Frank Van Laecke, Sam Verhoeven and Allard Blom have been working together for a long time: a golden triumvirate. Van Laecke provided the script, Blom the lyrics, Verhoeven the music. Add to that the atmospheric and sparkling direction/choreography by Martin Michel and you have a gem. This production premiered in 2013 with Leki in the lead role. Now the lead role was entrusted to Sandrine.
New version
The original script was revisited, completely reworked and deepened. All the different facets of Josephine Baker's richly filled life are covered. Josephine B.tells the story of the world's most famous revue artist.
Josephine Baker.
With this production, these four gentlemen do justice to Josephine Baker's legacy. A woman adorned with an aura and mystery. She was more than a statement. What she did on a social level, specifically against racial discrimination, in a time when it was still deeply entrenched, is nothing short of phenomenal. Her courage and audacity too. During her lifetime, she received the highest French honors. A performance written as a revue, which also has the pace of a revue, also the outward spectacle of a revue, with at its core the story of an exceptional woman. She lived nine lives instead of one: dancer, singer, actress, resistance fighter, activist, star, mother, world-changer... and woman. A unique life journey that simply demands to have a moving and gripping story woven around it. That's not just a success, but a complete and utter triumph!
The premise
Last year, French President Macron honored Josephine Baker with the ultimate accolade. 46 years after her death, she was interred in the Pantheon in Paris among other heroes and great figures from French history. Director Martin Michel wondered: how would Josephine B react to that? Josephine takes to the stage and remains rather unfazed by it. The revue unfolds as an assemblage, a long flashback that reflects on the most important moments from her life. She was no puppet, manipulated by men who held the strings, the money, and the power. If anything, the opposite.
From oppression to freedom
She started her career with a dance company in Philadelphia. A few years later, she moved to New York where she got a role in the show Chocolate Dandies, in which mainly people of color were ridiculed. During a show, she was discovered by a company of black artists. They also performed in Paris with "La revue Nègre." Here begins the launch of an incredible life story. Sandrine takes on the role with natural ease, stylishly and sophisticatedly. What stage presence and what a golden voice: world-class! She creates an energy field around herself and sends ripples in all directions. We see a performance at the famous Folies Bergère theater in 1926. There, Josephine danced "La danse sauvage" in a banana skirt. She caused quite a stir with her bare breasts and sultry banana skirt around her swinging hips. Director Michel Martin brings this scene to the stage suggestively and respectfully. This performance gave Josephine star status. The audience called her "the black pearl." Baker's signature song couldn't be left out: "J'ai deux amours: mon pays et Paris." France takes Josephine to its heart; it later becomes her second homeland. Alongside Sandrine, there's an ensemble of eight singing and dancing men on stage who, in snappy and burlesque choreography, make Sandrine shine: such as the feather act—worthy of the Folies Bergère and Moulin Rouge—and a parody of the German invasion. From this ensemble also emerge her husbands, the resistance fighter, and Martin Luther King.
An intrepid lady with potential. Yet her idealistic vision of the world is her undoing. Money management isn't her strongest suit either. Bailiffs seize her villa. Her good friend, Princess Grace Kelly, helps her out of the jam. She performs again. Her career spans 50 years. The makers proceeded from the idea: don't give a revue artist her own musical. Give a revue artist her own revue. Josephine B. Is a whirlwind, moving, surprising revue about her turbulent life.
Superlatives fall short when it comes to this production. Sandrine has it all: the looks, discipline, is super talented and has an incredible gift for singing. When she sings "Paris Paname," her voice resonates through your entire being. She presents Josephine B.'s astounding life story in a memorable and sublime way in a heartwarming performance. But everything about this spectacle fits together like a precise piece of clockwork. The set design is exquisite: a few sliding walls, a modular staircase, and some chairs. With only minimal interventions, different situations are created each time. The orchestra sits in the wings. As the panels shift, the musicians come into view alternately. The costumes and hairstyles are particularly beautiful. With a small adjustment, they transform into something completely different. They also create a lovely picture of the roaring twenties. The choreography is varied and snappy. An ensemble and orchestra to cherish. A production that has been worked on with love, power, and inventiveness. Overwhelming... A revue you mustn't miss! There are many more performances at the Fakkel Theater to come, followed by a tour of various cultural centers. This production belongs on international stages.
The audience sprang up like a jackknife after the show for a minutes-long standing ovation. Emotion everywhere: on stage and in the audience.
It's a crying shame that Judas Theaterproducties was left out in the cold during the subsidy round. Well, sirs and madams who decided that. Go see this performance, and you'll surely blush with shame and leave feeling guilty.
WHO: Judas Theater Productions
WHAT: Josephine B. – a life in review
WHERE: Red Hall Fakkel Theater
WHEN: October 6, 2022
