The Red Ball

La Balle Rouge is a beautiful, heartbreaking and moving performance. We are taken on a journey through themes such as love, infatuation, divorce and children growing up. The entire performance starts with a darkened stage. It is illuminated and in the light we can see a man playing the accordion and a red ball on a small stage further back. Suddenly, two foam rubber figures appear - one yellow and one blue. They are curious about each other and the ball. After a while, they realize that the ball needs to be taken good care of, and to do that they need to build something stable to look after it. In this case, the ball symbolizes a crush that becomes a stable relationship. The yellow foam rubber figure and the blue one are given something that can represent a child. First, there are two green foam figures that looked like - and I'm quoting one of the children sitting in the hall - worms. They played with each other and eventually formed a child-like figure. After the parents have played with the child and the ball for a while, some of the bricks from the building they built earlier fall down and the music becomes sombre. It seems that they can no longer take care of the ball and they start to build down their tower. They look at the child but continue to take apart the last pieces of their relationship. The child jumps on the ball and the stage they have been standing on splits in two. The parents of this child try to lure it to them, but the child is safest on the ball. Now I think the ball symbolizes a safe haven for the child where it can be itself. The ball grows and eventually becomes a huge ball, full of love.

La Balle Rouge is intended for children aged 6-9, but I see no reason why it can't be for older children. It's fun to watch and well made. It also has a very deep message that not toddlers understand. Still, I think this show also appeals to younger children and affects them in a way they don't understand. Fred Ferrand (accordionist), Franck Jublot (puppeteer) and Denis Garénaux (puppeteer) did a great job of involving the audience and engaging us in the show. The music really helps to set the mood and helps us understand what is happening even better than the characters could express themselves. It's easy to see why this production won two awards at the 2017 YAMawards: Best Small Ensemble and Best Production.

If you want to see La Balle Rouge, it's best in a proper hall, not a gymnasium. I say this because not seeing the people working behind the characters and using the stage lights to set the mood helped us in the auditorium to understand the play.

To summarize, this is a very good play that can also be shown to older children, with a deep message that everyone can understand if they look closely enough.