The originality of Company Alain Germain lies in a blending of genres which permits the unity of different disciplines including theater, dance, vocal and instrumental music as well as involving the use of pictorial and sculptural art.
In the 70s and 80s, Alain Germain’s contemporary musical theatre creations attracted a lot of attention, not only in Europe but in the United States as well. Some of the productions were, amongst many others: Choreography for a Masquerade (National Gallery of the Grand Palais …), The Pianist Knits (Theatre Carré Silvia Montfort …), Midnight for Giants based on music by Claude Ballif (Maison des Arts of Créteil, Museum of Modern Art Paris, Espace Pierre Cardin … / all of the above in Paris, France), The Moon Sunny Side Up (Marais Festival in Paris, Whitney Museum in New York, Summer Festival of Bonn in Germany …), The Ambulant Widows (Art in the City Festival in Paris, Theatre Basel in Switzerland, Summer Festival of Bonn …), The Counter Dance of Other Times (Theatre Carré Silvia Montfort, Theatre Basel, Summer Festival of Bonn …), The Other Mozart (Summer Musical Festival of New York, Metz Opera House & Theatre Caen …), The Merseburg Incantation (Museum of Modern Art Paris, Theatre Basel, Summer Festival of Bonn, Columbia & Pennsylvania Universities USA …), A Little Musical Comedy (Centre Georges Pompidou / Beaubourg in Paris …), In the Shadow of the Garden Years (Marais Festival in Paris, Wadworth Theatre in Los Angeles, Opera Houses of Bonn & Cologne, National Opera of Paris …), Directions for Counter Use (Rencontres of the Carreau du Temple in Paris …), The Old Ladies from Osnabrück based on music by Ginette Keller (Osnabrück Opera House in Germany, the Chartreuse of Villeneuve-lès-Avignon …), Dracula based on music by Claude Ballif (Festival Estival of Paris, Theatre of Paris, Metz Opera House …), Amorous Salvage (Palais des Glaces Theatre in Paris…), Three Opera Folies for Three Women Composers based on music by Isabelle Aboulker, Ginette Keller and Francine Aubin (Royal Opera of Wallonie in Belgium, Capucins Theatre of Luxembourg, Winter Festival of Avignon, Espace Jacques Prévert of Aulnay-sous-Bois …), Inventory with the dancers Janine Charrat and Jean Babilée based on music by Isabelle Aboulker (Centre Georges Pompidou / Beaubourg in Paris …), A Piano for Two Pianists based on music by Alain Margoni (Espace Jacques Prévert in Aulnay-sous-Bois, Capucins Theatre in Luxembourg …), The Anouilhesques (Saint-Etienne Opera House, Potinière Theatre in Paris …), Flowers of Evil (Sully-sur-Loire Music Festival…).
Company Alain Germain produces new theatrical as well as lyrical pieces, exhibition-spectacles, events and exhibitions. Its works range from opera to contemporary lyrical and choreographical creations and is often based on scientific research:
Ostéodrame, presented at the Paleontological Gallery of the Museum for National History for the twentieth anniversary of the prestigious Fondation de la Vocation Prize; Buffon côté Jardin, presented at the National Museum for Natural History, celebrating the bicentennial of the death of the French naturalist Buffon; The Scientists and the French Revolution, presented at the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie of La Villette, celebrating the bicentennial of the French Revolution; The Origins of Man, presented at the Halle Saint-Pierre in co-production with the Musée en Herbe; Les Arts et Métiers en spectacle, a scientific tale presented at the National Museum des Arts et Métiers; Around the World in 80 languages, presented at the Théâtre du Rond Point-Renaud Barrault/Maison des Cultures du Monde, for the celebration of the bicentennial of the National Ecole des Langues et Civilisations Orientales; La Vie aménagée, presented at the National Archives/Hôtel of Rohan, for the 250th anniversary of the National Ecole des Ponts et Chaussées; Les Arts et Métiers en costumes, presented at the Marché Saint Honoré in colaboration with the Musée des Arts et Métiers and the Fondation Paribas; The 400 Beats of the Hôpital Saint-Louis, presented at the Musée des moulages of the Hôpital Saint-Louis, celebrating its 400 years of existance; Alain Germain, between Costumes and Machinery, presented at the National Musée des Arts et Métiers, celebrating the 40 years of Compagnie Alain Germain (all of the above in Paris, France) and Before Birth, 5000 Years of Images, presented at the Museum of Natural History in Le Havre (France).
