It is common for plays about politics to arouse apprehension. Parodying politicians has become so common that it has become easy, even commercial, to simply surf on a series of clichés to flatter the ideological sensibilities of an audience, often to the detriment of relevance and stage performance. who end up relegated to the background. It is therefore with this concern in mind that we entered the hall of the Théâtre de la Contrescarpe to see "Jacques et Chirac".

However, it only took about ten minutes for all our doubts to be eclipsed. Without even talking about the content of the piece, the work in terms of production is enough to convince us. It's simple, the decor is perfectly used. However, it is quite minimalist: old retro screens placed at the back of the stage, a table which, if necessary, becomes a small sofa, a box which sometimes serves as a television set and... that's it! But that's enough, as the fluidity with which the scene is transformed according to the scenes is impeccable. A salutary quality given the ambitions of the piece.

Because there are a lot of changes! The play takes us on a journey through time, from Jacques Chirac's childhood in the early 1940s to his recent death. Eighty years therefore, which take place in a little over 1 hour 20 minutes without the succession ever seeming strange to us thanks to the performance of the three actors who, from Bernadette Chirac to Nicolas Sarkozy, managed to perfectly embody all the roles. Through this colorful journey, it is not only the evolution of Jacques Chirac and politicians, but also our own evolution that we see represented on stage. How many of our youthful ideals have we sacrificed to practical and material considerations? Through its protagonist, the play subtly invites us to ask ourselves the question.

However, we should not believe that "Jacques and Chirac" plunges us into a morose and melancholy state, quite the contrary. Between the numerous and hilarious references to the political life of the Fifth Republic, the running gags like L'EQNEP (we won't tell you what it is, but believe us, it's worth it), the boxing fights between presidents and lively songs, it's a funny, almost festive moment that we spend at the Théâtre de la Contrescarpe.

Finally, all of our apprehensions were brushed aside. In fact, the piece even exceeded our expectations. Because despite its humorous and sarcastic tone, the piece is ultimately very engaged, shedding light on numerous scandals surrounding the former president, his entourage, his involvement in Françafrique and his association with numerous dictators and greedy industrialists. We therefore come away conquered, rushing to buy the text of the play to which is attached numerous in-depth details on the various facts mentioned in the play. And we can only recommend that you do the same...