Dolto - Lorsque Françoise Paraît - Théâtre Comédie Odéon - Lyon

At Théâtre Comédie Odéon: welcoming Dolto, lorsque Françoise paraît

At Théâtre Comédie Odéon, we are proud to open our stage to Dolto, lorsque Françoise paraît, a theatrical encounter that invites audiences to meet one of the most influential voices on childhood and listening. In our intimate auditorium, the performance draws you close to the heartbeat of a life devoted to understanding how children speak, feel, and grow. With a refined, human-scale staging that favors clarity over spectacle, the show becomes a space for attention and exchange, echoing the very ethics of Françoise Dolto’s thought. As the narrative weaves personal recollection, clinical insight, and social context, it gives body to ideas that have shaped generations of parents, educators, and practitioners. The performer’s presence, carried by attentive direction, honors a personality whose words continue to resonate whenever we ask how to hear a child. Set pieces, light, and sound are used like precise instruments, guiding the audience through moments of discovery, resistance, and revelation. Each scene invites reflection without lecturing, allowing viewers to sense the living intelligence behind a legacy many think they know, and to feel why it matters—right now—in a world that still struggles to make room for the language of the very young. In the comfortable embrace of Théâtre Comédie Odéon, the performance is both a conversation and an encounter, a theatrical act that turns our venue into a chamber for listening, debate, and shared attention.

Artistic momentum: a contemporary lens on a pivotal legacy

Dolto, lorsque Françoise paraît arrives at Théâtre Comédie Odéon with a clear artistic ambition: to practice biography as living theatre, eschewing hagiography in favor of a nuanced, questioning portrait. The creative team approaches the stage as a place to test ideas and emotions, crafting a dramaturgy that balances archival echoes with present-day urgency. That approach speaks to the artist’s current trajectory, one committed to works that engage with the social fabric—education, family, care, and the words we pass between generations. This season, the company continues to refine a language of performance grounded in research and accessibility, a signature that makes complex thought feel intimate and shared. From scene to scene, the production shows how a voice can be both historical and immediate: how the insistence on listening to children becomes a form of civic practice, and how attention itself can be staged with clarity and grace. At Théâtre Comédie Odéon, we value this kind of artistic clarity, which invites audiences of varied backgrounds—parents, teachers, students, caregivers, and theater lovers—to bring their experiences into the room. As the performance unfolds, it encourages spectators to revisit preconceptions, to notice the nuances of speech and silence, and to locate personal echoes within broader cultural questions. This is not a museum piece; it is a living conversation that evolves with each performance, shaped by the audience’s presence and by the artist’s responsive, finely tuned interpretation. In placing Dolto, lorsque Françoise paraît at the heart of our programming, we affirm our belief that theatre can hold complex ideas without losing warmth, and that the stage is one of the best places to practice the simple, demanding art of paying attention.