Un vent se lève qui éparpille
making its première at the NAC Théâtre français
with English surtitles on Friday Feb. 12
February 10 – 13 at 8 p.m.
in the NAC Studio

The door slams behind him like a shot from a .22;
A crow takes flight
On the other side of the screen door, a woman forever frozen, her mouth open: a pillar of salt
The man might come back; he might come back and undo the curse of a word, a gesture
But he gets into his brand new red pickup
The screech of tires biting the gravel
The dust rising and then falling back to the ground
And after that the silence

Excerpt, Un vent se lève qui éparpille, Jean Marc Dalpé

Recipient of the Governor General’s Literary Award for fiction in 2000, the first novel by Jean Marc Dalpé, Un vent se lève qui éparpille, stirs up our emotions and memory. Transposed to the stage by Geneviève Pineault of the Théâtre du Nouvel Ontario, the rising wind spares nothing and no one. Passion, desire, hatred, betrayal and abandonment are the component elements in this polyphonic text of tangled, troubled voices tinged with the lyrical and the violent.

The story of 17-year-old Marie, of Marcel and his rose tattoo, of Joseph and his brand new red pickup, of Rose and her white shoes on the banks of the Waba belong as much to the collective psyche as to extraordinary passion. Forbidden desire, a love triangle, murder, a poetic text and images underpin Geneviève Pineault’s description of the story:

It’s a constant to-and-fro, from the head to the gut, from the gut to the head. We vicariously live the lives of the protagonists, who succumb to their urges and rages, their fiery spirit. The burden of fate that awaits them is utterly fascinating.

It is the poetic, dramatic and imaginative style of the novel that convinced the director to adapt it for the stage together with the dramaturgs Johanne Melançon and Alice Ronfard. Performed by six actors, this new production was a chance to collaborate again with Jean Marc Dalpé, with whom she had previously worked on two plays by Mansel Robinson, SLAGUE – l’histoire d’un mineur and II (deux).

“Without the support of the NAC this project would not exist,” explains the director of Théâtre du Nouvel-Ontario. “In outlying regions there is a limited pool of artists.” The team was able to benefit from the expertise of the NAC, notably for building the set and for advice from Brigitte Haentjens, a transfer of knowledge that Geneviève Pineault found invaluable. “We feel that anything is possible. They support our artistic approach and they have confidence in us, but what’s more, they’re allowing us to realize our dream. It’s a great source of pride for people from Sudbury to be associated with the NAC.”

Written by: Jean Marc Dalpé // Adapted for the stage by: Geneviève Pineault, Alice Ronfard and Johanne Melançon //  Directed by: Geneviève Pineault // with David Boutin, Roch Castonguay, Annick Léger, Robert Marinier, Milva Ménard, Bryan Morneau // Assistant director and stage manager: Diane Fortin // Set design: Gabriel Tsampalieros // Lighting: André Rioux // Costumes: Isabelle Bélisle //  Sound environment: Marcel Aymar // Vocals: Céleste Lévis //Production manager: Lindsay Tremblay // Technical direction: Ivan Pitre, Alex Gazalé and Élise Lefebvre //  Artistic direction: Geneviève Pineault, Esther Beauchemin and Brigitte Haentjens

Produced by Théâtre du Nouvel-Ontario, Théâtre de la Vieille 17 and the NAC’s Théâtre français at the National Arts Centre

Duration of the show: 1 hour 20 minutes