5 min
The Institut français supports "La Chute infinie des soleils" by Elemawusi Agbedjidji
La Chute infinie des soleils is about to make its debut at the Théâtre des Célestins in Lyon. An opportunity to rediscover the tragic and extraordinary history of the shipwrecks on the island of Tromelin. Its author, the Togolese Elemawusi Agbedjidji, is a beneficiary of the Des mots à la scène programme, through which the Institut français promotes less well-known or performed authors by promoting new productions. The performance is also supported by the Institut français of Togo – Togo créatif.
Theatre and anthropology
Author, actor and director Elemawusi Agbedjidji was born in Togo in 1985, where he trained in anthropology and theatre. He continued his studies in France at the University of Paris-Nanterre, with figures such as Ludovic Fouquet, David Lescot and Marie-Christine Soma. In 2016, he wrote the play Si tu sors, je sors with Gustave Akakpo, who features in the cast of La Chute infinie des soleils. After appearing in productions for Alfa Ramsès, David Bobée, Souleymane Koly, Rodrigue Norman and Anne Tismer, he began to stage his own creations with his company Soliloques.
Echoes through time
1761. A French ship carrying Malagasy slaves, the Utile, crashes on the desert island of Tromelin. While the crew members manage to leave the island on a makeshift boat, they abandon the Malagasy to their fate, promising rescue that will only arrive fifteen years later. In 2023, student Mmadi Maël is in France, where he has just passed an interview to join a French university. The two stories unfold and echo each other, until they become blurred, brought to life on stage by Khadija Kouyaté and Gustave Akakpo.
The human question
La Chute infinie des soleils was the French favourite of the reading committee of the Quartier des Autores et des Auteurs, and also a beneficiary of the SACD theatre fund 2023. While the author Elemawusi Agbedjidji accepts he is addressing difficult topics in the play, he maintains it is important "to put something positive into it, to make it possible to laugh and smile within this story, to have more than a head-on relationship with it." A maxim he upholds in order to better share emotions and anger, and bring actors and spectators together around the timeless issue of humanity.
A premiere at the Théâtre des Célestins
Elemawusi Agbedjidji's shows are regularly performed in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, DRC, Togo and France. While his work has been selected and supported by many institutions in the past, the writing and staging of La Chute infinie des soleils received support from the Fondation pour la mémoire de l'esclavage, as well as the Institut français de Paris – Visa for Creation. His latest production will be unveiled in January 2024 at the Théâtre des Célestins in Lyon, before going on tour. An opportunity to discover strong and poetic writing, carried on stage by two established actors.