Following the huge success of Landru, I SOLISTI and Het Banket are joining forces once again. This time, they turn their attention to the improbable yet true life story of Joseph Fouché (1759–1820), the least well-known leading figure of the French Revolution. Much has been written, sung, filmed and told about that great upheaval. Whilst Robespierre, Marat, Napoleon, Danton and Marie Antoinette fill the history books, Fouché always moved in their shadow. Nevertheless, he was at the very centre of the historical developments of his time at every moment.
He changed sides as often as he changed his underwear, swinging from one radical extreme to the other. He was a Catholic seminarian in his younger years, but later proved himself a ruthless executioner of anyone who had even the slightest connection to the faith. He defected from the Girondins to the Jacobins, the two extremes within the revolutionary movement. He was a fanatical royalist and then a militant anti-royalist. The once-radical revolutionary Fouché later became a minister in the service of Napoleon and ended his career as Minister of Police under King Louis XVIII.
Set to new music by Frederik Neyrinck, Jan Decleir, Marjan De Schutter, the musicians of I SOLISTI and the young soprano Hanna Al-Bender bring the story of Fouché to the stage. By placing this forgotten protagonist in the spotlight, they also shed light on the period we are currently experiencing. In recent years, we have indeed seen a renewed interest in this fascinating period of our history. Undoubtedly because we find ourselves once again at a turning point where the very foundations of our familiar society are being shaken.
