Student Matinee : The Assembly – Montreal | Mar 4, 2020

National Arts Centre - Centre national des Arts Canada is our stage. Le Canada en scène.

Mar 4, 2020

Azrieli Studio 1 Elgin Street Ottawa Canada

Sean Colby, Tanja Jacobs, Jimmy Blais © Maxime Côté. Lighting Designer Luc Prairie / Scenic Designer Simon Guilbault.

web-4 — Jimmy Blais, Tanja Jacobs © Maxime Côté. Lighting Designer Luc Prairie / Scenic Designer Simon Guilbault.

Theatre Drama

Performance options	Start time	Language	Availability
Wednesday, March 4, 2020	12:00 pm	English	Seats available

““Charged, resonant and unnervingly entertaining.””
Now Toronto

A Porte Parole (Montreal) Production

In this astonishing theatrical social experiment, playwrights Alex Ivanovici, Annabel Soutar and Brett Watson dare you to look away from the tribalism and polarization that threaten the civility of public discourse today.

Four strangers are brought together, each with opposing political, social, cultural and religious views, to hash out their differences. Discussing issues like freedom of speech and immigration, they must also consider the quality of their conversation, transcending their ideological differences by listening not just to reply, but also to hear.

This unnervingly entertaining production reminds us that the survival of our democracy we profess to cherish might just require one awkward, conflict-soaked meal at a time.

*Contains strong language

12:00 NOON

This event is cancelled

Sorry it’s no longer available.

Adults & chaperones

1 Free adult per 15 students

Free admittance for special needs assistants

$ (HST included) for additional chaperons At the discretion of the National Arts Centre

Payment deadlines

3 weeks before the performance

Full payment is required by the payment deadline. The NAC reserves the right to cancel any orders submitted but not paid for by the payment deadline.

Seating

There are no reserved seats for NAC student matinee performances.

Instead of tickets you will receive a letter of admission and groups will be seated on a first-come, first-served basis at the performance.

The letter of admission will be issued upon receipt of full payment.

If you have any questions, please contact us at education@nac-cna.ca

Artists

Director Chris Abraham

Director Chris Abraham

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Playwright, Actor Alex Ivanovici

Playwright, Actor Alex Ivanovici

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Playwright Annabel Soutar

Playwright Annabel Soutar

Annabel Soutar is a Montreal-based playwright and theatre producer. In 2000, she co-founded, with Alex Ivanovici, Porte Parole Productions whose mission is to produce entertaining documentary plays which create a transformational sense of civic engagement in its audiences. Annabel studied Theatre at Princeton University. Since 1998, she has written eight plays including Seeds, Sexy béton, The Watershed and Fredy. In 2015, The Globe and Mail named Soutar on its list of Artists of the Year. The Assembly, her recent collaboration with co-writers Alex Ivanovici and Brett Watson, will tour in the U.S., Europe and South America in 2020–23.

Annabel Soutar est née à Montréal. Elle a étudié le théâtre à l’Université Princeton, décrochant un diplôme en mise en scène et dramaturgie. Sous la direction d’Emily Mann, dramaturge de renom et directrice du célèbre McCarter Theatre du New Jersey, elle a développé son approche documentaire du théâtre. Depuis 1995, elle applique cette vision aux pièces qu’elle a écrit et produit à Montréal : Novembre, 2000 Questions, Santé, Import/Export, Montréal la blanche, Seeds/Grain(s), Sexy béton, The Watershed/Le partage des eaux, Fredy, J’aime Hydro, The Assembly/L’Assemblée et Tout inclus. Elle est la directrice artistique et la cofondatrice avec Alex Ivanovici en 2000 de la compagnie de théâtre Porte Parole. En 2003, le journal Montreal Gazette a décerné à Porte Parole le titre de « Compagnie de théâtre de l’année » et, en 2015, Annabel Soutar a été nommée l’une des artistes canadiennes de l’année par le Globe & Mail.

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Playwright Brett Watson

Playwright Brett Watson

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Actor Akosua Amo-Adem

Actor Akosua Amo-Adem

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Actor Jimmy Blais
Actor Jimmy Blais

Jimmy is a member of the Muskeg Lake Cree Nation, he is of Plains Cree and French settler heritage. Born and raised on Tiohtià:ke, Jimmy is a seasoned stage and film actor and has worked for over 15 years in collaboration with companies like Native Earth Performing Arts, The Stratford Festival, the National Arts Centre, The Centaur, Repercussion Theatre, Porte Parole and La Licorne.

He has had roles in television and film for Crave, Discovery Channel, CBC and Space as well as multiple award winning short films. Jimmy’s most notable TV role was playing Watio for five seasons in APTN’s hit series Mohawk Girls. Jimmy is also a writer and director. His most recent play Feather Gardens won him a META for Outstanding New Text. Jimmy is the Artistic Director of Geordie Theatre in Montreal.

Jimmy Blais is a dad, an actor, a writer and a director and a member of the National Theatre School’s Indigenous Advisory Circle.

