The boundaries between documentary theatre, fiction and autofiction are becoming increasingly blurred. We love it. After eight years of silence following a surprising first show (The kid on TV), the playwright Marc de la Varga returns to the Flyhard hall in Barcelona with In Dec Josep (My name is Josep), now in season after its premiere at the last Grec festival. This is a story of music and mental health that is presented to us in a hybrid format, halfway between essay and confession. It stars the enigmatic life of Camil Clot, a musician who flew over the scene underground Barcelona in the late nineties, when the city had not yet sold its soul to tourism. With one foot in reality and the other in fiction, In Dec Josep delves into collective and family memory while exploring the representation of bipolar disorder on stage.
De la Varga directs a strange cast, but no less exceptional for that reason: veteran Mont Plans and young Pau Vinyals are joined by musician Daniel Higiénico in his first work as an actor. The sparkle in his eyes and the naked truth of his stage presence show that the choice has been a great success. Vinyals takes on the role of the playwright and tells us about his research into the figure of Clot, one of many shooting stars who appeared and disappeared briefly in the city. Mont Plans is the mother of Josep, the brother of the subject in question, and only needs a chair and an unlit cigarette to make us enter into the fiction. Daniel Higiénico plays Josep with great naturalness, and his songs on the guitar add another layer to the production: we see this man somewhere between genius and madman without the need for great fanfare.
In Dec Josep It is a bare and essential production, like an old, slightly outdated rock ballad, which cleverly takes advantage of all the tricks and mechanisms of theatrical performance. We are left wanting to know much more about this musician who could “play” music with his hands. Let no one fall asleep because this is a show that, like its performers and protagonists, has enormous personality.
‘In Dec Josep‘. Text and direction: Marc de la Varga. Flyhard Hall, Barcelona. Until September 30.
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