“An Italian Straw Hat” that takes your breath away

Since its creation at the Théâtre du Palais-Royal in Paris on August 14, 1851, Eugène Labiche's five-act comedy has entertained spectators. Since September 27, 2023, in the production of Alain Françon at the Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin, she has made people laugh out loud. However, there is something to break your teeth about. The argument rests on a corner of the tablecloth. On his wedding day, the young annuitant Fadinard sees the horse in his cabriolet eating the straw hat of Anaïs Beauperthuis, a married woman, then having fun with her lover in the Bois de Vincennes. Fadinard is ordered to find an identical hat to save the lady from her jealous husband. He sets out on this quest with his future father-in-law, Nonancourt, and the entire wedding party on his heels, trying not to arouse suspicion about the real reason for his trip to town.

Alain Françon directs Labiche for the first time. If his favorite authors are not happy goers (Chekhov, Bond), he has already successfully created Feydeau (notably L'Hôtel du Libre-Échange). Labiche is not Feydeau. He precedes it and announces it. Feydeau will go even further into the disorder and the absurd. But Labiche already laid the foundations of vaudeville and its underground madness. Behind the lover in the closet, the cheated husband, the misunderstandings and the slamming doors, hides the crass stupidity of a class, the bourgeoisie, obsessed with money.

No psychology or literature in A Straw Hat from Italy. The characters do not utter one-liners or long tirades - it is no coincidence that René Clair's adaptation, filmed in 1928, is a masterpiece of silent cinema. To embody this theater without ideas, Françon has the intelligence not to think. Its staging is physical, graphic, supported by the refined sets of Jacques Gabel and the choreographies of Emma Kate Nelson. It's all about rhythm, tempo and rigor. An approximate gesture, an off-beat reply, and the limping comedy, the burlesque flutters. In all cases, the actors wear the hat.

Vincent Dedienne has little to envy of Pierre Niney's Fadinard, the actor's first and last major role before leaving the Comédie-Française. Lively and leaping harlequin in The Game of Love and Chance on this same stage, Dedienne here confirms her joy of playing in a troupe. He is well surrounded. From Anne Benoît as Nonancourt, a bewildered nurseryman from Charentonneau, to Suzanne De Baecque in the costume of her daughter, Hélène, a sacrificed godiche, they are all impeccable. The electropop of Fire! Chatterton joins the party. The music is played live by three musicians from the group placed in a basket. She doesn't just furnish changes in decor. She leads the bodies into a crazy race, pulling the show towards a musical.

The line is sharp, bordering on cartoon and slapstick. But Françon's clear line does not prevent the disorder. Doubt eventually creeps in. Fadinard doesn't only run after a straw hat. He may be heading towards his doom. Marriage is just the beginning of the troubles. And marital and bourgeois boredom. The superb and final painting, with its umbrellas, evokes Magritte. Like a painting by the Belgian painter, this Italian Straw Hat has everything of a wonderful nightmare.

“A Straw Hat from Italy”, at the Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin (Paris 10th), until December 31. Rental: 01 42 08 00 32.