doubt. It's theater, the staging, and the rest of the performance helps students understand the text. Now, we know it works; we're absolutely certain that the students we've prepared in class will understand the show. They've worked on the play in art class, in French, and in English. Our students are now well-prepared! And we know that the show will boost their confidence. Even struggling students realize they can understand. It shatters preconceived notions about the difficulty of the language.
What are you offering us this year?
The Mystery of Mr. Renfield & Count Dracula, an adaptation of Bram Stoker's book directed by Andrew Loudon, who played Dr. Watson in the Sherlock Holmes production they presented in Tarbes in 2010. He chose to tell Dracula's story from the perspective of Mr. Renfield, a minor character in the original book. He is the narrator of this story, which straddles the line between dream and reality. The vocabulary is simpler than in Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. We focused particularly on Gothic vocabulary. Our students no longer have any apprehension about the text; on the contrary, they are eager to see how it has been staged.
Is this proposal also of interest to other schools?
Yes, there are over 1,500 students from middle and high schools throughout the department registered for the three school performances. And there's the performance on Thursday evening for other students and adults.
