UFR LLASICLanguage, literature, performing arts, information and communication, journalism

After a brief history and presentation of object theater as a branch of puppetry, initiated by Théâtre de Cuisine in the 80s - a company where the actress in charge of the workshop was partly trained - Marthe proposed a series of warm-up exercises designed to dissociate attention and body movements. The aim of these exercises was to get us into condition: in object theater, you often have to do something while thinking about something else, or playing something other than what you're doing with your hands.

Marthe then opened a fabulous suitcase containing various objects (crockery, tools, toys, decorative objects, sewing sets, etc.), from which she proposed a new series of exercises and improvisations. Fascinating and highly entertaining, these exercises enabled us to discover what an object really was (its external and internal qualities) and how it could be used to create a narrative. Finally, we tested the use of video to create object sketches that play on relationships of scale.

This workshop complemented the theoretical approach we've been exploring since the beginning of the year, that of intermediality, i.e. the idea that the presence of two media within the same work is not only complementary, but above all makes sense in itself. The work of the Les Maladroits company, which combines actor's theater, object theater and puppetry, lends itself well to such a methodological approach, especially as their show tackles the question of how images are made on social networks, through the representation of a conspiracy group bent on proving that the Americans never walked on the moon. On the one hand, this workshop was a way for us to experiment with the sensory effects of intermediality, while on the other hand it was a major asset for the students in their reception of the show, which could be the focus of the seminar evaluation.

Further information 

Marthe de Carné is an actress who trained at the École Claude Mathieu and works with the company Les Maladroits for the past two years. She is currently performing in their show Studios are yours !