Michel Tremblay to the max
“From 3,500 pages of stories to a page in history”
A true theatrical event, La traversée du siècle sold out at the seven Montreal theatres that joined forces to pay tribute to the expansive universe of one of our most illustrious playwrights: Michel Tremblay. Created by Alice Ronfard in collaboration with the late André Brassard, this spectacular performance/reading/epic is coming to Ottawa to launch the new theatre season in style!
In a Quebec crushed by poverty and religion, the destinies of Victoire, Albertine and Thérèse unfold. Three generations that shaped the world we live in today; life stories of three fascinating and amazingly strong women. La traversée du siècle invites us to follow their odyssey through the great upheavals of 20th-century society and the themes dear to the playwright’s heart: hybridity, gender fluidity, homosexuality, the place of women, the desire for emancipation, and the scars left on the soul of a people by so many years of oppression.
Director Alice Ronfard combines theatre and novel in this inventory of the century crafted from excerpts from some of Tremblay’s best-known works, including Les chroniques du Plateau Mont-Royal, La diaspora des Desrosiers (The Desrosiers Diaspora), Le passé antérieur, En pièces détachées (In Parts), Albertine, en cinq temps (Albertine in Five Times), and Sainte Carmen de la Main (Sainte-Carmen of the Main). This ambitious and unifying project, brought to life by some 20 performers, is a reflection of the man who, for 60 years, has been shaping an original mythology marked by struggle and resilience, love and difference.
9:30 am: Doors open
10:00 am: Part 1
11:30 am: Intermission #1 (20 min)
11:50 am: Part 2
1:40 pm: LUNCH BREAK (65 min)
2:45 pm: Part 3
4:30 pm: Intermission #2 (20 min)
4:50 pm: Part 4
6:35 pm: DINNER BREAK (65 min)
7:40 pm: Part 5
9:30 pm: Intermission #3 (20 min)
9:50 pm: Part 6
11:05 pm: End*
*Given the scale of the event, the performance may finish a bit later.
Obstructed view seats are available at a discounted price starting September 3
These seats are located at the far sides of the theatre and may limit your view of the stage. Exact impact may vary from seat to seat. These tickets are available to purchase online or at the NAC Box Office. They will clearly identified in the process, as well as during check-out.
La traversée du siècle was first presented in association with the Centre du Théâtre d’Aujourd’hui, Duceppe, Théâtre Espace Libre, Théâtre La Licorne, Théâtre du Nouveau Monde, Théâtre de Quat’Sous and Théâtre du Rideau Vert.
A staged reading of La traversée du siècle was presented at Théâtre Espace Libre in August 2022.
Developed with support from the National Arts Centre’s National Creation Fund.