There is no age for art, and seniors in the nation’s capital are proving it. At the age of 80, they are preparing to hit the boards for, often, the first time in their lives. The duty attended a rehearsal of this troupe from Quebec which is launching into the theater with all the ardor of old age.
It’s Friday morning at the Trait-Carré residence in Charlesbourg, the weekly rehearsal is about to begin. The director, Carole Muller, unfolds a table, moves a few chairs. In a few minutes, the decor is set: it’s time for the theatre!
The troupe slowly enters the room: eleven women and one man aged 64 to 90, most of whom have no stage experience. Some move around in a wheelchair, others rely on a cane or a walker. Together, they have accumulated nearly a millennium of experience: here they are, however, feverish and proud, both great-grandparents and amazed to plunge, in the evening of their lives, into a new passion.
“I raised cows for 46 years on Île d’Orléans,” explains Philippe Noël, an octogenarian from Sainte-Pétronille and the only male representative of the herd. I had never done theater before. I like it, but it puts the nerves on edge! »
Every Friday since September, for two hours a week, the 12 budding actresses and actors rehearse short sketches written by Clémence DesRochers, who is in her 90s and who graciously allowed the band to have fun around her work.
Age is just a number. Old age doesn’t have to be a deathbed!
At the first rehearsal, the fear of the unknown tormented the apprentice actresses and the apprentice actor. “They asked a lot of questions,” recalls Carole Muller, herself an actress, who democratizes theater in a few RPAs in Quebec. “One of the first was: ‘Are you going to have to learn our lyrics by heart?’ They still believe that they are no longer capable, but it is not true: it imprints itself in the brain like a song! »
“At some point, it’s the memory that is no longer too much, too much,” feared Lucille Martineau at the start. At 78, the blue-eyed lady is rediscovering, after a long 60-year hiatus, the theater she loved so much as a child.
“I used to do it at school with the nuns and I loved it! I dreamed of doing it again since then, but the opportunity never arose. When I found out they were doing theater here, I jumped right in and I really like it! Then, Carole gave us so many good tips, it was very good to learn my lines. »
The proof is in practice. The first sketch, titled Girls at the hairdresser, takes place in a beauty salon. It begins with a death cry. “Aaaaah! shouts Lise Drolet from behind the scenes. A painful waxing session is in progress, a resounding “ayoye!” still resonates. “Here,” says Louise Plante, looking up from the manicure she’s performing with an annoyed air. She just lost her mustache! »
At the other end of the stage, 90-year-old Claudette Matte, her head buried in a hair dryer, begs someone to turn down the heat. “I’m burning!” she repeats with a sense of punch who never fails to make her director laugh. The sketch comes to life almost without the support of the texts, and the lines follow one another rhythmically, sometimes interrupted by a few memory lapses, which always end in great bursts of laughter.
“It’s my little happiness of the week”, says Carole Muller watching her troop having fun with an obvious complicity. “They prove to me that no matter the age, you can do things too, you are not doomed to suffer the difficulties that come with the years. They leave that aside and go for something new! It makes me proud to see them proud. Feeling proud in what you do brings life! »
The troupe is certainly not lacking in vitality. The youngest, Carole Drolet, has a wide smile on her face when she interprets her characters. The eldest, Claudette Matte, discovers a natural talent on the boards.
” I’m a little tomboylaughs the lady, who begins her 90e spring. I knew absolutely nothing about the theatre, I don’t remember having attended a play in my life. In the old days, explains the matriarch of a clan that now has countless grandchildren and great-grandchildren, we got married, gave up our jobs and took care of our families. »
She decided to dive into the theatrical adventure, a step she does not regret at all having taken. “At the beginning of September, we didn’t know each other, and today, we form a beautiful gang ! Frankly, I always look forward to Fridays. »
Deepening the characters, understanding their intentions, coordinating gesture and speech from a text that must become second nature: the theater imposes a discipline that surprises the troupe. Many rehearse in the evening, sometimes in front of the mirror, to learn their lines or perfect their gestures.
“I didn’t think I would have to invest so much time, is still surprised Louise Plante, a former teacher with energy and confidence still intact at 83 years old. It takes humility. And then I say to myself: “if I am wrong, I will be wrong. If they are not happy, let them come and do it!” »
The troupe still has a few Fridays ahead of it to master its show. Two performances in front of the public are approaching: one reserved for families, another for people in the residence, before leaving on tour, who knows, in other RPAs in the region.
“I’m proud of myself and I’m proud of what I represent for people my age,” concludes Claudette Matte enthusiastically. Age is just a number. Old age doesn’t have to be a deathbed! »
“No sir,” adds Louise Plante at his side. I may be old, but I will never be old! »