a musical comedy

by Sandy (Jan 4, 2005)

First Act:

The show starts with the rebellion of the population against Cardinal Mazarin. A rebellion which is subdued in blood with the sound of the cannons. The young Louis the XIVth is sacred King in Reims. But Mazarin and his mother Anne d’Autriche confiscate his power because they doubt his capacities to reign one day.

Louis falls in love with Marie Mancini, an Italian immigrant of common birth, niece of Mazarin. The young monarch has to assert his authority. He decides to make war with his army, but Marie has got a bad intuition.

Louis falls sick at war, struck by a severe illness. Everybody thinks he is dead, and the court forgets him and decides to choose Monsieur, Louis’s brother, as future king of France. Marie refuses to accept the fatality, she bemoans Louis and prays.

Louis comes back from war but he looks dead. A doctor decides to test a poison on him and it’ a miracle : Louis wakes up from his deep sleep. He understands that everybody forgot him, except his family and Marie.

The King, in love with the beautiful Italian Marie, decides to get married with her. Marie reminds him it’s impossible: the King of France can’t get married with an Italian girl of common birth. Anne d’Autriche, Mazarin and even the Pope disagree with this union.

Louis grows obstinate. He’s the King and he decides. But it all ends up with the exile of Marie. Louis has to get married with the infant of Spain.

The first act finishes with the suffering of the separation. Louis has sacrificed his destiny as a man to his destiny as a king.

Second act:

The second act starts with the death of Mazarin. Louis takes the power and becomes The Sun King. He succumbs to many women, to the sulphurous Madame de Montespan for example.

He lives in magnificence, forgetting the French population who pays a heavy tribute for the construction of an excessive dream, the Palace of Versailles.

After some eventful episodes like the affair of the iron mask or the affair of the poison, Louis gets married with Françoise d’Aubigné, a woman of common birth who’s the governess of the illegitimate children of Madame de Montespan and Louis the XIVth.

Louis finally realizes his destiny as a king and his destiny as a man.

The main characters :

Louis the XIVth : Emmanuel Moire.

Emmanuel Moire interprets the most beautiful but also the most difficult part : Louis XIV.

From his consecration in Reims to his secret marriage with his last love Françoise d’Aubigné, Emmanuel has to incarnate the most famous king of France facing his destiny.

Monsieur : Christophe Maé.

Christophe interprets the king’s brother: Monsieur. We can say he was the "minister" of the festivities of Louis XIV’s court. Monsieur was one of the first noble persons who assumed his homosexuality. Very funny character in the show, Monsieur brings humor and eccentricity without falling into caricature.

Le Duc de Beaufort : Merwan Rim.

Merwan interprets the Duc de Beaufort, illegitimate grandson of Henri the IVth. People call him " Le Roi des Halles". He has a very important part in the show especially in the affair of the iron mask.

Isabelle : Victoria Petrosillo.

Victoria interprets Isabelle, a character of pure fiction. It is impossible to relate the story of Louis the XIVth without mentionning the miserable condition of the population at that time. Isabelle incarnates this strong and courageous people fighting for his survival.

Marie Mancini : Anne-Laure Gilbal

Anne-Laure interprets Marie Mancini, an italian immigrant and niece of Mazarin. Rebellious and romantic, she attracts the anger of her uncle. Louis loves hervery much, but Mazarin and Anne d’Autriche have broken this impossible but beautiful love.

Madame de Montespan : Lysa Ansaldi

Lysa interprets the part of the sulphurous Madame de Montespan, the most famous mistress of the king. A woman infinitely in love and possesive , she abandons her family to preserve her love for the king.

Françoise d’Aubigné : Cathialine Andria

Cathialine interprets Françoise d’Aubigné, the last love and secret wife of Louis the XIVth. Daughter of a criminal, Françoise was born in prison. After a miserable life, she gets married to the poet Scarron, a man who’s sick and old. After the death of her husband she enters the court of the king.

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