At the Théâtre du Palais-Royal in Paris, Sarah Bernhardt re-enchanted by Estelle Meyer

Her name is Estelle Meyer and she could well become one of the major figures of the return of Parisian private theater. By choosing this ardent actress and singer for the title role of her new creation, The Extraordinary Destiny of Sarah BernhardtGéraldine Martineau, author and director, has succeeded in her casting. It took quite a personality to embody “the Divine” Sarah Bernhardt (1844-1923), the legendary tragedienne, performer in particular of Phaedra and of The Eaglet, whose funeral attracted a crowd of some 400,000 people to Paris.

To tell in one hour and fifty minutes the incredible journey of the woman that Jean Cocteau (1889-1963) described as “sacred monster” is a challenge. On the stage of the historic Théâtre du Palais-Royal in Paris, we are immediately struck by the singularity of Estelle Meyer. Her voice, her way of being, her presence, everything about her exudes a generous passion, a baroque power but without fuss.

Around her, accompanied by Florence Hennequin on the cello and Bastien Dollinger on the piano and clarinet, seven actors and actresses twirl, playing thirty-four roles with ease. A perfectly tuned troupe and beautifully costumed by Cindy Lombardi for a story staged with astonishing fluidity. From her schooling at the Grandchamp convent in Versailles (Yvelines) to her American tour, from her resounding resignation from the Comédie-Française to the management of the Théâtre des Nations (which became the Théâtre de la Ville-Sarah Bernhardt), from her audition at the Conservatoire to her meeting with Victor Hugo (1802-1885) who would praise her, a succession of tableaux, punctuated by very successful sung interludes, unfolds the significant episodes of the artistic and especially intimate life of a woman ahead of her time. If the logic of this piece is chronological and biographical, it does not aim to be exhaustive but rather focused on the thirst for freedom and the struggles of Sarah Bernhardt.

Pioneer Woman

The pace of this show, both demanding and accessible to all, reflects the impetuosity of this extraordinary artist: fanciful and full of vitality. We never get bored following the epic of this pioneering woman who had no time for conventions and what people would say, ready to play men’s roles, to travel to the four corners of the world, to direct theaters with a firm hand. Estelle Meyer has a lot to do with it, as she knows, throughout this hectic life journey, how to alternate emotions, distill the right amount of humor or pain, and avoid any caricature of the model.

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