Power struggles are not just fought in Quebec. This is what we will no doubt see on Saturday in the context of the new show by Enfabulation, Let’s not talk politicswhich will be presented at the Center Phi.
We will not talk about politics, but we will talk about religion, love, vocation, ambition, revenge. So many spheres where power is taken and lost, without going through the ballot box.
Enfabulation, by Juliana Léveillé-Trudel, these are performances by storytelling who return for a sixth edition this year. They are based on the true testimonies of six participants, invited to recount an event in their lives linked to the given theme.
Initially inspired by the New York group The Moth, which presents shows and podcasts, as well as books related to real-life stories, Enfabulation is also the French counterpart of Confabulation, a similar event in English that has been running here for several years.
“We like to be inspired by what is happening. So in Let’s not talk politicswe approach politics in the broad sense, […] the alliances and battles that take place in different places of power”, explains Juliana Léveillé-Trudel.
transformative events
On the menu, actor Thierry Leblanc, a veteran of Enfabulation, will address the theme of religion by telling how the latter one day forced him to cut ties with his sister, before his ties with her were finally restored. . Literary critic Amanda Perry, originally from Alberta, will tell how she systematically falls in love with sovereignists. Juliana Léveillé-Trudel will tell her meeting herself, in 5e secondary school, with a Minister of Education — “I won’t reveal right away who it is, but let’s say he has risen through the ranks” — who then congratulated her on her French. “The concept is that the story is not improvised. It’s a story that has been worked on in advance, something that has been transformed,” she adds.
The story chosen by the participants must go beyond the anecdote, it must be an event that has changed them.
Vicky Boucher, who teaches theater in schools, will talk about her relationships with the parents of students, who are often seen as customers who are always right by the school administration.
Video game designer Sophie Nicole Croteau will tell how she remained apolitical during the student movement of 2012. Writer Jean-Pierre Gorkynian will talk about the detours he had to make to choose the arts despite the opposition of his family. And the artist Thomas Mundinger, a newcomer from France, will talk about the sperm donation he made to a couple of lesbian friends.
Funny, touching stories
Some stories are funny, others are touching. Some are both funny and touching. As for the title, Let’s not talk politicsit came to Juliana Léveillé-Trudel a bit like a joke.
“In my family, when I was young, my mother and her brother-in-law had political discussions that caught fire. When we say “we don’t talk about politics”, it’s when we don’t dare to broach certain subjects for fear of bickering. Especially in the current climate, which is quite polarized. »
Close to the news, Enfabulation is already planning another show in November, month of the dead, on the theme of fear.