Étienne Daho, Raphaëlle Delaunay, Sandra Gaudin, Arnaud Valois Le vilain petit canard

Bringing the iconic tale The Ugly Duckling on stage is the bold mission director Sandra Gaudin embarks upon, with the musical assistance of Étienne Daho and the performance of Arnaud Valois. This new work revisits a universal story of rejection and self-acceptance, which resonates with children and adults alike. In a world dominated by images, the show interrogates difference and resilience through a multidisciplinary language that mixes dance, theater, and music. The direction by Sandra Gaudin, inspired by Tim Burton’s dreamy world, plays off the transparent qualities and materials highlighted by Francesco Cesalli’s video projections. The music from Étienne Daho – a mix of classical orchestrations and pop overtones – accompanies this sensory journey very gracefully. Like Anderson’s tale, which is rooted in the author’s personal experience – this adaptation explores contemporary themes like social exclusion, identity construction and the place of the individual in a group. Boris Cyrulnik considered the tale as a model of resilience, illustrating how adversity shapes personality. With this tale in motion, the creators remind us that the beauty of everyone lies in their uniqueness and that, spoiler alert, the ugly duckling becomes a swan by accepting himself the way he is. 

Amélie Blaustein Niddam 

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