Jimmy est membre de la nation crie de Muskeg Lake, il est issu de Cris des Plaines et de colons français. Né et élevé à Tiohtià:ke, il a à son actif une vaste expérience en tant qu’acteur de théâtre et de cinéma. Il poursuit sa carrière professionnelle depuis plus de 15 ans, notamment au sein de compagnies tel que le Native Earth Performing Arts, le Stratford Festival, le Centre National des Arts, le Centaur, Repercussion Theatre, Porte Parole et La Licorne.

Il a tenu des rôles dans des séries télévisées et des films diffusés par Crave, le Discovery Channel, CBC et Space et il a figuré à plusieurs reprises dans des courts métrages primés. Le rôle le plus célèbre de Jimmy au petit écran est celui de Watio dans la série à succès d’APTN Mohawk Girls. Jimmy est également auteur et metteur en scène. Sa dernière pièce, Feather Gardens, lui a valu un META pour Outstanding New Text. Jimmy est le directeur artistique du Geordie Theatre à Montréal.

Jimmy Blais est père, acteur, écrivain et réalisateur et membre du Cercle consultatif autochtone du l’École nationale de théâtre.
NAC media featuring Jimmy Blais
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Actor Sean Colby

Actor Sean Colby

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Actor Tanja Jacobs

Actor Tanja Jacobs

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Actor Marcel Jeannin

Actor Marcel Jeannin

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Sound Designer Antoine Bédard

Sound Designer Antoine Bédard

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Assistant Director Marie Farsi

Assistant Director Marie Farsi

Marie Farsi is a Vancouver-based theatre maker, director and marionettist known for her original and international perspective. She has studied theatrical forms in Italy, China and Bali, and her curiosity, love of travel, eclectic studies and knowledge of diverse techniques have informed her exploration of a wide range of stage writing and movement. Recent directing credits include Movements 1&2 (Babelle Theatre), Jean & Béatrice (Vortex Théâtre), Seabird is in a Happy Place (OOB Short Play Festival/NYC), and Rivulets: 3 short plays about a flood (Babelle Theatre). In 2016, her production of The 4th Graders Present an Unnamed Love-Suicide (Tremors Festival/Rumble Theatre) was nominated for seven Jessie Awards, including Best Director. She recently returned from the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, where she assistant directed The Komagata Maru Incident and choreographed the play’s shadow puppet sequences. Marie Farsi holds a B.F.A. in theatre performance from Concordia University in Montreal. At Zones Théâtrales 2017, she is directing the reading of Crème-Glacée.

Marie Farsi est une créatrice, metteure en scène et marionnettiste basée à Vancouver. Elle se démarque par son profil international et atypique. Marie a séjourné en Italie, à Pékin et à Bali. Sa curiosité, ses voyages à l’étranger, ses études éclectiques et sa connaissance de techniques diverses lui permettent d’explorer différentes écritures scéniques et corporelles. Parmi ses mises en scène récentes, on notera: Movements 1&2 (Babelle Theatre), Jean & Béatrice (Vortex Théâtre), Seabird is in a Happy Place (OOB Short Play Festival/NYC), Rivulets: 3 short plays about a flood de Babelle Theatre et sept nominations aux prix Jessie 2016 dont une pour la mise en scène, pour The 4th Graders Present an Unnamed Love-Suicide (Tremors Festival/Rumble Theatre). Elle revient tout juste du Festival Shakespeare de Stratford où elle a assuré l'assistance à la mise en scène de The Komagata Maru Incident et chorégraphié les segments de marionnettes d'ombre prévus au spectacle. Elle est diplômée de l'Université Concordia, à Montréal, avec un baccalauréat en performance théâtrale. Elle dirige la mise en voix de Crème-Glacée présentée en lecture aux Zones Théâtrales 2017.

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Video Technician Guillaume Arseneault

Video Technician Guillaume Arseneault

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Wardrobe Dominique Coughlin

Wardrobe Dominique Coughlin

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Lighting designer Luc Prairie

Lighting designer Luc Prairie

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Set Designer Simon Guilbault

Set Designer Simon Guilbault

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Video Technician Amelia Scott

Video Technician Amelia Scott

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Stage Manager Isabel Quintero Faia

Stage Manager Isabel Quintero Faia

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Featuring Porte Parole
Featuring Porte Parole
NAC media featuring Porte Parole
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By Alex Ivanovici, Annabel Soutar and Brett Watson
Directed by Chris Abraham
Featuring Akosua Amo-Adem, Jimmy Blais, Sean Colby, Alex Ivanovici, Tanja Jacobs and Marcel Jeannin
Assistant Director Marie Farsi
Lighting designer Luc Prairie
Sound designer Antoine Bédard
Set designer Simon Guilbault
Stage Manager Isabel Faia
Video Technicians Guillaume Arseneault and Amelia Scott
Head of Wardrobe Dominique Coughlin

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