From the publication of the two volumes of her first novel “Prunella Nivier, Errance and responses” and “Prunella Nivier, Kelcint” in self-publishing at 13 and 14 years old until the publication of her play “The migration of butterflies” in 2024 following the “Vons les mots” competition, the world of Brestoise Brenda J. Simon has expanded. “Since I was 4 years old, I have wanted to tell stories and do theater,” says the woman who is today an actress, director and author.
The themes of childhood, quest, magic and relationships are still present in his current texts. “For this work, I wanted to put personal feelings, and testimonies of loved ones into a character”, explains the author who develops in “The migrations of butterflies” the themes of decolonization and ecology, between France and Togo.
“This first publication is recognition”
Having grown up in Brest, it was finally in Bordeaux that she obtained a diploma at the theater conservatory and a research master’s degree in post-colonial study. It is also in this town in the southwest of France that she created, with a group of friends, Diphda, a theater company. “I brought an artistic line which allows us to work on several interdependent themes such as ecology, and the work of languages, which are added to the vision of other artists”, explains the playwright, some of whose texts have been performed during performances, notably in Bordeaux or Avignon. “This first publication is recognition and an open door to the big leagues,” expresses Brenda J. Simon, curious to work in other arts that enrich each other. In her future texts, she would like to combine research and imagination.
The orality of theater and magic
“The potential of theater is orality. Everything is held by words and sometimes, it is the expression or the voices of the characters that come to me before their image,” says the author who today mainly writes theater. “The Migration of Butterflies” is a play built around the resonance of the voices of the characters: 24 scenes, few indications on the staging and twelve characters whose speech is mixed with the metaphor of a spider’s web connecting a family. “Brenda director cannot be Brenda author. I approach certain themes from different facets to make them accessible and allow them to be taken care of by someone else. I offer several ways of doing things and it is the director who will make the choice,” continues Brenda J. Simon, who likes to integrate “the magical, the mythological” into her texts. Writing something serious doesn’t work, something is missing. And it allows the reader to distance themselves and position themselves without rationalizing.”
Practical
“The migration of butterflies”, by Brenda J. Simon, published by L’Harmattan. Price: €13.
Swiss
