Ottawa, 17 April 2013 – On April 25 and 26, ten adolescents from the Ottawa region will take over the stage. Aged 14 to 18, they will bravely spread the word, expressing their feelings and ideas in vibrant, honest fashion. This will be the final phase of a unique, exceptional project supervised by Anne-Marie Guilmaine and initiated by the Théâtre français and its associate artistic director Mélanie Dumont. A curiosity, an event, an unusual occurrence: Ce qui nous relie? will be presented at 8 p.m. in the Cour des Arts (2 Daly Ave., Ottawa).

 

 

“Ce qui nous relie?  is an incredible human adventure

that travels far beyond the theatre space, the better to return there,

all the richer for this vivid encounter with young people – all the intensity and beauty of youth.”

Mélanie Dumont

 

 

For almost a year, ten adolescents were in contact with a writer and a multidisciplinary artist, discussing, exchanging, creating close ties. They responded to a few initial questions in spirited fashion, sharing their thoughts and dreams: what frightens them, what moves and excites them, their mad dreams for the future, their audacity and questioning, all of it conveyed with refreshing frankness as they ask who they are in the here and now. With remarkable sensitivity and acuity, Anne-Marie Guilmaine selected and arranged the material to create a theatre presentation radiant with truth.

 

 

“I thought I would use them as inspiration for writing a text. I soon realized that their words

had a force and resonating power that I could not circumvent. It is rooted in their truth and expressed with a vocabulary, a syntax,

and expressions that are all their own.”

Anne-Marie Guilmaine

 

 

Ce qui nous relie? is a bang-on portrayal of adolescence and

much more besides, getting straight to the heart of identity.

 

 

Text: Anne-Marie Guilmaine, with the complicity of the young participants // Staging: Anne-Marie Guilmaine // Cast: Bénédicte Bélizaire, Marc-Antoine Blais, Corinne Fortier, Laura Gagné, Catherine Lafortune, Laura Meguerditchian, Samuel Pilon, Gabrielle Thiboutot, Flavie Trottier, Alexandre Villemaire // Project leaders: Marie Claude Dicaire and Véronique Lavoie-Marcus // Produced by: Théâtre français du CNA

 

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Calling all teenagers!

 

Unique opportunity: Ce qui nous relie? will return in 2014-15! For this second edition, young people aged 14 to 20 are invited to participate in a unique creative workshop in the company of Anne-Marie Guilmaine. Their personalities and visions of the world will be the inspiration for a script that will be a dynamic reflection of who they are, culminating in an onstage performance.

 

To apply, write to veronique.marcus@cna-nac.ca before June 6, 2014.