Roméo et Juliette de William Shakespeare à la Comédie-Française (2015-2016) : Quand une tragédie mythique devient une tragi-comédie

How does the production of Romeo and Juliet designed and directed by Éric Ruf, the administrator of the Comédie-Française since 2014, figure out William Shakespeare’s tragedy in an unexpected way? And how does it transform the tragedy into a tragi-comedy? These are questions that the following article tries to answer. The first and major part of the study focuses on Éric Ruf’s parti pris concerning the myth that Romeo and Juliet has become over time. What is the stage-director’s position vis-à-vis the Shakespearean text and what is the interpretation he shares with his audience? What is the gap between the original script – here in François-Victor Hugo’s translation – and the audio-visual adaptations of the play? Furthermore, how does Juliette (Suliane Brahim) seem to be the heroine of a family vendetta while Roméo (Jérémy Lopez) has more of the anti-hero? Finally how does Éric Ruf compose the mythic balcony scene and thwart the stereotypes about it? The last part of the article deals with the music partition that is omnipresent in the performance. How does it account for Éric Ruf’s dramaturgical vision and contribute to overturn the myth?