Denis Darzacq's Photographs Capture Theater in Valence's Urban Spaces

Photographer Denis Darzacq, known for his series Act, Hyper, and Chutes, created a series of in situ photographs for the Ambivalence(s) festival in Valence, France, from May 31 to June 6, 2012. The festival, organized by the Comédie de Valence and the Centre National du Théâtre's Scène Grand Ecran operation, brought together contemporary writings under Darzacq's gaze. His exhibition Joueurs is on view at the Bourse du Travail in Valence until August 14. Darzacq captured actors and amateurs re-enacting theater scenes in urban and rural settings, blending reality and fiction. The project involved director Richard Brunel, who mobilized seventeen contemporary authors including Lucy Caldwell, Gesine Danckwart, Lancelot Hamelin, and Philippe Löle. Performances included Une Chambre en ville – opus 2, where spectators entered hotel rooms to encounter characters like a terrorist clown (Eric Massé) or a corpse (Valérie Laroque). Other events took place at a psychiatric hospital with marionettes by Emile Valentin, and a bal inspired by Flaubert's Emma, created by Mariette Navarro and Caroline Guiela Nguyen. The festival also featured screenings of King Kong and short films in voting booths. Darzacq's photographs capture these moments, creating ambiguous images that question reality.