SOLACE, shelter and support are the topics addressed in the play, narrated in the unique relationship between a child and strange, mysterious figures. Different points of time converge in a desertlike space, reminiscences and flashbacks of a forgotten past flare up, images are created, solely connected by memories.
Mysterious characters will interact with each other on the stage to experience the bodily engagement with theatrical means. This scenic co- existence creates the space for special relations that require to rethink the relationship of power and possible manipulation.
In our current society dominated by dissociation and solitude, consolation, shelter and support became controversial topics. The voiceless and gestural dialogue between the living being and the object begs the question of our own relationship to our solitude and loneliness.
"And both darkness and slowness characterize this performance, which immediately leads the thoughts to a post-apocalyptic state where the total eradication has just taken place.
There’s no life, there’s no home, there are no other people around him. Only shadows and glimses of figures appear as hints before they fade and disappear again, and it is not to say whether they are living or dead, dream or reality.
It's all accompanied by the music of American composer Hahn Rowe, and the soundscape build up under the sensation of loss and destruction, but without falling into overplay or emotional bombardment.
The boy himself has an open and defenseless facial expression, and Gebert does an amazing job of providing him with movements that are so credible, so detailed and so full of signals about his state of mind and character that it is sometimes difficult to remember that he is a puppet.“
Av Anki Gerhardsen, LOFOTPOSTEN (31.05.2018 )
Press Release: Theatreactu
"Dans une quasi-obscurité, le public découvre un enfant seul sous les traits saisissants d’une marionnette. Visage pâle, crinière acajou, sa bouche entrouverte laisse échapper un souffle d’angoisse. Une présence d’un réalisme troublant!"
Paula Gomes, 20.04.2018
Press Release: Potsdamer Neuste Nachrichten
"In „Solace“ entwickelt sich jedoch kein fieberhafter Alptraum auf der Bühne und im eigenen Kopf, sondern dieses Kind agiert zumindest äußerlich mit großer Ruhe und Gelassenheit in diesen, seinen Traumwelten. So etwas wie Urvertrauen scheint ihm innezuwohnen. Denn das Alleinsein bereitet ihm anscheinend keine Angst, und mit den Bäumen am verlassenen Ort führt es eine vertrauliche, ja beinahe zärtliche Zwiesprache."
Astrid Priebs-Tröger, 16.04.2018
DIRECTOR: TIBO GEBERT | CONCEPTION / STAGE DESIGN / PUPPETS: TIBO GEBERT | PERFORMERS: TIBO GEBERT; LAURA SIEGMUND OR GABRIEL HERMAND-PRIQUET | DRAMATURGY HELP: GEESKE OTTEN; MERIAM BOUSSELMI; RUTH MARIËN | MUSICAL COMPOSITION: HAHN ROWE | LIGHT DESIGN: JÉRÔME HOULÈS, TIBO GEBERT | COSTUMES: SONIA ALBARTUS; TIBO GEBERT | ARTISTIC COLLABORATIONS: URSULA GEBERT; GABRIEL HERMAND-PRIQUET; MARINE CHESNAIS | PRODUCTION ASSISTENT: SOPHIE GALIBERT | HELP AND DEVELOPMENT: SILVIA BRENDENAL; KATHRIN RACHOW | LIGHT AND SOUND ON TOUR: PAUL FRIEDRICH OR JÉRÔME HOULES | PRODUCTION: NUMEN COMPANY | COPRODUCTION: TJP - CENTRE DRAMATIQUE NATIONAL D’ALSACE ; SCHAUBUDE BERLIN ; FESTIVAL MONDIAL DES THÉÂTRES DE MARIONNETTES CHARLEVILLE-MÉZIÈRES ; | FIGURTEATRET I NORDLAND ; ESPACE JÉLIOTE, COMMUNAUTÉ DE COMMUNES DU PIÉMONT OLORONAIS ; LE MANÈGE DE REIMS- SCÈNE NATIONALE; T-WERK POTSDAM ; LE THÉÂTRE DES 4 SAISONS, SCÈNE CONVENTIONNÉE MUSIQUE(S) VILLE DE GRADIGNAN ; FONDS | TRANSFABRIK - FRENCH-GERMAN FUND FOR PERFORMING ARTS | SUPPORTED BY: CENTRE DE LA MARIONNETTE DE TOURNAI (BELGIUM) ; MOUFFETARD - THÉÂTRE DES ARTS DE LA MARIONNETTES (FRANCE)