NEW YORK — The TRIAD theatre in New York City was packed to capacity Saturday night, October 16, as “Cuisine et Dépendances” (Kitchen and Extensions) by Agnès Jaoui and Jean-Pierre Bacri was presented to a mixed Francophone and non-French speaking audience. The play was directed by Nora Armani and performed by a cast of New York-based French-speaking actors.
This cult French kitchen comedy, written in 1991, still rings contemporary to this day after almost 20 years since its Paris premiere. A film version, directed by Philippe Muyl was made in 1993. As a result the play has amassed international popularity in the French-speaking world. Saturday’s performance of the play in its original French was the New York premiere of the work.
A team of energetic actors, Pascal Yen-Pfister, Gabriel Tigran Chytry, Sandy Prenois, Sofi Lambert and Thomas Beaudoin brought to life the splendid and raucous text of Jaoui and Bacri. They kept me entertained from the moment the lights went up to the final curtain call. The choice of sets, costumes and props, quite authentically Parisian, were very efficient, simple and to the point. The music used was the quintessential Serge Gainbourg’s Je t’aime, moi non-plus, that haunted as a leitmotif the end of each act helping transition into the next tableau.
