© Claude Pocobene
Ten years after its first performance, "Les Chatouilles ou la danse de la colère", Andréa Bescond returns to the stage at Théâtre de l’Atelier to tell her own story. This solo performance, punctuated by dance and humor, continues to provoke and address the painful issue of pedophilia.
A Cathartic Work
Now in her thirties, Odette finds herself in a psychologist’s office with her mother. The two women are tense, their relationship strained, and Odette is particularly hostile. What happened to this young woman whose dance career abruptly ended? Flashbacks reveal Odette's childhood, from her ballet classes and success at the conservatory to her early musicals and eventual downfall due to addiction to alcohol, drugs, and sex. The unimaginable horror behind Odette’s descent is revealed: during her entire childhood, a family friend subjected her to "tickles"—a euphemism for repeated sexual abuse.
With "Les Chatouilles", Andréa Bescond plunges us into her turmoil, which she exorcizes through dance. When words and strength fail her, she dances through the greatest challenges of her life, portraying all the characters she encountered: her younger self, adolescents and adults, police officers, and even her mother who never believed her.
From Life to Stage
After a prestigious dance career, it was only with the birth of her second child in 2010 that Andréa Bescond felt the need to write and stage her story, her trauma. In 2014, she unveiled "Les Chatouilles ou la danse de la colère", directed by Éric Métayer and presented at the Avignon Off Festival. It was a success, earning the Avignon Critic’s Choice Award for Best Actress, a Molière Award in 2016, and two César in 2019 for its film adaptation.
This work remains particularly necessary today, with 20,000 complaints of sexual abuse against minors filed annually in France. For the past decade, Andréa Bescond has received testimonies from victims after every performance. She returns to the stage for them, after briefly passing the role to Déborah Moreau. We can only admire this woman who courageously relives her trauma at each performance to boldly proclaim: "You are not alone!"
From Thursday to Saturday at 9 PM until June 1st.
Discover also 3 critically acclaimed plays at the Molières and Amanda Sthers' hilarious comedy Conseil de famille.
