Stage Door News
Stage Door News
Toronto – Théâtre français de Toronto (TfT) Artistic Director Guy Mignault unveiled the company’s 2012/13 season yesterday at 21 College Street, in TfT’s Centre for Creation, launching its official subscription campaign. The launch was followed by a celebration of World Theatre Day.
The 2012/13 season is made up of:
· 4 shows for general audiences;
· 1 show for teens in the New Generations program;
· 1 show for young audiences.
TfT is delighted to present three of its own productions in this new season:
· Les Fourberies de Scapin (Scapin’s Deceits) by Molière. This classic comedy introduces us to Scapin, a sly valet drawn from the Commedia dell’arte. Artistic Director Guy Mignault will for the first time direct a Molière play with this show. (October 2012)
· Albertine en cinq temps (Albertine in Five Times) by Michel Tremblay. One of Tremblay’s major works, Albertine en cinq temps will be Théâtre français de Toronto and Théâtre la Catapulte’s fourth co-production, after Zone, Les Fridolinades, and Les Médecins de Molière. (April 2013)
· Les Zinspirés. Written by GTA-area students and created and performed by professional Ontarian artists, Les Zinspirés’ purpose is to give a voice to the youth, its imaginativeness, its dreams and its worries.
This project is based on Les Zurbains, created by Théâtre Le Clou (Montréal)
TfT offers various subscription packages, adapted to each needs. Subscribers can choose either a season subscription for 3 or 4 shows or a previews subscription for 3 or 4. Subscription prices range from $83 to $166, depending on the level.
Artists, arts workers, and people under 30 are eligible to the TfT Pass: 4 tickets for $96. They can be used at once or at different performances, for up to four people.
In response to their success over the last four years, TfT will continue to offer performances with English surtitles. Half of its performances have English surtitles for adult shows.
The shows will be staged at the Berkeley Street Theatre, as TfT celebrates its twenty-third year performing at this location!
To learn more about TfT’s 2012/13 season, visit
www.theatrefrancais.com or call 416.534.6604.
2012/13 Season Schedule
FOR GENERAL AUDIENCES
LES FOURBERIES DE SCAPIN (SCAPIN’S DECEITS) by Molière
Direction: Guy Mignault.
A production of Théâtre français de Toronto.
October 24 – November 10, 2012; surtitled performances: October 24, 26, 27 and 31 and November 2, 3, 7, 9 and 10, 2012.
OCTAVE AND LÉANDRE ARE BOTH IN LOVE. One of them is enamoured of a modest servant girl, the other with a gypsy. When their hidden loves are threatened by their noble families, Scapin, Léandre’s valet, is asked to “concoct some invention, come up with some machine” to get them out of their predicament. Scapin assists them, but is it to be helpful, or just to make mischief?
This sly, shrewd valet plays the game deftly, giving others little respite as he ridicules them with his schemes. With colourful characters, intrigue, and a rhythm drawn from the Commedia dell’Arte, Molière nails the vices of the nobility in this timeless and exhilarating masterpiece.
LES TROIS EXILS DE CHRISTIAN E. by Philippe SOLDEVILA and Christian ESSIAMBRE
Direction: Philippe Soldevila. With Christian Essiambre.
A co-production of Théâtre Sortie de Secours (Québec) and Théâtre L’escaouette (Moncton)
November 28 – December 2, 2012; surtitled performances: November 28 and 30 and December 1.
CHRISTIAN E. LEAVES HIS HOMETOWN in New Brunswick to try a career as an actor, first in the land of La Sagouine and then in Montreal.
In Montreal, his Acadian accent prevents him from getting hired as an actor. He is quickly disillusioned by a life spent in a basement apartment, unemployed, playing video games, waiting for his girlfriend... then, when his close cousin disappears, Christian E. goes looking for him.
This project, written “on four hands, a mouth, and two legs” launches us on a initiation journey through the Maritimes, the magical landscapes and colourful characters populating Christian E.’s life unfolding before our eyes, thanks to Christian Essiambre’s breathtaking performance borrowing from mime and one-man shows.
II (DEUX) – II (TWO) by Mansel ROBINSON, translation by Jean Marc DALPÉ
Direction: Geneviève Pineault.
A co-production of Théâtre de la Veille 17 (Ottawa) and Théâtre du Nouvel-Ontario (Sudbury).
January 30 – February 3, 2013; surtitled performances: January 30 and February 1 and 2, 2013.
MERCIER IS A POLICE OFFICER: Canadian, white, charming, very old school. Maha, his wife, is a doctor: young, beautiful, intelligent, and Muslim. She has a lot to confess. So does he.
Little by little, over the course of an interrogation they are both subjected to, Mercier and Maha reveal their pasts to us. Politics, terrorism, passion, betrayal, murder…
In a suspenseful production directed by Geneviève Pineault, Jean Marc Dalpé, who also translated this award-winning Mansel Robinson script, shares the stage with Elkahna Talbi. Together, they divulge this text that dissects the mechanisms of collective paranoia and questions our fear of the different.
ALBERTINE EN CINQ TEMPS (ALBERTINE IN FIVE TIMES) by Michel TREMBLAY
Direction: Jean Stéphane Roy.
A co-production of Théâtre français de Toronto and Théâtre la Catapulte (Ottawa).
April 17 – 28, 2013; surtitled performances: April 17, 19, 20, 24, 25, 26 and 27.
IN THE HOUR WHEN 70-YEAR-OLD ALBERTINE calmly awaits her “second death,” she is visited by the women she used to be. With the help of her sister Madeleine, at once her confidante and rival, the five Albertines exchange their experiences and memories, and recall their suffering, their heartbreaks, and their brief moments of happiness. Seventy-year-old Albertine’s serene reflection finally allows her to free herself from the rage, shame, and guilt that broke her life; she makes peace with the lost Albertines — engulfed in anger at 30, in bitterness at 40, finding renewal at 50, and in despair at 60.
Michel Tremblay shows us the true face of Albertine, this complex character from the Chroniques du Plateau-Mont-Royal, as he touches on themes present in all his work, such as the weight of social constraints and family. It is, however, the dreamlike and yet invaluable dialogue between the different Albertines that elevates this script to the outstanding.
NEW GENERATIONS
LES ZINSPIRÉS
By GTA-area students.
Direction: Pierre Simpson. A production of Théâtre français de Toronto.
Performance for the general public: February 13, 2013 at 7pm.
Student matinees: February 12 at 10am, February 13 at 1pm, February 14 at 1pm and February 15 at 10am. No surtitles!
Ontario’s youth is full of surprises: in turn hilarious, moving, and wild, but always genuine. Les Zinspirés gives us a priceless opportunity to hear and understand our youth – in French! For ages 14 and up
FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES
LE TEMPS DES MUFFINS by Joël DA SILVA.
Direction: Joël da Silva
A creation of Théâtre Magasin (Montréal).
Performance for the general public: April 13 at 2pm.
Student matinees: April 11 at 10 am and April 12 at 10am and 1pm. No surtitles!
Le Temps des Muffins combines puppet and object theatre to create an original and refreshing experience. For ages 4 and up.
Illustration by Philippe Béha for II (deux).
2012-04-02
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