This is a new "director's cut" made from elements I had at my disposal but leaving out the John Newton hymn which was in the previous edition of the video. The reason why I had to come up with a new editing is somehow pretty ludicrous.
I was quite pleased to accept this invitation from the organizers of St Ferdinand's "Dimanches en talent" deacon François Desprez & parishioner Roland Bidon, himself a distinguished baritone.
For it gave me an opportunity to produce at last a live recording of R. Kipling's masterpiece and upload it. Poetry reading #8
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St Ferdinand is the church where I was baptized but I never was a parishioner there. Nevertheless I started an unusual type of relationship with the parish some 12 years ago. Those of you who have seen my video entitled "«De plus en plus invisible pour la République» Non-Fiction2" will understand what I mean. Anyway there were people who knew I'm an actor or who may have guessed it. And as the deacon had seen my self-recorded videos on RU-vid, he invited me to read in public two poems: Villon's "Frères Humains" & Kipling's "If".
It was on the occasion of a recurrent get-together organized by the parish. Once a month they're holding "Les dimanches de Saint Ferdinand", an occasion for the parishioners to meet around tea and cakes, sometimes preceded by "Dimanches en talent".
This particular Sunday's programme was a bit special insofar as it featured a double bill. An amateur Gospel choir had also been invited. They had planned such a large repertoire that I was asked to restrict myself to two poems only.
As we were on the same bill I thought it only fair to include the audio of one of their hymns on the video. Besides you will notice that they remained on stage while I performed. I felt that not accounting for their presence would be contemptuous - and pretty weird too.
That's where I was very wrong. As I had been in touch (e-mail) with Sister M-C, the franciscan nun you can see seated at the keyboard, who said she would gladly inform the other members of the choir of the promotion brought by this video, I did not suspect that the slightest problem was ahead.
Rudyard Kipling's "If" (sometimes subtitled "A Father's Advice to His Son") - 1895.
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
25 авг 2014
