Blockbuster

The mashup principle involves blending together images, sounds and sequences from different origins or works to create a new composite object.

This is the constraint that Liège writer, Nicolas Ancion, and his colleagues at the Collectif Mensuel set for themselves in this production.

On stage are five actors-musicianssound effects engineers moving about in a set made up of furniture, bedside lamps and musical instruments.

Behind them, after the roar of the MGM lion, a big screen broadcasts a series of 1,400 shots taken from almost 150 Hollywood blockbusters.

Although the audience may not always recognise the films, they will at least identify the actors: Julia Roberts, Sean Penn, Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Sylvester Stallone, etc.

The use of mashup goes hand in hand here with the technique of appropriation, since the soundtrack is rewritten on stage: sound effects, music and dubbing are done live! And this amusing, compelling exercise spotlights all the mechanisms of American imperialism and unrestrained neoliberalism.