MUSICALS IN FRANCE Part II: Evan Hansen - in French!
- Beth Blatt
- 20 minutes ago
- 5 min read
I just saw Dear Evan Hansen in Paris.
In French.
Both the book and lyrics.
Which is unusual here (more on that below).
So how was it?
It was the same.
And also pretty different.
The French reviews were raves.
But what are American responses to the French version?
I’ve been scouring the “Interweb” - and I haven't found any. NADA.
(I did find one review from an Anglophone newscaster, but she lives here - so her French POV is stronger than mine.)
So I decided to share my response.
BEFORE I START - A REQUEST:
IF YOU HAVE THOUGHTS ON THE SHOW
OR THOUGHTS ON MY THOUGHTS ON THE SHOW,
PLEASE SHARE THEM !
(in the comments below)
And also BEFORE I START: a handful of caveats.
Caveat One: my French is good but not perfect. So I’m not 100% able to judge the quality of the translation – especially the lyrics, which go by really fast.
Caveat Two: I haven’t seen the film (though now I plan to watch). It's been a while since I saw it Broadway. So my recall of that isn't perfect.
Caveat Three: I write musicals. So my response is on the nit-picky side.
Caveat Four: I'm not French! So I'm not the target audience.
I hear you repeat -
So how was it??
THERE IS A LOT that is GREAT (always start with the positive - très American!)
Success 1
Chapeaux ("hats off") to the creators for taking this on. As I said, it's rare for both book and lyrics to be in French.
I can find only two big musicals all in French presented in Paris in the last 20 years in Paris. Théâtre Mogador presented both - Kiss Me Kate (1993) and Sister Act (2012).
Why just the book?
Because translating the lyrics is a HUGE challenge. Capturing the tone, being conversational yet a bit poetic, creating a workable rhythm/rhyme structure in another language - incredibly tricky.
One difficulty: you need more syllables in French to say the same thing as in English.
On the plus side for French - so many more words rhyme!
Success 2
The show itself remains so satisfying.
Like the original, Cher Evan Hansen has the great songs with earwig music, powerful ideas, a tight and compelling book.
Success 3
The ACTORS are solid, in their acting and singing. They give it their all.
Evan - Antoine Le Provost- really does carry the show. And he's only 19!
Success 4
The LYRICS. French cognoscenti (and my French husband) applaud them, say they capture the heart of the original, are conversational and sing well (such as putting the important words on the important notes).
Those lyrics are thanks to Hoshi - from "star" in Japanese, née Mathilde Gerner.
She is a young and successful author-composer-performer for whom the themes of anxiety and resilience resonate personally.
And wow! She has Menière's disease - which means she is losing her hearing!
(Kawai so, as they would say in Japan. Poor thing.).
Also receiving credit for help with the lyrics (in smaller font) are Frédéric Strouck and David Sauvage.
AND THEN - THERE are things -
that are DIFFERENT...
that I am CURIOUS about.
Curious 1
They made some changes in the book. They cut the baseball number at the top of Act II. Which makes sense. France and baseball? Not so much.
It is shorter. It now runs 2 hours with no intermission. Did they cut more? Was this to please younger audiences, with their shorter attention spans?
The ending. Did they use the one from the stage production or the film? In France, they use the versions where the parents don't tell anyone what he did.
(I need to watch the movie...it's a bit hard to stream over here).
Curious 2
First of all, the character of Evan seems different to me.
French Evan is not merely extremely awkward and anxious. He is a bit odd. He has tic’s - facial, behavioral. You could even say he's "on the spectrum."
That's not how I remember the NY version.
I wonder why the character was pushed in that direction?
Is anxious & awkward perceived as less painful here? Needed to be stronger?
And at the end, Evan's tic's return.
Which made me wonder - has this journey really changed him?
American writers (ok, this American writer) are very focused on an arc of transformation for the protagonist. Maybe this is our inborn optimism - our too sunny sunny-side - showing up again?
Or maybe there was a nuance of change I missed in the dialogue? (the pitfalls of seeing theatre in another language...)
Curious 3
I felt the frequency and intensity of disagreements was greater than I'm used to.
For instance, in the scene between Connor’s parents towards the end, they hit Really Angry pretty fast and stay there for quite a while. Granted, this fight needs to be harsh enough to prompt Evan to confess to his scam.
And the French - wild generalization coming - do definitely argue more than we conflict-averse Americans.
So again - a cultural difference?
The flipside: the most moving moment in the show (for me and my French husband) was the quietest, most gentle one - the last song, when Evan’s mom sings to him. It is human, real. Evan weeps throughout. The audience was in tears, too.
Along the same lines, another Antoine - Antoine Galey who played Connor - was completely authentic for me. Maybe because he comes from the rock band world, not a musical theatre performer. He didn’t push. I loved it.
Curious 4
The VOICES don’t have the Broadway ping I love, the laser intensity. They are -rounder.
But I find that about the pop singing as well.
I'd love to learn more about how they teach voice here....
Again, not a bad thing. Just different. Although Fanny Chelim as Alana, the super-intense high schooler, has the ping. As does Antoine/Connor.
LASTLY - TWO QUESTIONS
Question 1
I found lots of other French-language versions of Evan Hansen songs on YouTube.
Most are from theatre companies outside of Paris.
Did they have permission? I don’t want to get them into trouble. Just am curious about the laws/boundaries.
Also interesting?
The difference in translation.
In Paris, "You Will Be Found" is translated as "Quelqu'un Viendra (Someone Will Come).
Others translate it "Tu N'Es Pas Seul" (You Are Not Alone).
A third uses "Garde L'Espoir" (Keep Hope).
Question 2
It'a a biggie.
Can you ever really "translate" emotions into another language?
It's a question for all kinds of translation - theatrical or otherwise.
Even history books. When I'm reading French-language biographies for my Four Queens musical, I often miss nuances of tone.
What may seem to be yelling to me may be rather commonplace elevated engagement here. (I remember being shocked early on at the heat in discourse in restaurants).
ENOUGH FROM ME!!
Does anyone out there have
a (better-informed) opinion on this?
Share in comments!
