Louise (2025)

Plot Summary

A huge success when it premiered at the Opéra-Comique in 1900, Gustave Charpentier’s (1860-1956) “musical novel in four acts and five scenes” was panned by the critics, who considered its depiction of female desire and its heroine’s rebellion against her family to be scandalous. In this new reading, Christof Loy (Salomé) – famous for his meticulous productions, precise direction and refined aesthetic – has detected beneath the innovative theme of female emancipation an unspoken aspect of Charpentier’s libretto: the toxic family relationship in which Louise finds herself trapped, and the hold that her possessive – even abusive – father exerts over her with the complicity of her mother. Keen to tell the story without judging the characters, the director draws the audience into Louise’s subconscious, highlighting the darker side of a society that, far from emancipating its daughters, only offers them cheap romance as a deflection from the frustrations of their limited prospects.

Full Cast & Characters

Elsa Dreisig

Louise

Adam Smith

Julien / Le Noctambule

Sophie Koch

La Mère / La Première d’atelier

Nicolas Courjal

Le Père, Le Chiffonnier

Grégoire Mour

Un Marchand d’habits / Le Pape des fous

Annick Massis

La Balayeuse

Marianne Croux

Irma

Carol Garcia

Gertrude

Karolina Bengtsson

Camille

Marie-Thérèse Keller

Madeleine

Julie Pasturaud

Élise / La petite Chiffonnière

Marion Lebègue

Suzanne / La Glaneuse de charbon

Director & Crew

Where to Watch Louise Online

Frequently Asked Questions