The 21and Never Lu festival, which offers its abundant program from May 5 to 14, has as its editorial line “irreversible fiction”. Olivier Arteau, one of its artistic co-directors, believes that we must “renew our vows” towards the imaginary. “It’s about saying that in a time when we are very attracted to documentaries and reality TV, fiction still has an artistic role to play, it can really transform us. It is by imagining worlds, perhaps, that one can continue to arrive at a form of utopia and ideal. Fiction can make us tend towards new ideas, rather than coming up against a reality that is sometimes very raw, especially with the pandemic. At the moment, we constantly have live images of what is happening, of the war in Ukraine. For me, imagination is a muscle too. And I wonder: are we losing this ability to imagine new worlds by dint of being paralyzed by the reality, the news with which we are bombarded? Perhaps all we have left to hope for is fiction. »
For the opening night, he and his accomplices Marcelle Dubois, Alexandre Castonguay and Tamara Nguyen from the artistic cell of the 2022 edition had the idea of a story built in real time. The video club of the lastchance restores a little the spirit of this almost obsolete place where “we gather collectively to go shopping for fiction”.
It is rare that we have an opportunity to write for fun. And I think that can be very beneficial. Hey, it is possible that the spectators spend a beautiful evening even if I did not cry for eight hours while writing my text!
For each four-minute scene, the authors will be imposed genres, areas little explored in the theater (western, science fiction, horror, etc.). In addition, they will draw additional constraints from an abacus, which the spectators will be invited to add to with their suggestions. “The goal was to have as many constraints as possible, to see how the ideas navigate among the authors and how they mutate in the present moment”, explains Arteau. These keyboard improvisers will write mainly during breaks, intervals filled by musician Adrien Bletton and host Carolanne Foucher, who will “play the video club clerk”.
Chosen “above all for their keen gaze on the world and the permissions they grant themselves” in writing, the four playwrights (Gabrielle Chapdelaine, Mario Laframboise, Catherine Léger and Mireille Tawfik) will have to aim for a final scene comprising “a lot of traps” drawn up by the members of the artistic unit. Only element that the brave quartet will know in advance.
Daredevil?
The unusual exercise does not seem to scare two of the playwrights too much, interviewed together by videoconference. During a launch, authors came to tell Gabrielle Chapdelaine: “I can’t believe you agreed to do this, it’s really daredevil! “She recognizes, laughing:” It will still be something. »
Reassured by the trip gang”, Catherine Léger believes that the event will generate adrenaline “by the shovelful” and relies on this urgency to facilitate inspiration. “I have the impression that when I have a lot of time in front of me, I start to analyze too much what I write. It is as if, in an emergency, the filters [disparaissent]. It seems that I trust myself more or let myself write more, rather than judging what I’m writing. »
The two creators believe that the instructions will be stimulating. “Constraint provides an objective, a starting point, directs thoughts”, specifies Catherine Léger, the author of Baby sitter, from Paris, where she was attending the premiere of the film adaptation of her work. “She helps us to go elsewhere and think outside the box. »
Loving the idea of being “in dialogue” with the public through her directives, Gabrielle Chapdelaine also says she is motivated to play with the performers (Jade Barshee, Anna Beaupré Moulounda, Alexandre Castonguay, Hubert Lemire) of the show, even their laying “traps, endangering them”, or challenging them. “I feel that on the side of the organizing committee, it is quite encouraged to put obstacles in the way between us so that it remains fun. And we are still putting ourselves in quite a bit of danger. So, we’re going to share the anguish! she jokes.
Three suggestions for Never Read
How to prepare for this improv writing? The author toyed with the idea of doing research on the different cinematographic genres, of bringing out “elements that were easy to integrate”, such as recognizable science fiction references. His sidekick Catherine Léger is planning a brainstorming session the day before: “What do I want to explore these days? Thinking about characters, maybe things that I left behind that still live with me. » Have a couple of “jokers” up her sleeve to pull out in case she blocks. “I think it’s cheating, but I’m going to do it anyway. »
Liberator
For her, the appeal of the concept comes in particular from the fact that it allows room for error. Without the expectations that now come with writing. “We will be purely in a creative context. I don’t know if it’s because of where I’m at in my career or the way the system works right now, but I feel like there’s always pressure to come up quickly with a play that will work, that will be on the right subject of the moment, therefore capable of attracting the attention of the media. We are no longer in the act of creation, but in the process of delivering something that is expected of us. »
Both anticipate pleasure in this adventure. “It is rare that one has an opportunity to write for the fun, says Gabrielle Chapdelaine. And I think that can be very beneficial. Hey, it is possible that the spectators spend a beautiful evening even if I did not cry for eight hours while writing my text! She bursts out laughing.
“We end up taking our projects so seriously,” adds his colleague. For example, I’m working on a new piece [pour le Petit Théâtre du Nord]which is very different from Baby sitter. So, I’m super insecure, I feel like I’m risking my life every time. So, this context devoid of pressure and where everyone participates: if the spectator participates, he creates his own pleasure, I imagine that it will produce a liberating effect. »
For Olivier Arteau, this collective exercise, on which even the public has an impact, highlights the collegial dimension of creation in the theatre, a “team sport”. “It’s to see how today, writing on the set can have a lot of influence on what we create. More and more playwrights are writing improvisations, or for performers. This allows to [constater] how the whole theatrical ecology — the cast and even the music will surely influence the writing a bit — becomes a source of inspiration for the author, who is not isolated at home with just his world. We discover everything that transforms a work in the present moment, everything that influences the creator in writing. »