"Théâtre d'ici et là" is a bilingual English & French theater company based in Brest, founded in 2012 by Clarence Sophie Dany.
Clarence Sophie Dany is a French-Australian actress, director, and theater teacher.
She is also a playwright and the artistic director of Théâtre d’ici et là.
From page to stage: where words take root, stories take form, and theatre comes alive.
Performance lectures
Backstage with Mrs Shakespeare
Historians have not been kind to Anne Hathaway, who has long been reduced to a footnote in the life of her famous husband.
Backstage with Mrs Shakespeare aims to redress that injustice.
With the aid of Shakespeare’s sonnets, archival images, and recent insights, this original creation by Clarence Sophie Dany presents the woman behind the name, confronting centuries of speculation and dismissal.
A Performance Lecture which shines a new light on Anne Hathaway’s life and invites audiences to reconsider women’s agency in the past.
How did Emily Brontë create Heathcliff?
Emily Brontë is one of the most enigmatic and loved authors in the English language.
Her timid ways and fierce need for privacy, difficultly equates with the dark passionate plots of Wuthering Heights, her only published novel.
One of the great ongoing mysteries of Victorian literature is How did Emily Brontë create Heathcliff? a sombre, traumatised and revengeful character that at first glance seems world’s apart from the quiet life of Haworth Patronage where Emily lived with her equally famous sisters Charlotte and Anne Brontë.
This original creation by Clarence Sophie Dany includes extracts of Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë’s poetry and images.
Practical details
- Public: designed for Secondary Schools, Universities/Institutes of Higher Education, Librairies and Bookclubs for audiences 16 yrs old +
- Duration: 45 minutes.
- Equipment: screen, projector and remote control.
Contact us for more information so as to offer lecture-performances to your audience.
Rendez-vous with the Classics
Relive the timeless stories that have shaped our world and still have so much to tell us.
Two actresses join forces to present Rendez-vous avec les classiques, an invitation to listen and rediscover classic texts, whose quality is universally recognised: texts we may remember only vaguely, texts that we read long ago, texts that we sometimes reread—and that still surprise us.
Every month, a different work from our literary heritage will be highlighted, giving voice to the authors who have shaped our collective memory.
An original creation by Clarence Sophie Dany and Marie Noëlle Dibouès.
Practical details
- Public: designed for Libraries/Bookshop-Cafés eager to have the classics heard in a different way.
- Duration: 45 minutes.
- Equipment: small table and 2 chairs, bottle of water and 2 glasses.
Contact us for more information so as to offer lecture-performances to your audience.
Theatre workshops
Double Trouble
A bilingual (English/French) amateur theatre troupe working within the community of Plougastel-Daoulas, Double Trouble is an original concept led by professional actress Clarence Sophie Dany.
In addition to rehearsals, several outings are scheduled so as to participate in Elizabeth & Jo’s Bookshop at Plougastel-Daoulas events and to see theatre performances.
Rehearsals also include improv exercises with improvisation actor Sandrine Migerel (Libido, ImproCeption, Libado).
This troupe is dedicated to an expansive artistic approach : the art of playing, delving into theatrical techniques, exploring key theatrical texts, and connecting with the community.
Performing alternatively in English then in French gives both actors and audiences an opportunity to fully engage in a bilingual experience.
Practical details
- Place: Plougastel-Daoulas
- Public: Bilingual Speakers
- Duration: 2hr Weekly Rehearsals (Thursday evenings, ex. Public Holidays).
- Equipment: Yoga Mat, Loose Clothing and a Bottle of Water.
Bilingual Book Club (BBC)
This bookclub is a group of passionate readers who meet one evening a month at “Elizabeth & Jo’s Bookshop” at Plougastel-Daoulas to delve into an author’s work or a theme.
In previous years we have explored Shakespeare through his sonnets and books inspired by his work. We have discovered the poetry as well as the short plays by Tennessee Williams, as well as the life and literary universe of Virginia Woolf.
This year we are engrossed in the breadth of Black American literature.
Our pleasure is to get together, share ideas, and read English-language literature aloud.
To conclude the year the Bilingual Book Club presents a performance text in a public reading at Elizabeth and Jo’s Bookshop.
Practical details
- Public: Bilingual Readers
- Duration: 1.5 hrs Monthly Session
- Equipment: required books on the reading list.
Theater in Education
With over thirty-five years of experience in Theatre in Education, Clarence Sophie Dany has written and directed numerous original works for young people, several of which have been performed on various stages in Australia and France.
The benefits for young people of doing theatre for self-expression, creativity and group cohesion has been well-documented. But what is rarely highlighted is the role theatre can play in developing curiosity and empathy.
In addition to language skills and physical expressiveness, theatre workshops also give young people the opportunity to come into contact with beautiful texts.
Practical details
- Public: Secondary Schools, Universities/Institutes of Higher Education
- Duration: different possibilities
- Equipment: a quiet large space for acting sessions
Prise de parole en public
Learning to speak well is the art of communication, but also the art of knowing how to assert yourself when necessary. Whether to simply develop more confidence or just to help you improve speaking in public, theatre skills can provide you with helpful communication tools.
Improving skills to better present your ideas requires a wholistic approach which includes the techniques of bodywork, voice work and storytelling skills, all of which are covered in the Public Speaking Workshops.
To feel at ease in front of an audience, we obviously must know what we want to say and why we are saying it but ideally, we can also take pleasure in the sharing of our ideas with others.
Practical details
- Public: High School Students, Private Individuals and Groups.
- Duration: 2h per Workshop
- Equipment: Quiet Space where we can work and not disturb others while we make noise, Yoga Mat and a Bottle of Water
Contact
If you have any questions about the company's projects, please contact us.
Théâtre d’ici et là
Clarence Sophie Dany
Email : contact@theatredicietla.fr
Address : 6 rue Pen ar Créac’h
29200 Brest – FRANCE
Graphic Design : Clarisse Lucas – Webmaster : Claire des Bruyères