Can we count on the mosquito?

Audience: Children ages 6 to 11 and their parents.

Get ready to dive in, feel the excitement, and zoom in! Water rushing by, mosquitoes that pique your curiosity, and cells revealing their secrets: three storytellers will take you on a journey where science becomes an adventure. Come experience an intense moment, where the artists transform research into a true epic. With swirling water, buzzing mosquitoes, and a tiny world unfolding before your eyes, discover three different scientific tales!

Performances, podcasts, and illustrations will be produced as a result of this residency. The podcasts will be available on all major online music platforms.

The "Science Tells Stories" residency has brought together three storytellers in laboratories at the University of Montpellier since September 2025. This project is being carried out in partnership with the network of public libraries and science outreach organizations as part of theUM "Science with and for Society " initiative.

Francine Vidal’s show offers an immersive journey into the world of mosquitoes. It features contributions from scientists who share insights into their daily research: Dr. Mathieu Sicard, a professor at the Institute of Evolutionary Sciences in Montpellier (ISEM*), and Dr. Claire Loiseau of the MIVEGEC* laboratory.

What is a mosquito? While this question may seem simple, the answers are anything but… There are a thousand and one ways to look at a mosquito, that tiny creature capable of ruining an evening—or even a whole life! An important player in the journey of pollen or a virus, it is also a key character in tales from Africa and even the Far North. In short, the mosquito is unavoidable! Especially since there isn’t just one kind, as you’ll hear and see during this show featuring a storyteller and two scientists.

*ISEM – (CNRS, IRD, EPHE, CIRAD, INRAP, and the University of Montpellier)

*MIVEGEC Unit – (CNRS, IRD, INRAE, and the University of Montpellier)