Theatre Projects brings vision of Quebec to Manitoba

Stylistically these two writers are extremely poetic. Their language is very rich and very sharp.

—Ardith Boxall, artistic director

"Well-to-do young heiress, intelligent and perceptive, who has never loved anyone is seeking a man who will interest, move and seduce her. Substantial reward offered."

That's an ad that Beatrice posts all over the city where she lives. John and Beatrice by Carole Fréchette and translated by John Murrell opens the season November 1 - 11. In this modern day urban tale, Beatrice's search for love leads her to John, who may not be prepared for what Beatrice has in store.

Theatre Projects Manitoba (TPM) looks to Quebec for its 2012-2013 season. It is presenting two acclaimed works in English translation.

What is unique about presenting plays from Quebec and plays in translation? "Certainly for me it's about the use of language," says artistic director Ardith Boxall. "Stylistically these two writers are extremely poetic. Their language is very rich and very sharp. It can even go quite to the surreal. They play in image and abstraction, a little less naturalistic."

This is not out of the realm for TPM. Its first production was a translation of a play by Michel Tremblay and five years ago the company commissioned the first ever English translation of a Franco-Manitoban play, Marc Prescott's Encore.

Bashir Lazhar is the second offering in the season. This beautiful solo performance was so captivating that the movie Monsieur Lazhar was adapted from the play. It won a Genie for Best Canadian Motion Picture and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Film.

The play was written by Evelyne de la Chenelière and translated by Morwyn Brebner. It is a poignant tale of an Algerian refugee and substitute teacher. His traumatic experiences of tragedy and loss lead him to develop new methods of teaching and preparing his students for an uncertain future. Ann Hodges will direct this one-person show March14 - 24, 2013.

A new innovation this year is a Theatre Salon. This will be a monthly theatre mash up with a bilingual component featuring performances of other works by Fréchette and de la Chenelière. Reaching out to Manitoba's francophone community, they have asked Le Théatre Vice Versa Theatre, Winnipeg's French/English language theatre, to present readings of John and Beatrice and Bashir Lazhar in the original French.

Emerging artists will be part of the mix, with students from the University of Manitoba, University of Winnipeg and Université Saint-Boniface participating. Look for music from la belle province to round out these monthly salons.