After 27 years in Elvis costumes, Martin Fontaine bows out in the fall. Twenty-seven years that have passed “like a pinotte”, which have left him with a host of lasting memories and which have allowed him to build a unique relationship with the Quebec public.
Posted at 8:00 p.m.
“I never thought it would last so long,” Martin Fontaine told us on the phone. It must be said, on the other hand, that I am the type of guy who gives himself on stage as if there was no tomorrow. There are no small shows, whether in a shopping center or at the Videotron Centre. »
Martin Fontaine was hired to impersonate the King in the musical review Elvis Story after an audition, in 1995. A great success that lasted a little more than 10 years, then in 2013, the singer started again with Elvis Experiencehistorical reconstruction of the show that Elvis presented 837 times in Las Vegas between 1969 and 1976.
It is this show that he will present one last time at the St-Denis, in Montreal, starting this Tuesday – day of the 45e anniversary of the death of Elvis –, then in Trois-Rivières, Saguenay and at the Capitole de Québec, his favorite room, in December.
But “Farewell tour” or not, Martin Fontaine has always approached each show “as if it were the last”.
“We artists always want to play. It is our passion, our life. If the producer decides on an ending, all I hear is “do you want to do another tour?”. I didn’t hear the end word. I said yes and jumped into the adventure. »
Martin Fontaine is convinced that there will always be “a craze for this icon that was Elvis”. And he will never say no if the phone rings with new proposals for “one-shot deals”.
But he is also well aware that, at 57, it is no longer really possible to give more than 150 performances a year as before, with all that that requires in terms of preparation – every evening, he must undergo a transformation which lasts two hours!
The character I play is 20 years younger than me, he recalls. The illusion can be created, but I can’t leave and tell my producers: we’re embarking on three years and we’re doing the rounds… We have to continue discipline and rigor, and that’s more difficult to carry.
Martin Fontaine
Like most artists, Martin Fontaine has played little for two and a half years because of the pandemic. “We were supposed to celebrate the 25e anniversary in 2020, it was postponed and then cancelled. Afterwards, we were able to do it at the Cogeco Trois-Rivières amphitheater four nights in 2021. These are the real celebrations of the 25e with this tour. We go everywhere, see people in their city. Like a gift. »
PHOTO PROVIDED BY THE PRODUCTION
Martin Fontaine personified Elvis for 27 years.
The first performances in Gatineau at the end of July were well received. And putting on Elvis’ white suit was like finding his “old boyfriend”.
“We do a little ride together, not too fast. We’re going to put on our equipment and our pads properly, we’re going to protect our knees before playing… And take your vitamins, sleep well, eat well, and you’ll be fine! »
Of course, passion gives energy, but you also have to listen to your body. “Sometimes I think that I may have jumped a little too hard the day before! he laughs. And think about the future: in 2018, Martin Fontaine opened the Memphis Cabaret in Trois-Rivières, and that’s what he’s going to focus on for the next few years.
reunion
Martin Fontaine has played Elvis more than 2,000 times since 1995, in front of 1.8 million spectators worldwide, including 900,000 in Quebec. When he thinks back to those 27 years, he sees all the places he visited and all the people he met.
“But the highlight of it all was Priscilla’s visit to Quebec City on July 28, 2014. Then she took me to Vegas, introduced me to her family. I lived fabulous moments. »
He even presented 35 times Elvis Experience at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino, on the same stage as the King at the time.
Of course I would have liked it to last a long time. I was ready for three years. But another path has arrived.
Martin Fontaine
Vegas remains the pinnacle of his career, as does his show at the Videotron Center in 2017 accompanied by a symphony orchestra. And the Quebec public, “who ensured that everything began and continues”, of course occupies a special place in his heart.
“It’s phenomenal that after 27 years, we still fill rooms, that they come to share this passion for the guy…”
And also still an affection for him, right? “Well I think it goes together. People have an affection for the portrait that I make of the man. They are happy and proud of all that we have traveled together. There is a bit of us when we go to Tokyo, to Vegas, when we meet Priscilla. We become a bit like an ambassador… and I try to make ourselves look good. »
It also employs Quebec artists and technicians, which is not negligible: some forty people gravitated aroundElvis Experience and followed him everywhere on tour, except for a few musicians.
“It’s exceptional, and also that it still arouses interest. We must celebrate this exception, underline it, cherish it. You have to be proud. »