Chanson

'Chanson', based on true events and with songs from the perios, tells the story of French singer, Marcel brooding, rough-and-ready and from the wrong side of the tracks, he arrived in Paris in 1934 and was discovered singing in the streets by Gérard, the impresario. When the play opens it is 1944. Paris is under the Nazi jackboot and Marcel is star attraction at Gérard's nightclub, Levalle's, the most famous in town. When Gérard is murdered, Marcel's life falls apart. He ends his relationship with his girlfriend, and can no longer see his mistress because her husband is home on leave. While trudging the streets, drunk after curfew, he is picked up by Jurgen, a young German lieutenant who has worshipped him from afar for some time. Initially their relationship is platonic. As time passes, however, a deep bond develops between the two men as Marcel fights his demons to rebuild his shattered career while the Liberation approaches, bringing triumph and tragedy in equal measure. Warning: contains strong language