The Red Balloon

The set on the stage seems to have been there for years, as if it had been abandoned. The musicians also seem to have come from another time… Are we in the past? Is it just a dream?

Rolling on its own wheels, a xylophone suddenly makes its entrance; the scores start levitating and the sticks playing by themselves! It’s a whole world that seems to come alive to the sounds of these unique instruments.

This dreamlike and magical environment is then transposed to the screen to give life to the Red Balloon – a masterpiece directed by Albert Lamorisse and Oscar-rewarded in 1957.

With a sense of freedom and adventure, here we are in Paris (Ménilmontant area) back in the 1950s strolling alongside a little boy and a balloon that comes to life in his hands.

The variety of Darius Milhaud’s music extends this journey through time and reveals a touching poetry.

PROGRAMME

Darius Milhaud
La Création du monde, Le Carnaval d’Aix, Le Carnaval de Londres,
Suite française, Suite for piano and ondes Martenot,
Suite provençale, Chamber Symphony no.1, Scaramouche