Le Paradoxe de John
John’s Paradox
Schedule
Monday, January 18, 2027
Tuesday, January 19, 2027
Wednesday, January 20, 2027
Run Time: 80 min
NYC Premiere
In French and English with English surtitles
“A pinnacle of mastery and poetry, carried by an extraordinary troupe” —Les Inrocks
Obie Award-winning director and scenographer Philippe Quesne is a singular figure in French theater. With Le Paradoxe de John [John’s Paradox], Quesne’s company Vivarium Studio presents a small and slightly eccentric community, lovingly rendered in his signature style of humor, care and melancholy. Paradox marks Quesne’s long-awaited return to Under the Radar for the first time in over 14 years, following his triumphant 2007 play L’Effet de Serge (UTR 2009), a subtle portrait of a lonely man’s unique and fragile fantasy world. In his new work, a sort of sequel to L’Effet de Serge, our focus falls on a tight collective of friends who construct an art gallery in an apartment. Using ghostly animated objects, striking effects, musical inventions, atmospheric composition and foam sculptures, a humorous world unfolds on the stage. Amidst the poetic and dreamlike texts of the writer Laura Vazquez, a theater of intimacy emerges amongst absurdity as a group of endearing characters embark together on gently surreal adventures. Le Paradoxe de John deftly explores the place of art in everyday life, highlighting the necessity of the artistic act, no matter how modest it may seem.
Presented in partnership with Under the Radar – utrfest.org
Venue
Event Pricing
Children under seventeen (17) years of age must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian at all times and may not attend events unattended.
Philippe Quesne
Philippe Quesne is an accomplished artist and director based out of France. Quesne’s works cleverly unite the marvelous and the absurd, the everyday and the unexpected, humor and melancholy, theatrical illusion and the truth of nature. Quesne’s career began as a set designer for theatre, opera and contemporary art exhibitions. In 2003, he founded Vivarium Studio in Paris. The company has since gone on to tour the world. Select Vivarium projects include La Démangeaison des ailes, L’Effet de Serge, La Mélancolie des dragons, Swamp Club, The Night of the Moles and Garden of Delights. Quesne regularly premieres new work abroad, including at Münchner Kammerspiele, Campo Belgium, Komaba Agora Tokyo, Theater Basel, Schauspielhaus Hamburg and Volksbühne Berlin. His art installations have been shown at the Lyon Biennale, the Centre Pompidou, Prague Quadrennial and Performa New York. He was the Artistic Director of the Théâtre Nanterre-Amandiers from 2014 to 2020 and the Artistic Director at La Ménagerie de Verre in Paris from 2022 to 2025.
Under the Radar
Under the Radar brings bold, risk-taking artistry to New York City in a celebration of groundbreaking theater and performance with companies from around the world and from just down the street. Produced in collaboration with dozens of venues at a selection of historic and emerging theaters, the festival showcases innovative multidisciplinary artists whose work speaks powerfully to the present moment. Under the Radar’s Founding Director is Mark Russell; UTR’s Co-Creative Directors are Jenn Kidwell and Janet Wong; and the exclusive Festival Producer is ArKtype, led by Thomas O. Kriegsmann and Sarah Bellin. Find out more at utrfest.org.
Billing Credits
Concept, staging, set design: Philippe Quesne
Poems: Laura Vazquez
Cast: Isabelle Angotti, Céleste Brunnquell, Marc Susini, Veronika Vasilyeva-Rije, Marc Chevillon
Costumes: Anna Carraud, assisted by Mirabelle Perot
Stage management and artistic collaboration: François Boulet, Marc Chevillon
Technical assistance: Thomas Laigle / Painting and decor: Marie Maresca
Music extracts: Noel Boggs, Fred Buscaglione, John Cage, Morton Feldman, Friedrich Hollaender, Lucy Railton, Franz Schubert, Demetrio Stratos, Riz Ortolani
Production: Vivarium Studio (2025). Coproduction: La Commune, centre dramatique national d’Aubervilliers, Festival d’Automne à Paris, Théâtre de la Bastille, Théâtre Garonne – Scène européenne, Maillon Théâtre de Strasbourg – Scène européenne, Maison Saint-Gervais Genève, Kampnagel Hamburg
Production Credits
Under the Radar’s presentation of Le Paradoxe de John is supported by AJT, with additional support from Theatre & New Forms, a program of Villa Albertine and Albertine Foundation. Vivarium Studio company is supported by the Drac Île-de-France – Ministère de la Culture.
Lead image © Martin Argyroglo
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