Figures de l'intime et de l'extime : réflexions à partir du jeu de Marina Hands et d'Éric Ruf face à Phèdre de Jean Racine et à Partage de midi de Paul Claudel

Entitled “The Figures of intimacy and extimacy: a Reflection on Marina Hands and
Eric Ruf’s acting in Jean Racine's Phèdre and Paul Claudel's Partage de midi”, this PhD
dissertation addresses the concepts of “intimacy” and “extimacy” as witnessed through Marina
Hands and Eric Ruf’s vocal and scenic acting in Patrice Chereau and Yves Beaunesne’s
respective productions of Racine's and Claudel's works. In the frame of these two shows both
actors manage to suggest “extimacy” with their body language, and to render “intimacy” thanks
to their “singing” diction of Racine’s alexandrine and Claudel’s free verse.
Throughout our development, we will display perpetual links between Racine and
Claudel, as suggested by the singular acting of these two performers. The problematic axis of
this dissertation is thus the following: “how does the combination of the “extimacy” of Marina
Hands and Éric Ruf’s body-language and the “intimacy” of their “singing” diction reveal the
musicality of Racine’s and Claudel’s languages?”. We shall see that “intimacy” turns out to
be “extimacy” on stage, and that the two concepts are nothing but two sides of the same coin.
“Intimacy” is the constant object of both Patrice Chereau's and Yves Beaunesne's research, to
the extent that it constitutes the essence of their artistic creations. In order to become
“extimacy”, “intimacy” has to be mediated by actors’ bodies if it means to serve the text
actually heard on stage. The union between body and text is therefore a central issue.