Mille francs de récompense

Choose an eloquent, breathless text, one of the gems of Victor Hugo’s Théâtre en liberté. Carefully peel off the mad stream of incidental material, then strip off the themes that have lost nothing of their sinister topicality : desperate poverty, the brutality of certain social mechanisms, an unquenchable thirst for humanity and justice. Form a tight team around a director who has a penchant for storytelling, a sense of rhythm and love of the stage. Garnish it all in lavish set designs where the supporting cast of the play are seen as shadows, cast against the walls, and let the entire concoction simmer for three hours before an enraptured audience…and you have Mille francs de récompense – grand and popular spectacle, as Laurent Pelly knows how to create so well.