Judi and Yvon’s family Christmas

At Judi Richards and Yvon Deschamps, Christmas is serious business. With the show Christmas at the Deschamps, which brings Judi Richards, their three daughters and two of their granddaughters together on stage, it is as if their whole clan invites us to celebrate with them. We entered their tightly woven family bubble during their visit to the Gilles-Vigneault theater in Saint-Jérôme on Sunday.

Josée Lapointe
Press

The unifier

“Mom, would you like some tea or coffee? “” What do you want to eat, children? In the dressing room, there is a mixture of family relaxation and pre-show excitement. In the heart of this charming chaos, Judi Richards answers the technicians’ questions, checks details of the progress with the show agent Johanne Amyot, brings his granddaughter to the bathroom, manages to isolate himself at last to put on her glasses. contact, put on a dress and do vocalizations, which can be heard vibrating through the walls. “She’s the boss, that’s for sure!” Exclaims Yvon Deschamps, whose benevolent presence is felt everywhere. “All my life, I’ve been in it, so it’s normal, I’m the boss, the master! Judi Richards said with a smile.

Recreating the magic of Christmas

Judi and Yvon meet again at the end of rehearsals. Their pleasure to be there is real, surrounded by their children and grandchildren – only missing their two oldest grandsons. “Christmas has always been important to us,” says Yvon Deschamps. When the children were little, we had all kinds of ideas for them to believe in magic, in the Christmas spirit. Traditionally, the family has always gathered in their chalet in the Laurentians. This is still the case today, and it is exactly this spirit that the show wants to recreate on stage. “It’s the best time of the year,” says Judi. A time out, where we change our habits. This is the best thing we have to offer. We laugh, we sing, we dance, we make parades with anything, we play board games, we make charades, we cook food and we never stop doing the dishes… ”Now that they are grandparents, their excess has worsened, she adds. “We have even more time to decorate the house! Even their rooms are decorated with Christmas lights… ”

Together

The daughters of Yvon and Judi do not hide it: it is a lot to have the opportunity to meet together that they wanted to do this show. “It’s not that we don’t want to see each other, but life goes by quickly and we just don’t have time,” says the youngest of the three, Sarah. Thanks to this small tour, it is so many opportunities to get together – nine shows in all, one of which will be presented this Tuesday at the Cinquième Salle of Place des Arts. “It’s wonderful to see my dad too. I’m happy that my mother needs him, it allows us to take advantage of him at the same time! He helps her a lot, he’s the one who drives while she can be on her cell, relax… be on her cell! He also helps her with her costumes, or if she forgets something, he goes to look for it. ”

New tradition

Make-up, hairstyle, choreography… “Everything is home made! », Launches Karine, seen here just styling her daughters Alba and Luna, who are also participating in the show. It is also Karine who wrote most of the songs on the album. Christmas at the Deschamps, launched in November, and which are part of the show. “We’re almost out of covers: everyone is already singing all these songs on stage. I asked myself: what can we bring, we? Another perspective. My own Christmas, that of my children, no one sings it. While recounting “their” childhood Christmases, they are aware that they are creating new memories. “We add a new tradition, which allows us to see each other and spend time together. ”

Since its creation in 2017, the show, which they also presented a few times in 2018 and 2019, has evolved a lot. It is now “on point”, estimate Karine and Sarah, who hope that he will be able to walk even more next year. To the trio of singers they form with their mother was added their older sister, Annie, who obviously inherited her father’s flair and sense of punch. It is therefore she who has the task of telling family anecdotes between musical performances – although she also participates in a few numbers. “I’m already a huge fan of them together, so I was able to enter the show with a crow bar…, says Annie. It turns into cool Christmas memories, and it’s a way to spend time with mom without her feeling guilty that she isn’t working for a cause or something. ”

Privilege

Everyone was put to good use for the show. Even Camille, 13, Annie’s daughter, who works behind the scenes as her cousins ​​take the stage. “She was already coming to rehearsals with her mother, she wanted to do something,” says Judi. “But she didn’t want to sing,” adds Yvon. “In fact, she sings in the last number and she also does the choreography,” says Judi. But he was asked to be at the control room. We need someone who brings Karine’s guitar, who changes the stools, who brings the accessories… She does all that and she does that well! ”

The pizza has arrived, and Yvon Deschamps takes care of the service. For the comedian, it’s clear: no question of staying at home while the whole family is together. He therefore accompanies them for each performance. “I like it so much, it doesn’t make sense. There are so many people my age who are isolated, alone, sick… I am still healthy, I have the privilege of having all my family with me. It’s fantastic. There is no question either of watching the spectacle of the room: it is on the side of the stage, behind the scenes and as close as possible, that he prefers to observe everything.

Joy and pride

Judi Richards and Yvon Deschamps are having a lot of fun: scarves dating from the time of Laughter saturday are used as props, they show us. For Judi, this show which makes her “cry with joy and pride” is the result of several years of work. “There are business in life, sometimes it’s difficult, you push, you push… But the best deals come when it’s supposed to happen. So when the door opens, it’s there. Looks like everything is falling into place. ”

Without pretention

The show opens, under the gaze of Yvon Deschamps. There is nothing pretentious here, the harmonies are beautiful, the accompaniments of Monique Fauteux, sober, the choreographies, enthusiastic, and the family makes us enter its intimacy with simplicity. Annie tells us about a hilarious mass, there are pretty medleys linked to their childhood memories – trad music, Christmas carols, songs from films presented at Ciné-Cadeau and even… by François Pérusse! And the original songs reflect the bond, and especially the love, that circulates on stage.

Difficult to resist the emotion of Judi, who stifles a sob, suddenly unable to sing in a room where she shows her unconditional love for her daughters. “Well come on, mom! Sarah says, adding gently: “It’s true that we have the cutest mom. Impossible not to notice his proud gaze when one of them sings solo, their mutual tenderness when the four of them gather together in the center of the stage. And the arrival of Karine’s two daughters, Luna and Alba, is as sweet as it is crisp – the duet between Alba and her grandmother Judi, tap dance included, is downright irresistible.

” This is how it is Christmas with the Deschamps / and it is also like that with you », Sing Judi, his daughters and his granddaughters at the end of this welcoming and joyful spectacle. Basically, that’s the Christmas spirit: a lot of love and joie de vivre to share. Let’s say it’s successful, and Yvon and Judi have every reason to be proud.