A Man Standing at Theatre National

At the age of 36, Jean-Marc Mahy finally began its life leaving the prison which he joined at the age of 17... An emergency, visceral. The word, one that gives without detour to see the prison world
in all its reality, far from the stereotype of a prison which "makes man".
The text, once interpreted only staged by Jean-Marc Mahy, regains new life since it now shares the plateau with comedian Stéphane Pirard to trace in depth his first 3 years in solitary confinement. Together, they will tell with force life in detention, violence behind walls, loneliness and time lost, humiliation and idleness... A new version of this «coup de poing» creation of Jean-Michel Van den Eeyden, who since 2010 criss-crossed roads and is now recognized by the Ministry of Culture.
The interest of this show, beyond the emotions contained in the set of actors, also lies in the distance of these update and a text very well built which give to the whole a real dramatic tension. On the other hand, this man standing is an invitation to reflect on our rule of law, on the jail as a first possible penalty, on the disastrous situation of our prison system. With, in the background, almost philosophical questioning around the notions of freedom and human dignity. So many reasons, as a citizen-spectator, to go see or review this theatrical performance delivering unvarnished reality summoning democratic level.