Our review of A friendly advice : feelings in the water

Head down, shoulders tucked in, Alain (Manuel Gélin) is embarrassed. He wants to leave Julie (Juliette Meyniac). Like that, for no specific reason, to explore "distant lands". He confides in his best friend, Boris (Christian Vadim), who is about to ask for Claire's (Marie Fugain) hand. So that the separation goes as well as possible, Boris advises her to tell that there is someone else in her life.

Of course, not everything goes as planned. Unhappy, Julie pushes Alain to her limits, demands at least the name of her rival. The answer of the latter upsets the daily life so far rather happy of the four protagonists. Let's say no more.

The director Didier Caron (A special gift, A real happiness…) has concocted a comedy of which he has the secret. With stories of complicated couples where his characters have to question their feelings and certainties. Do we really know each other? Do we know ourselves? The author starts from an argument which has the lightness of a soap bubble and transforms it into a cloud of foam.

Trapped in an imbroglio of lies, Boris just wanted to do his buddy a favor. In love with Claire, he is faithful to her, but, influenced by circumstances, he will take an astonishing path. For his part, Alain, who appears at first like the plaything of an improbable situation, casually metamorphoses into a blackmailer.

It goes in, it goes out, day, night. Songs from the 1980s punctuate the scenes. The spectators, delighted, hum. Édouard Laug, an ace in the decor, designed a living room with a small table, a sofa and an ottoman conducive to confidences. Having become an expert in boulevard theater, Didier Caron brings out the cowardice of men, defends women, to whom he even opens up unexpected horizons.

The dialogues hit the mark, the formulas look like aphorisms, the audience is carried away by a cascade of misunderstandings and twists. He often laughs out loud.

The playwright even pays homage to Jean Poiret, brilliant author and performer of La Cage aux Folles, by refining his duets. Thus, Manuel Gélin camps the cowards wonderfully and becomes crafty at will. Christian Vadim loses control of the situation without being afraid of ridicule. Marie Fugain, who plays the piece alternately with Mathilde Penin, has found her bearings. As for Juliette Meyniac, in the role of a false candid, she reminds us here that she is walking in the footsteps of the greatest. A popular comedy smoothly conducted, as we like them.

A friendly tip, at Studio Marigny (Paris 8th). Loc. : 01 76 49 47 12.