On November 17, 2012, Oscar-winning French actress Marion Cotillard joined the Barcelona Symphony and Catalonia National Orchestra for a performance of Arthur Honegger’s oratorio Joan of Arc at the Stake (Jeanne d'Arc au Bûcher) at the L'Auditori de Barcelona in Spain, broadcast live on Medici.tv. By Swiss composer Arthur Honegger, Jeanne d'Arc au Bûcher (1938) is an imposing oratorio. The libretto is a highly original creation by French poet and playwright Paul Claudel, who dramatises the last moments of the martyr's life. Originally written for actress Ida Rubinstein, the oratorio is written as a flashback in which Joan recalls her life, just before she dies. Honegger creates visually evocative ambiances and fills the orchestra with new sounds (saxophones, ondes Martenot). The initial prologue to the piece was added in 1944 as a symbol of the resistance during the Nazi occupation of France: again, Joan goes beyond her own story.
Marion Cotillard
as Jeanne d'Arc
Xavier Gallais
as Frère Dominique
Yann Beuron
as Une Voix/Porcus/Un Héraut/Le Clerc
Marta Almajano
as Marguerite
Aude Extrémo
as Catherine
Eric Martin-Bonnet
as Une Voix/Un Héraut/Un Paysan
Anna Moreno-Lasalle
as Mère aux Tonneaux
Pep Planas
as L'Appariteur/Robert de Chartres/Guillaume de Flavy/Perrot
Carles Romero Vidal
as Herald, l'âne/Bedford/Jean de Luxembourg/Heurtebise/Paysan
Marc Soustrot
as Self - Conductor
