The bottom of the air was fresh Thursday, boulevard Saint-Laurent, while the family of Michel Côté welcomed the public to the Monument-National. On the other hand, the testimonies of the people who came to pay tribute to the actor, who died on May 29, were very warm.
Throughout the day, admirers, artists and politicians paraded on the stage of the Ludger-Duvernay room, where the coffin of the actor had been deposited. A symbolic place. Because the Monument-National, inaugurated in 1893, is the oldest operating theater in Quebec, in addition to housing the National Theater School of Canada, where Michel Côté studied acting in the early 1970s.
The wife of the deceased, Véronique Le Flaguais, his two sons, Charles and Maxime, accompanied by their spouses, as well as his mother, Jeannine Belley, who came from Alma to attend the Ardent Chapel, were also on stage in a mixture of warmth and sobriety. Everyone seemed grateful to have known Michel Côté on the sets, or simply to have seen him in the theater and on the screen.
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Charles Côté, Isabelle Roy, Véronique Le Flaguais, Jeannine Belley, Maxime Le Flaguais and Caroline Dhavernas, on stage at Ludger-Duvernay Hall Thursday
Partner of play and joy
“We carry it within us as an actor. Because we are all rich heirs of Michel, “said Luc Senay, who has fond memories of filming the films. From father to cop And The sense of humor. “It was a pleasure to play with Michel. We always felt good,” added Geneviève Schmidt. The actress thus sums up the thoughts of many of her comrades in the profession.
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Many actors, including Patrice Coquereau, paid tribute to Michel Côté and his relatives at the Monument-National.
“Humanity, generosity, solidity are the words that come to mind when I think of him,” added Patrice Coquereau. Michel had a lot of talent and zero pretension. »
“A wonderful, happy, generous and loving man,” testified Louise Latraverse. Michel and Véronique were so in love. It’s rare, a love like theirs. »
Tribute to a great actor and a wonderful man
-
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Louise Latraverse leaving the Monument-National
-
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Linda Sorgini leaving the Monument-National
-
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Simon Boulerice leaving the Monument-National
-
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
The Minister of Culture of Quebec, Mathieu Lacombe, in front of the media at the Monument-National, Thursday afternoon
-
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
“It was a pleasure to play with him. We always felt good,” said Geneviève Schmidt.
-
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Throughout the day, admirers, artists and politicians paraded in front of the Monument-National in Montreal.
-
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Louise Deschâtelets, at the Monument-National
-
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Michel Côté’s family: Maxime Le Flaguais, Véronique Le Flaguais and Charles Côté on stage at the Monument-National
1/8
Of brew To Mousse…
Another friend of the couple, the actress Linda Sorgini remembers having shared the stage with Véronique Le Flaguais in the play Moussefeminine counterpart of brew, directed by Michel Côté and Jean-Guy Viau, in 1981, at the Théâtre des Voyagements. “We were much less successful than the original play,” she said. But it was so pleasant to work with Michel. He was unifying and generous with everyone. »
The author Simon Boulerice wanted to come Thursday even if he knew the actor late: at the National Day show in Quebec in 2019. “I keep the memory of a very enveloping man, very welcoming”, he said. Côté’s favorite role? “It’s Gervais Beaulieu, the father in CRAZY A remarkable film and an unforgettable performance! Danielle Proulx has already said that Michel had a happy job. It’s true. »
Guy Tremblay, 82, was a teacher and animator at the Center culturel de Jonquière. “I saw Michel Côté play at the theater when I was 16 or 17 years old. And I remember telling him: “Don’t stay in Saguenay, you have international talent!” »
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
The actress Véronique Le Flaguais and her son Maxime during the burning chapel in memory of Michel Côté, Thursday at the Monument-National
Members of the public and artists also testified to the simplicity, sincerity and attentiveness of the actor from Alma. “Michel, it was good household bread, as we say in Saguenay”, further illustrated Guy Tremblay. “For me, he was a majestic oak tree, a colossus and a nationalist,” commented Jacqueline Delorme, from Montreal, who came to pay tribute to an “exemplary Quebecer”.
The most surprising testimony collected on the sidewalk was that of the props man Philippe Pointard, who knew Michel Côté during the creation of brew, nearly 45 years ago. “I molded his face to make the model for Verrue, the tough guy in the room. As the character falls asleep at the table and Côté had to play several characters, he was replaced by a puppet bearing his likeness. »
immortal scene
“For me, Michel… it’s Gervais Beaulieu when he hugs Zacharie when his son Raymond dies after the funeral,” wrote the screenwriter of CRAZY, François Boulay, this week on Facebook. “I told Michel that the gods of cinema had been with him on the day of the shoot. This scene of father-son reconciliation is the most beautiful gift that life could give me. When Michel hugs Marc-André Grondin, under the benevolent gaze of Danielle Proulx, he embraces all of Quebec! »
Thursday at the Monument-National, it was Michel Côté’s turn to let all of Quebec speak of love.