Child stars in danger in The Celebrities Will, at the Center of Todays Theater.

Presented for the first time in the media on April 23rd at the Center for Today’s Theatre, The Testament of the Cellabies by Jon Lachlan Stewart is on display until May 9th and offers a satirical plunge into the shores of contemporary stardom.

This play, written by Jon Lachlan Stewart, imagines a cataclysm during the Oscars ceremony, which leaves a generation of child actors as heirs to a foundation tasked with financing the continuation of a cult fantasy series for children, titled Grimbelgitch. The explosion that occurred in the Oscars amphitheater was actually caused by the series author, Dame Sylvia Grey, who was seeking to end her life.

This controversial author, known for her right-wing views, leaves behind a colossal fortune destined to perpetuate her work to infinity for future generations, even if the original young actors have aged. They will then be replaced by simulacra generated by artificial intelligence. Such is the starting point of this play translated and directed by the sparkling Olivier Morin, who was previously seen on YouTube in a parody of Stéphane Bern visiting Place Versailles.

The three excellent actors Gabriel Favreau, Chloé Germentier, and Rebecca Vachon are hilarious in an almost acrobatic mechanism, with numerous and demanding changes in tone, characters, and subjects. The very successful lighting supports the variations in ambiance and the characters’ asides, much like when one watches online videos. A system of lasers allows for capturing and copying the actors’ identities and DNA to reproduce them infinitely: replicas of their faces, expressions, gazes, voices, and hairstyles.

It may be confusing at times, but the game remains captivating, as we also laugh at our own flaws. The fantastic adventures of these idols with superpowers continue to captivate. The clichés are so numerous that the whole often veers into the absurd. Caricatures and insights into the shores of stardom abound. The random incantations launched by the protagonists lead to dramatic consequences: abuse, sex, drugs, and alcohol, even to depression.

After 90 minutes of this fast-paced exercise, one emerges breathless despite the verbal and physical mastery of the actors. However, there is a certain lack of direction: where are we being led in this debacle? The themes addressed, numerous and scattered, do not always find coherence despite everyone’s efforts and talent. It’s entertaining, but the stakes of stardom and artificial intelligence, capable of fully or partially replacing actors’ performances, are not fully explored.

Nevertheless, the entertainment works despite the wandering of this social critique with a humorous character. The path to awareness is still worth the detour.

Showing until May 9th at the Center for Today’s Theatre.