In the Solitude of the Cotton Fields is a modern French classic by playwright Bernard-Marie Koltès (1948-89) that portrays the relationship between a dealer and a client. As directed by the innovative French director and sound artist Roland Auzet, in a new English translation by NYU’s Judith Graves Miller, the action unfolds on the steps of the Kimmel Center’s Grand Staircase as an intense transaction between conflicting desires for drugs, love, connection, and a sense of existence. In Auzet’s production furtive exchanges are overheard by audience members equipped with headphones, allowing spectators to eavesdrop on the intimate, secretive, and transgressive negotiation of the deal.
French composer, percussionist, and theater director Roland Auzet defines himself as a stage writer. An artist and performer with many interests and talents, Auzet received the Chevalier des Arts et Lettres from the French Ministry in 2007 for his remarkable body of work in contemporary music, circus, dance, opera, and theater.
The performances of “In the Solitude of the Cotton Fields” are made possible thanks to the support of the Cultural Services of the French Embassy in the United States, FACE Foundation, La Muse en Circuit, Compagnie Act-Opus, and NYU-Center for French Civilization and Culture.
Details
Directed by Roland Auzet
Translated by Judith Graves Miller
With Becca Blackwell and Tory Vazquez
In the Solitude of the Cotton Fields at NYU Skirball is co-sponsored by the Department of NYU Tisch Dance and the Department of NYU Steinhardt Educational Theatre.