Seabrook’s Theatre: Friday 22 Sept: 19:00
Alliance Française de Durban brings acclaimed multi-media production, The Alchemy of Words which searches to capture the enigma of French poet, Arthur Rimbaud, to the Seabrookes Thetre at DHS for one public performance only, on Friday 22 September at 7pm.
In The Alchemy of Words, three artists, a puppeteer, a filmmaker and a musician, explore the life and work of French poet, Arthur Rimbaud, and in so doing interrogates what it means to be a pioneer.
Arthur Rimbaud (1854 -1894) was the ‘enfant terrible’ of French poetry. His work has had a profound impact on the poetry of the 20th Century: André Breton, Dylan Thomas, Jack Kerouac, Bob Dylan, Patti Smith and Jim Morrison are some of the artists and musicians that have been influenced by his writing.
The production asks: Who is this literary pioneer and creative genius who continues to receive letters from fans all over the world even 123 years after his death? The performance asks us what the limit of our own imagination is theatre, visual arts and music. Through the convergence of the different mediums – the drawn line, the mythical world of the puppet, the immediacy of live music, a milieu is created where different worlds encounter one another in a space that is situated in a utopia of no borders, somewhere between a dreamscape and everyday life.
This collaboration between South African and French artists was made possible by the generous support of the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS). For more info, contact 031 312 9582 / culture.afdurban@alliance.org.za.
