A fabulous philosophical journey in the company of a queen.
In her first meeting with Mark Antony, Cleopatra appears on a glittering ship, gliding over the waters of the Cydnus in a procession of colors, sounds and perfumes. The queen’s beauty is the stuff of dreams and hints at an unimaginable future. Inspired by a selected passage from Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra, Mustapha Fahmi undertakes a fascinating commentary on the famous story of love and power. Along the way, a surprising reflection on ethics, politics and aesthetics engages all the senses. How do you make your life a work of art, while maintaining a rightful place among your fellow human beings? What does it mean to give oneself a style? What do heroes risk in the age of humans? Is charisma compatible with democracy? These are just some of the questions that La beauté de Cléopâtre raises and analyzes, summoning up Nietzsche, Kant, Vico, Louis Armstrong, Botticelli’s painting and Roman history as seen by the Bard of Avon.
