Toulouse: Steve Suissa wishes to “end this tribute to the victims of the attacks with a note of hope by presenting the fate of Alfred Nakache”
Steve Suissa is the organizer of this Sunday tribute to the victims of the attacks in Toulouse. A day that will end with the preview presentation of his play “Selecté”, dedicated to the life of Toulouse swimmer Alfred Nakache. Maintenance.
Why are you presenting “Selecté” in Toulouse this Sunday?
Jacob Monsonego, the director of the Ozar Ohr-Torah school, Franck Touboul and Arié Bensemhoun from Crif asked me more than to present “Selecté” but also to stage this Sunday of tributes. This is something that provided me with heart as a sponsor of this school. I put all my heart voluntarily to bring my part to this tribute, in memory of the victims.
What have you planned ahead of the presentation of the piece “Selecté”?
I imagined a fairly complete day since in the morning, at 10:30 am, there will be a tribute with the parents and the children at school, in complete privacy. From 3 p.m. at the Halles aux grains, while the two presidents (Emmanuel Macron and Itzhak Herzog) will lay a wreath at school and meet with Jacob Monsonego, we will begin a round table with great personalities, moderated by Michaël Darmon . Among the participants, there will be Gilles Kepel, Bernard Rougier, Manuel Valls, Bernard-Henri Lévy, Caroline Fourest, Richard Malka, Dominique Reynié, Clémentine Larroque, Rachel Kahn.
And after this round table?
There will be a tribute staged by a cellist from the Capitole orchestra, Sarah Lancu, and singer Sarah Lugassy. They will play pieces of music between imaginary letters written and read by friends from the same class of missing children. They were 8 years old at the time, they are 18 today.
Then, what will be the presentation of your piece?
Absolutely, at 8:30 p.m. This will be the first performance of “Selecté” which traces the life of Alfred Nakache, based on a text written at my request by Marc Elya.
This piece, is it an opportunity to point out barbarism?
It is especially for me, the occasion to repair by the culture, destinies, either too misunderstood, or not sufficiently explained. I tell the humanity, the rigor, the will and the courage of some people who have had extraordinary lives, while being very upright human beings. I thought it was now or never to end this day of tribute with a show of resilience, hope and love, because Alfred Nakache was adored in Toulouse. He had the distinction of being French, Jewish, Algerian and therefore he proves by A + B + C that you can be all of these at the same time, coupled with a great champion.
This is a single on stage with Amir. Why him, he is a singer at the base?
I don’t put artists in boxes. I find that Amir has the total legitimacy to be that character. He has this will, this pugnacity, this ambition, this physical endurance. There is even a physical resemblance. I thought it was great to break the codes. I thought from my first meeting that he made a formidable Alfred Nakache.
The play will then be performed in Paris, are you going to come back to Toulouse?
Of course, this is just a taste.
How did you find out about Alfred Nakache’s fate?
I am passionate about geography, self-taught. After having been a butcher, actor, director and producer, what interests me today is to popularize theatre. I pay close attention to true stories. When I learned more about Alfred Nakache’s destiny 3 years ago, speaking with members of his family, I was overwhelmed by his courage and his desire to transmit to young people the desire to go ‘ water and appeasement.
Alfred Nakache in brief
Alfred Nakache was born in Constantine on December 18, 1915. As a teenager, he overcame his phobia of water and became North African swimming champion. In 1933, he arrived in Paris and won his first title of champion of France. Alfred Nakache participated in the Berlin Olympics in 1936, without a medal winner. Stripped of his nationality by the Vichy regime in 1940, he joined Free France and moved to Toulouse with his wife, where he resumed TOEC training. Quickly, it will be banned from the pools by the Nazis. Deported to Auschwitz in 1944 with his wife and daughter, he escaped unlike his family, and found the courage to resume swimming…
On stage, will there be a swimming pool?
No, but the show is very poetic. It is Alfred Nakache who comes down and remembers his life, and tells it. The edge of the stage is like the edge of a swimming pool, and the entire audience will be illuminated in blue as if they were in the water.