This text is part of the special Theater booklet
Just before the pandemic hit, the government adopted a measure to support cultural outings in schools. Awaited for nearly thirty years by some, this financial assistance allows schools to benefit from two outings to cultural organizations per year, including transportation and pre- or post-activity workshops, throughout Quebec.
“For the vast majority of performance halls across Quebec, 2020 was their best year in terms of school outings,” says Sophie Labelle, artistic director of Maison Théâtre, a theater presenter for young audiences for nearly forty years. .
From school to theatre, the path is winding
But for broadcasters as well as for producers dedicated to young people, who have year after year nearly 70% of school audiences, the health measures put in place during the pandemic have hit hard. As normal life resumes, can we expect a massive return of young audiences to theaters?
“Schools have resumed the path towards the cultural environment with enormous apprehension, but also with an accumulated delay in the educational plan which means that there is an interest in cultural outings but that they pass into the background”, concedes Pierre Tremblay, general manager of Théâtres unis enfance jeunesse (TUEJ), a Quebec association of theater producers for young audiences.
All this is without mentioning the difficulty of access to bus transport due to a lack of personnel, a secondary issue which is not really one.
Sophie Labelle also mentions the exodus of families from the metropolis, who account for 30% of the Maison Théâtre box office’s turnover. However, for the environment, we must not hide the possible socio-emotional benefits of the presence in the room. “It is clear that cultural outings and all that it encompasses can be a response to the issues affecting young people at the moment. It places children and teenagers in a space where they are connected to their emotions, to their imagination, and all of this can be part of a process of evolution or healing, ”she continues.
Feed the artists
Back in the spring of 2020. While cinemas are closing their doors, some companies are benefiting from financial support from governments (one-off assistance for creation, financial compensation for broadcasters, Canadian emergency benefit [PCU]etc.), others, younger and less sustained, row.
“It doesn’t matter whether we play or not, we wanted everyone to be paid. We had to make sure that all the links in the chain had what it took to get through the crisis,” says Sophie Labelle. Of course, many shows have had to be postponed, causing a production bottleneck among broadcasters, who have to compensate for the postponements and closures of recent months by limiting their capacity to accommodate new creations.
Digital initiatives, they have multiplied, some experiencing great success, others less – does not digitize the living arts who wants. From 2020 to 2021, nearly 300 workshops were given by the Maison Théâtre. But now, what the community wants is a return to the theater… and contact with the public.
“Those who suffered the most were the performers and the technical designers,” notes Pierre Tremblay. “It’s a community that has been very hard hit and that will have difficulty getting out of it,” he continues, indicating that several artists have, in two years, left the profession for lack of employability.
Same story on the side of Sophie Labelle. “All that has been highlighted is the fragility of the artists. We have to make sure that the people, who are the heart and soul of everything we do, can live, and not just survive,” she notes.
As resilient as it is, the middle is tired, and there is still a long way to go before we can let our guard down. Fortunately, optimism and imagination are at the rendezvous of those who stand guard.