True seasonal tradition since 2005, Reviewed and corrected could not be presented last year, confinement requires. However, the creative team was preparing to deliver a more stripped-down version of the annual retrospective at the Théâtre du Rideau vert, until the theaters were closed again in September.
But laughing at 2020 would have been really more difficult, believes Luc Michaud, who collaborates with the team of authors for the tenth edition, but who acts this year for the first time as a script-editor. “If we had done it, it would have been more of a way of saying: ‘We’re holding on, the theater is still there and we’re going to go through this together’. This year, we had that desire, but 2021 is more positive. At least we can have a show more varied in terms of subjects. “
Indeed, in addition to the difficulty of making humor from a tragedy, a year when an event dominates the news so much that it overshadows everything else complicates the task of the writers.
The current year has been fertile in elections and has seen the return of cultural activities. “It’s the best of both worlds, if we can put it that way, to write a review: it’s an extremely memorable year and there are still [enjeux] to be treated that are not related to the pandemic. 2021, I think that’s like the perfect recipe. “
This edition of reunion will certainly address the virus, but by trying to dose: people are tired of hearing about it. “We have to make sure that we don’t have the impression of watching a show just about the pandemic. It was really our challenge. “
Still, with this persistent coronavirus which hangs on, we have the feeling that 2020 and 2021 are linked in a “packet of two”, ironically Luc Michaud. “They are like twin brothers, years that are alike. But you have to feel the continuity between the two, and not a feeling of déjà vu. There are a lot of elements that were in 2020 that we have settled over time. Because that’s what smelled warmer the most. “
In short, forget the jokes of Zoom, of PCU, already heard to satiety. 2021 Revised and corrected is more interested in the consequences of the pandemic, in the ways of living with it. “We discuss subjects that speak to people as well, such as the increase in prices in grocery stores. We see more characters of “Mr. and Mrs. Everybody” in the show. There always has been. But it looks like this year, we had an easy time going there. Because we wanted to talk about what people experienced as situations with the pandemic. “
The show also has a strong political content, of course. Luc Michaud is also delighted with the change of guard among politicians: “There are new ministers who have come to the fore, and it has been good. It was always the same at one time. And for authors, the status quo is more complicated over time. “
Delicate subjects
The context will have changed a lot in 2021, from the winter curfew to the current situation which is approaching a return to normal. What period do we cover? “It’s a phenomenon that comes back quite a bit every year: of everything that happens until July-August, not much remains in the show. Pandemic or not. But it was even worse. More than ever, the show is more focused on what has been happening since September. »History not to seem out of step. “We still want to deal with the year [au complet]. Sometimes our trick is to add things from the first six months to more recent stories. “
Generally, about one in three skits is retained in the end, a choice decided in conjunction with director Natalie Lecompte. And some topical issues are unavoidable.
If the authors did not have to deal directly with an event not very conducive to laughing, such as the tragedy in the CHSLDs (“last year, we would not have had a choice”), there are still subjects to consider. approach with “delicacy”. The 2021 edition thus features an issue on the situation of Aboriginal people, narrated by Fred Pellerin (imitated by Benoit Paquette “who is extraordinary”). “It’s important for us to talk about it. But we can’t do a hilarious number with that. It’s more of a performance, well written, which is thought-provoking, but which fit in the show. “
“Sometimes we say things without naming them, because it hurts to hear certain words,” continues the script editor. But we talk about it anyway. If the term “feminicide” is never pronounced there, the retrospective alludes to this phenomenon through a table on toxic masculinity. “I’m not sure we would have done this number 10 years ago. I think we have evolved as a society. Luc Michaud cites as an example the “big” or LGBT jokes that were used in the past. “I believe the new generation of writers is really gone. And for me, it’s not that we no longer have the right to say anything. It is because something else is said. And much more relevant business. »While having the concern to be funny.
Polarizing
Among other obligatory subjects, there is the phenomenon of anti-vaccines and disinformation. “But you still have to take it and leave it on both sides. And we respect people. “The review scratched” everyone “, like the decline of Minister Christian Dubé in front of the health staff, while Eric Duhaime or Maxime Bernier take for their colds.
To address these polarizing themes, the team is careful not to “be too frontal. I think the key when writing is not to hate your subject. I always made sure that the author of a text was going to think about the phenomenon, not just type to type on someone. And we play in front of doubly vaccinated spectators. We can afford to make gags about it. “Anyway, it’s the extremes, on both sides, that are interesting for the authors, because” in two or three minutes you try to create a universe “.
On the other hand, the script-editor has withdrawn gags on the actress Anne Casabonne. “It was too much on one person. We want to provoke reactions, but not for people to shine. We don’t want to shock in order to shock. We make sure that what is on stage, we assume it 100%. Even though the victim of the prank was in the room.
After the forced cancellation of the previous edition, the team of 2021 Review and corrected is pumped up, according to Luc Michaud. The unifying function of the show is intended to be even stronger. “Even internally, we had a great pleasure to see each other again and we absolutely wanted it to be felt. That we also feel our pleasure to find the spectators. And we wanted this year not to just be “tanning”, to be more tender. We allowed ourselves things that maybe we wouldn’t have allowed ourselves before. Regulars should still recognize their comic review, with its parodies and imitations of artistic figures.
After these trying months, making people laugh is not trivial. “I have the impression that it is a show that will really do people good. They will be able to let off steam. And it will also be good to turn the page on this year – it is the case with every edition, I think. But now, it looks like it’s a two-year chapter that we’re closing. “