Once upon a time there was…

An abandoned circus in the Far North
with three penguin musicians (Paxo, Paccor and Piole)
and the old caretaker Pravitch, who fancied himself a lion tamer.

Pack ice.
Global warming.
The folly of mankind.

Banquise is a wordless fable, an allegory where music is given pride of place. Appealing to the imagination, the play is a touching tale that speaks directly to the heart. It evokes the folly of humans, whose selfishness and lust for power have once again unleashed forces beyond their control. Children are initially captivated by the playful, musical aspects of the piece, and then by the image of the penguins abandoned on an ice floe. Adults are on hand to answer their questions.

The first children’s show of the National Arts Centre French Theatre season, the play is by Théâtre Maât, the only foreign company in the 2011-2012 Enfance/Jeunesse series. Performances during the week are reserved for school groups, with weekend performances open to the public. Note that spectators are welcome to arrive up to 45 minutes before the show to take part in an activity for children.

Théâtre Maât is a company established in Brussels in 1987 by Hadi El Gammal and Christine Smeysters. Like the Egyptian goddess Maat, who personified truth, justice and harmony, the company casts its gaze on mankind. Their actor-focused plays have a strong social message and combine music and theatre in festive presentations where humour and tenderness prevail over sadness and violence.

Hadi El Gammal is an engineering physicist by training who abandoned his profession in 1979 to pursue theatre, music and writing. As an actor, he has performed in over thirty plays and several films. As a musician and singer, he has composed music for the stage as well as more than a hundred songs. He also writes short stories, and is currently working on his second novel.

Christine Smeysters trained as an actor and director at INSAS in Brussels and also at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York. She has performed in several theatre and musical productions, and also in film and television. In addition to being co-director of Théâtre Maât, since 2000 she has been a municipal politician in Brussels.

Written by
CHRISTINE SMEYSTERS                       
HADI EL GAMMAL

Directed by
CHRISTINE SMEYTERS 

With
Hélène Blesh                            
Matthieu Moureau                                 
Hadi El GammaL                      
Jonathan De Neck

Music
Hadi El GammaL

Stage & Costume Design
NATHALIE MAUFROY

Set Construction
NATHALIE MAUFROY                     
FLORINE DELORY                            
LAURE CERBELAUD

Lighting
GAETAN VAN DER BERG

Stage Manager
OLIVIER DASHELET

Makeup
VIRGINIE BERLAND

Produced by
THÉÂTRE MAÂT

School Matinées
Wednesday, october 19 at 9:45 a.m.
Wednesday, october 19 at 12:45 p.m.
Thursday, october 20 at 9:45 a.m.
Friday, october 21 at 9:45 a.m.

Public Performances
Saturday, October 22 at 1:30 p.m.*
Sunday, October 23 at 13:30 p.m.
Sunday, October 23 at 15:30 p.m.

*Post-performance talkback session hosted by Benoît Vermeulen

Timing
50 minutes with no intermission

NAC STUDIO
53 Elgin, Ottawa

Tickets
$13.96 

NAC Box Office
(Monday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.)
www.nac-cna.ca

Ticketmaster
1-888-991-2787

Subscriptions
613-947-7000, ext. 620

 

Information
Sylvain Lavoie
Communications Officer
French Theatre
National Arts Centre
613-947-7000, ext. 396
sylvain.lavoie@nac-cna.ca

nac-cna.ca/tf
www.facebook.com/TheatreFrancaisCNA