Major productions by Alain Germain based on classical repertory masterpieces include: Rossini’s La Scala di seta (National Opera of Paris / Bastille, Theatre of Versailles …), Mozart’s Requiem (Opera Houses of Vichy and Nancy, National Opera of Paris / Opéra Comique …), Gluck’s Iphigenia in Tauris (ROH Covent Garden in London, Athens Festival …), Rossini’s The Siege of Corinth (Teatro de la Zarzuela in Madrid …), Schumann’s Dichterliebe (Royal Opera House of Wallonie in Belgium, Musée National des Techniques in Paris …), Molière and Lully’s Le Bourgeois gentilhomme (ROH Covent Garden and Whitehall Palace in London, Châteaux of Chambord and Blois, Grand Théâtre of Reims …), Franz Lehár’s The Merry Widow (Opera Houses of Saint-Etienne, Vichy and Massy …), Iannis Xenakis’s Oresteïa (ROH Covent Garden), Pietro Antonio Cesti’s Il Tito (National Opera du Rhin in Strasbourg / Mulhouse), Banchieri’s From Venice to Padova (Grand Théâtre of Reims), Molière and Charpentier’s The Imaginary Invalid (Château of Blois, Grand Théâtre of Reims), Gluck’s Telemaco (Sadler’s Wells in London, Odeon Theatre / Herodes Atticus in Athens), Molière and Gounod’s Le Médecin malgré lui (Opera Houses of Tourcoing, Vichy and Massy, Phoenix Theatre of Valenciennes, Monsigny Theatre of Boulogne-sur-Mer, Grand Théâtre of Reims, Opera Houses of Tours and Limoges …), Rameau’s Platée (Megaron / Alexandra Trianti Hall in Athens).
Numerous contemporary composers have been part of the Compagnie’s creations: Claude Ballif (Dracoula and Midnight for Giants), Ginette Keller (The Old Ladies from Osnabrück and The Farewell of a Diva Whithout Memory), Isabelle Aboulker (From the Other Side of the Mirror, Inventory, The Scientists and the French Revolution, Champagne Notes and Chassé-croisé), Francine Aubin (Dinner à la française), Alain Margoni (A Piano for Two Pianists), Ichiro Nodaïra (Buffon côté Jardin), Frédéric Durieux (The Origines of Man), Adrienne Clostre (Around the World in 80 languages and The Triumph of Vertue), Eric Tanguy (Les Arts et Métiers en Spectacle), Olivier Lecoeur (Before Birth, 5000 Years of Images), Bruno Ducol (KNES Symphonie)…
Literary adaptions of several Compagnie Alain Germain productions have been published, such as:
The Invisible Town and The Origins of Man (Editions Hachette, pocket book collection for young readers), Around the World in 80 Languages (Editions de l’Asiathèque, bilingual collection), Fantômes of the Opera (Editions Bayard), Les Arts et Métiers en spectacle, The 400 Beats of the Hôpital Saint-Louis and Inventaire Janine Charrat (Editions de l’Amandier, theatre collection). The thrillers by Alain Germain: The Frogs of Saint-Pierre, The Callas Affaire, Murder à la française, Pas de Deux with Death and The Devil’s Kitchen (Editions du Masque) and The Seal of Death (Editions du Rocher, collection Le Rouge et le Noir).Some of these books, such as Murderous Atmospheres, have in return also been put on stage into lecture-spectacles (for the Festival Summer of Books in Metz, France): the first edition has been created at the Salon Charlemagne (the former apartment of the last German Kaiser) of the Metz railway station.
The Company has also conceived and produced numerous exhibitions, such as: The Back Side of the Stage Set at the Espace Jacques Prévert in Aulnay sous Bois (France), The Origins of Man at the Gallery Jäggi Bücher in Basel (Switzerland) where painted canvases (from the theatrical production of the same name) by Alain Germain have been shown, Opéra côté costume for the National Opera of Paris at Palais Garnier (the so-called « Old Opera House »), Les Arts et Métiers en costumes at the Marché Saint Honoré in Paris, Costumes to Play, costumes to Dream for the Villa Médicis Museum at Saint-Maur (France), The Theatre in Costumes for the French Cultural Centers at Cotonou (Bénin) and Lomé (Togo), Stage Costumes at Liberty and Phantoms of the Opera for the Grand Théâtre of Reims (France), Turbulences, a « Happening » around the theme of wind at the Tinguely Museum in Basel (Switzerland), Alain Germain : Stage Memories for the French Bibliothèque Nationale / Bibliothèque Museum of the National Opera of Paris at Palais Garnier, The Costume Object Workshop & Exhibition, The Costume art workshop & exhibition, The Workshop & exhibition textures, Textile to Texture for the French Fashion University Esmod of Dubaï, Alain Germain habille Chambord d’opéra at the Château of Chambord, Festivities and Crimes at the Renaissance Court of Henri III at the Château of Blois, Soir de Fête and the major retrospective at the Musée des Arts et Métiers in Paris : Alain Germain, entre costumes et machines.
Alain Germain’s collection of stage costumes is registered with the performing arts fund of the French Bibliothèque Nationale.