Le Cerf et le Chien (The Stag and the Dog) takes place in a setting that seems to be the inverse of Le Loup: the girls have grown up, now they are allowed to go out on the threshold of the house, they will even discover the forest... The confined atmosphere of the house with its strict and austere rules is broken by their encounter with another wild animal, a deer – a supreme beauty of nature. In the absence of their parents and following the wise advice of the cat, they save the deer from a pack of dogs.
Marcel Aymé stated of his stories that give voice to animals that they “do not seriously seek to give the illusion of reality”. This one is close to the La Fontaine fable, The Dog and the Wolf. The story of the stag willing to let itself be tamed by the little girls intertwines with those of the ox and Pataud the dog, leading to a series of events and as many reflections on normality, friendship, labour, submission or freedom. Their adventures offer the opportunity to combine theatre and songs. Considering the deer as untameable, Véronique Vella sees this as a metaphor for the underlying ambivalence of the fable, the same ambivalence that lies within each of us: “love versus freedom” or “how to give oneself to others without losing oneself”.

Staging: Véronique Vella
Scenograhpy: Julie Camus
Costumes: Isabelle Benoist
Lights: Gaëlle de Malglaive
Sounds: Jean-Luc Ristord
Music: Vincent Leterme and Lucette-Marie Sagnières
Collaboration: Raphaëlle Saudinos
Assistant stage manager: Maryse Estier