Zidane’s Melancholy

The Collectif Io retraces the steps of Zinédine Zidane, the emblematic football hero, to examine the construction of modern myths alongside intense rhythmic patterns.

On July 9, 2006, during the World Cup final against Italy, Zinédine Zidane, then at the peak of his career, was sent off for headbutting another player. This gesture inspired author Jean-Philippe Toussaint to write a short work entitled La Mélancolie de Zidane (Zidane’s Melancholy), which transforms the soccer icon into a dark and ambiguous literary hero. In his free adaptation of this text, Thomas Nguyen takes up the archetypal figure of Zidane to question the need for heroes in our societies, which are in need of guidance, while drawing a parallel between the physical and mental limits of top-level athletes and those of dancers and musicians, who are constantly pushed to surpass themselves.

Through a dramaturgy based on interviews with athletes, fans, researchers, and journalists, the show confronts the dancer’s gestures and powerful movements with those of the drummer, in an intense choreographic and rhythmic score. As a counterpoint, the sound design sheds light on the process of creating idols and the fascination exerted by athletes, who have become the heroes of our time. In contrast, the sound design sheds light on the process of creating an icon and the fascination exerted by athletes, who have become the heroes of our time. Between extraordinary athletes and artificial icons, representative of excessive capitalism, La Mélancolie de Zidane (Zidane’s Melancholy) highlights the paradoxes of these sporting myths and what they tell us about our world.