The Banquet & I Solisti / Jan Decleir & Marjan De Schutter

A theatrical concert about a forgotten protagonist of the Franse Revolutie Joseph Fouché – a leading role in the shadows After the success of ‘Egmont’ and ‘Landru’, Het Banket and I SOLISTI are joining forces again. While that last music-theater performance is still drawing full houses, the makers are now turning their attention to the unlikely but true life story of Joseph Fouché (1759-1820), the most unknown protagonist of the Franse Revolutie. Much has been written, sung, filmed, and told about that great revolution. Terwijl Robespierre, Marat, Napoleon, Danton, and Marie Antoinette filling the history books, Fouché always moved in their shadow. Nevertheless, he was at every moment at the center of the historical developments of his time. He changed sides like underwear: from one radical extreme to the other. He was a Catholic trainee priest in his young years, but then showed himself to be a ruthless slaughterer of anyone who had anything to do with the faith. He defected from the Girondins to the Jacobins, the two extremes within the revolutionary movement. He was a fanatical royalist and then again a militant anti-royalist. The once-radical revolutionary Fouché later became a minister in the service of Napoleon and ended his career as minister of police under King Louis XIII. Fouché’s life is full of blood-curdling plot twists. How is it that this man, who played such a decisive and bizarre role during one of the most turbulent periods of our history, has remained so unknown? Why is his exceptional story not told more often? Het Banket and I SOLISTI do not bring a dry history lesson, but let the people behind the data come to life. In a mix of text, image, and new music by Frederik Neyrinck, Jan Decleir, Marjan De Schutter, a five-piece wind ensemble, and a soprano bring the story of Fouché to the stage. By putting a spotlight on this forgotten protagonist, they also shed light on the period in which we live now. In recent years, there has been a new interest in that fascinating period of our history. Probably because we have ended up in a time when our familiar society is shaking to its foundations.