THE STORY OF INFÂME
THE NECESSITY OF INFÂME
INFÂME (ahn-FAHM) means shameful or disgraced in French. It is a word history used to brand King Henri III, whom many of the French consider to be the worst king they ever had. This musical reclaims both the idea of beauty and the legacy of Henri himself, a man who ascended to the throne at exactly the wrong moment in history.
At its heart, it is unapologetically a queer love story. Its queerness is not relegated to the sidelines or treated as comic relief. Instead, it is the center of the narrative and the driving thesis of the work, a bold and necessary perspective in the landscape of contemporary theatre.
SO HERE'S WHAT HAPPENS
Paris - 1587. King Henri III rules a kingdom on the brink, and believes, perhaps dangerously, that beauty is the one thing that can save the nation. Surrounded by his beloved and breathtakingly beautiful group of young men he calls his Mignons, Henri chooses love, spectacle, and softness over fear and force. It is a choice the court does not forgive.
When Brother Jacques arrives as Henri’s new confessor, devotion quickly turns to obsession. Tied to the Catholic League and its ruthless leader De Guise, Jacques is pulled deeper into a quiet, mounting crisis of faith, one that mirrors Henri’s own unraveling.
As political pressure mounts, Henri is forced to send his lover, Sébastien, to war, unaware that the tragic ending has already been arranged. What follows is a slow collapse of power, belief, and the fragile world Henri has tried to create.
In the end, two men are searching for truth, one through beauty, the other through judgment. They are set on a collision course that can only end one way.
It's my story, darling. I've made a few edits.
