We saw two films about the play which presented all the important characters and the plot as well. They were a little funny because they were supposed to interest the students, and it was a good idea.

Enzo.

Last Tuesday, we saw Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde at the Alhambra theatre.

The actors were wearing clothes from the Victorian period, so the costumes were well chosen. A screen was placed behind the actors and we saw movies when there was a flashback or the transformation of Dr Jekyll into Hyde. We didn't truly appreciate this part of the staging because the films weren't good quality, it was a sort of “slide show” but it didn't seem very professional.

As for the comedians, they  were overacting, especially Ms Lanyon who had a strange accent. It was too theatrical. We didn't feel any emotions, we couldn't have any sympathy for the characters. That was too bad.

Furthermore, Hyde was breathing like a dog, it was unbearable.

Concerning the staging, the transformation of Hyde into Dr Jekyll was too repetitive, especially the sound of the broken mirror. It drove us crazy!

Moreover, in the book, we are not told (until the end) that Hyde is in fact Dr Jekyll but in the play we are. This choice didn't add anything positive to the play and destroyed the effect of surprise.

To put it in a nutshell, we were disappointed by this play but perhaps it is because we are not very interested in the story...

Blanche

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

The play was very funny to see. There were some changes about the characters,  for example Mr Lanyon was Miss Lanyon, Dr Jekyll and her seemed to be in love and she finally died of a heart attack as Mr Lanyon should have died. The actor who played Mr Hyde was very mean and that made the audience laugh. The audience was receptive, in general. The main characters articulated well, so it was understandable but Mirror Game was easier to understand than this play. When Jekyll was turned into Hyde, Hyde walked through the mirror and Jekyll took his place and became just the reflection. The ambiguous link between the two parts of this character was shown in a very interesting way. At the back of the stage there was a screen on which  some pictures of the "Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde" movie were projected when there was something important to explain which couldn't be shown otherwise. The music was sometimes impressive . It wasn't too long,  I personnally  enjoyed the play. 

F. Vallée

On Tuesday, February first a part of the class of 1erL went to The Alhambra in Paris to see The Strange case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, staged by Lucille O' Flanagan.  It was a show in English for  high school and middle school  students and all types of  audiences. It is a new creation using a huge video screen on stage. All the team was British and had already played  "The Importance of Being Earnest", "King Lear", "The Dumb Waiter" and "Sherlock Holmes"». The play deals with a mysterious and disgusting Mr Hyde. This mysterious man is known by nobody  but  Mr Jekyll, a respectable doctor.  But who is this Mr Hyde? All Jekyll’s friends are looking for the answer. Unfortunatly, it is too late because Jekyll has already lost the control of himself, of his bad side. It is the letter read  at the end of the play that will give its end to the plot. Is it possible not to be interested in such a story ? In man’s inner conflict between good and evil? You can be sure that the subject of the duality of man’s nature really pleased me, however I was disappointed by the staging and  the performance of the actors. The insane side of Mr Hyde was overplayed  to such an extent that he became uninteresting. The acting of the comedian made the  character funny. He looked like a dog. As for the very British comedian, she had such an exaggerated diction that she lost her credibility. The video extracts were badly used.We did not know any more if we had come to see a theatre play or a movie because  the contemporary staging was a total failure What a pity! What a pity  to miss the point in such a way  and not to be able to make us get into this wondeful novel.

 Emma-Lewis

Last Tuesday, we saw the play Mr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. Dr Jekyll is a scientist  who he invents a potion to separate his good side from his dark side. Mr Hyde is the dark side of Mr Jekyll. He has two friends : Mr Utterson and Mr Lanyon (but in the play the role of Lanyon was played by a woman).

We were very disappointed by this play, because the staging wasn't good at all, everytime Dr Jekyll was transformed into Hyde there was the same process : He drank the potion, the mirror broke and so on everytime...

On the stage there was a screen and the backstage was behind it. So we could see the actors who were moving. They changed setting every 10 minutes and it was totally useless because we understood perfectly well. without the settings where was situated the action.

But, the acting was very good, specially Miss Lanyon's performance. Sometimes, the actors were walking in the audience, it was very surprising. 

Celya. T et Bertille. G