The play Poussières, written by Yann Frisch, recently premiered at Espace des Arts – Scène nationale de Chalon-sur-Saône, a venue where Frisch has conducted creative residencies. This production features three theatre actors—Anne Rotger, Jérôme Kirscher, and Lucie Grunstein—alongside six shadow interpreters, who use their hands to create visual storytelling on a screen. This is a new direction for Frisch, who previously performed solo in works like Le Syndrome de Cassandre (2015), a play that remains on tour. Frisch, trained at the Lido circus school in Toulouse, has also worked with 14:20, a company known for blending performance with new magic techniques. Poussières explores the relationship between traditional theatre and modern magic, moving away from Frisch’s earlier use of a mobile stage. Instead, the performance is shared among the three actors and the shadow interpreters. The production is visually striking, with a style reminiscent of 14:20’s 2024 work On m’a trouvée grandie, which similarly merged dance and illusion. The play centers on an "illuminated" woman, whose mysticism is grounded in modern times, set against a bourgeois theatrical backdrop that quickly turns dramatic and fantastical. The play opens with a philosophical reflection on Plato’s allegory of the cave, spoken by Jérôme Kirscher. It then shifts to a bourgeois salon, where the protagonist, played by Anne Rotger, is a psychologist who initially appears as a caricature of a bourgeois figure. As the play progresses, she begins to experience visions that change her perception of reality, leading her to act increasingly irrationally and eventually to be institutionalized. These visions are depicted through visual elements like flying fireflies, paper birds, and mysterious fumes filled with strange apparitions. While Poussières continues Frisch’s interest in the line between magic and reality, it is described as more fluid and less jarring than his earlier works, such as Le Paradoxe de Georges (2018) and Personne (2022). The magic in Poussières does not create the same level of disruption as in previous productions. However, the play’s visual and technical aspects, including set design by Benjamin Gabrié and lighting by Laurent Beucher, are praised as significant contributions to the overall experience. The play is produced by Compagnie L’Absente, directed by Sidonie Pigeon, and supported by cultural institutions such as the Fondation BNP Paribas and the Fondation de France. Poussières is set to tour across various venues in France from October 2026 through May 2027.