"Les amants maudits", a hymn to Liberty to be discovered this Thursday evening in Mandelieu

Marseille, late 1960s. Pierre and his friends are starting a new school year at their high school. Their encounter with Emma Lefèbvre, their new French teacher, is a real revelation. Far from appearing to them as a stern figure draped in the aura of the ministry to which she belongs, the teacher is a committed young woman driven by modern and progressive ideas. This atypical teacher advocates freedom and emancipation, quickly captivating her students with her avant-garde vision of the world. It was during the events of May 1968 that a romance blossomed between Emma and Pierre, still a minor.

Annie Girardot and Aznavour, already, in 1971

But this convention-defying affair sparks a wave of indignation. Pierre's outraged parents denounce this relationship to the courts, triggering a tragedy where love rhymes with prohibitions. Between passion and condemnation, confinement and exile, Emma and Pierre will live their love according to their deepest convictions. How far can love resist prohibitions? This is the pitch of Mourir d'aimer , The Cursed Lovers of May 68, the musical show loosely inspired by true events: the Gabrielle Russier affair. An unthinkable love story at the time, a drama that had already inspired the eponymous 1971 film by André Cayatte, magnificently carried by the moving Annie Girardot. And gave birth to the title, vibrantly interpreted by Charles Aznavour.

Eight singers and 8 dancers

Led by eight singers and eight dancers, Mourir d'Aimer, les Amants Maudits de Mai 68 takes place this time in Marseille and no longer in Rouen. Through 29 songs (including 28 originals), the show immerses us in an immersive musical fresco. Co-written by Fabrice Gauvin and Grégory Fostier, these lyrics and melodies bring to life the characters' emotions and the excitement of this pivotal era. And highlight a fundamental value: Freedom in all its forms. By questioning us about the freedom to love, and the place of women in the face of the dictates of a society, of a not-so-gone era. Definitely a family must-see!

Thursday, August 7 at 9 p.m. Single price: 20 euros. Information: 04.92.97.49.65. www.mandelieu.fr