Having come to Paris at the behest of the Opéra Garnier, which has commissioned him to write the libretto for a children’s opera based on a fairy-tale by Hans Christian Andersen, a Québécois songwriter settles down in a friend’s apartment, rue Saint-Denis. During his stay, he necessarily meets people: one of the Opéra’s senior managers (a man with some odd and unusual likings), a young janitor and graffiti artist of North African descent, as well as a dog who could well be guiding the tale along its way.

Freely inspired from two stories by Andersen (The Dryad and The Shadow) and from anecdotes drawn from the famed Danish author’s Parisian travels, the Andersen Project calls on some of Lepage’s recurring themes: the confrontation between romanticism and modernism, between recognized and underground art forms, between past and present. However, in this new solo work, he also explores more troubling territories: questions about sexual identity, unfulfilled fantasies and a thirst for recognition and fame that are drawn from Andersen’s life and writings, only to serve as a filigree to the modern tale.

Once again, Lepage tells the story of a Québécois whose travels abroad and meetings with Others allow him to find out what defines, motivates and inspires him.

Created 22 February - 26 March 2005 in Quebec City (Quebec, Canada).

The play is performed by Yves Jacques since 2005

Written and directed by: Robert Lepage
Performed by: Yves Jacques
Script Collaborators: Peder Bjurman, Marie Gignac
Assistant Director: Félix Dagenais
Associate Set Designer: Jean Le Bourdais
Associate Lighting Designer: Nicolas Marois
Sound Designer: Jean-Sébastien Côté
Costume Designer: Catherine Higgins
Properties: Marie-France Larivière
Puppeteer: Normand Poirier
Images produced by: Jacques Collin, Véronique Couturier, David Leclerc
Wig Master: Richard Hansen

Production: Ex Machina
Co-production : Auckland Festival ; Bite:06, Barbican, London ; Bonlieu Scène Nationale Annecy ; Festival de Otoño de la Comunidad de Madrid ; Cal Performances, Berkeley ; Célestins, Théâtre de Lyon ; Change Performing Arts, Milan ; La Comète - Scène nationale de Châlons-en-Champagne ; La Coursive, La Rochelle ; Le Festival d'automne à Paris ; Le Grand Théâtre de Québec ; Le Théâtre du Nouveau Monde, Montréal ; Le Théâtre du Trident, Québec ; Le Théâtre français du Centre national des Arts d'Ottawa ; Le Théâtre National de Bordeaux Aquitaine ; Le Théâtre National de Chaillot ; Le Théâtre National de Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées ; Le Volcan, Scène nationale du Havre ; LG Arts Center, Seoul ; Maison des Arts, Créteil ; MC2 : Maison de la Culture de Grenoble ; National Chiang Kai-Shek Cultural Centre, Taipei ; Pilar de Yzaguirre - Ysarca Art Promotions, Madrid ; Setagaya Public Theatre, Tokyo ; spielzeiteuropa I Berliner Festspiele ; Teatre Lliure, Barcelona ; The Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation ; The Sydney Festival Théâtre de Caen

Producer for Ex Machina: Michel Bernatchez
Associate Producer, Europe, Japan: Richard Castelli - Epidemic
Associate Producer, The Americas, Asia (except Japan), Australia, NZ: Menno Plukker Theatre Agent

Acknowledgements: Le-Maillon, Théâtre de Strasbourg and Odense City Museums
Ex Machina is funded by the Canada Council for the Arts, Quebec's Arts and Literature Council and the City of Quebec