Valérie Lesort directs Hanokh Levin's provocative theatrical cabaret 'Que d'espoir !' in Paris through July 2025

Valérie Lesort stages Hanokh Levin's theatrical cabaret 'Que d'espoir !' at the Théâtre de l'Atelier in Paris, running until July 13, 2025. The production, originally created in French at the Théâtre de la Tempête in 2005, features a cast including Charly Voodoo, Hugo Bardin (also known as drag queen Paloma), David Migeot, and Céline Milliat-Baumgartner, with costumes by Carole Allemand. Lesort employs an aesthetic of the 'hyper-ugly,' using exaggerated prosthetics and transformations to depict human flaws, drawing inspiration from sources like the erotic-humorous comic Little Annie Fanny and Willem de Kooning's Women. Levin's satirical sketches, known for critiquing Israeli society, are presented with a focus on provocation and bad taste, exploring themes of love, illness, and death through cynical humor. The show includes musical numbers performed by pianist Charly Voodoo on high heels, with songs by Levin. Lesort describes the work as revealing 'our miserable condition' through extreme human defects. The article also mentions other upcoming performances: 'Sibylle(s)' directed by Simon-Pierre Bestion with La Tempête company at the Théâtre de l'Athénée in Paris from May 16-24, 2025, and Puccini's 'Il trittico' directed by Christof Loy at the Opéra Bastille in Paris from April 29 to May 28, 2025, featuring singer Asmik Grigorian.