There is grumbling, a lot of grumbling in the Quebec theater community. Reproaches of generalized sclerosis and demands for major reforms are growing on the part of the active forces of the next generation. After two years of almost total rest forced by the pandemic, the relaunch on the same old rails towards the same blocked prospects seems to him as unfair as it is unbearable.
The new critical formulation takes the form of an open letter released last week by the Table de concertation de lalève du Conseil québécois du théâtre (CQT), a sub-group formed expressly to define the problems of the industry and imagine solutions. . Title The revival of what? it is based on a dark diagnosis delivered from the first sentences of the manifesto.
“The Quebec theatrical landscape of spring 2022 is made of ruins”, can we read in the text co-signed by the fifteen members of the Table de concertation, and already supported by more than 160 artists and artisans. “Human ruins made up of countless burnouts, financial insecurity, stress that gnaws at the bones from postponements, cancellations and jamming of programming. And imaginary ruins; those of all these potential creations which are still in the limbo of our imaginations and for which we are afraid that they will remain there. »
The interior slingshot took another form a few days ago when, at the premiere of Dear Chekhov by Michel Tremblay, at the Théâtre du Nouveau Monde (TNM), a group of young actors delayed the raising of the curtain to denounce the direction of the theater on stage. “We take the risk of coming here to tell a truth that hundreds of us believe: the Théâtre du Nouveau Monde is dying and no longer offers anything new,” said the demonstrators. The two protest movements have no official link.
Distress and loneliness
The pandemic is exacerbating already entrenched problems everywhere. The health crisis has cruelly highlighted the flaws in the health system and the failures of the school network despite several investigations, commissions and reforms superimposed for decades. Similarly, as the CQT points out, the policies such as the institutions and cultural practices developed over the course of the reforms have not resolved certain difficulties and inequities which persist and become unsustainable with the relaunch reputed to reproduce the old model of the cultural state.
The open letter stems from virtual meetings organized by the group in May 2021 under the title “La Jasette de lalève théâtrale”. Dozens of young professionals (70% of whom were performers) took part.
“The findings remained alarming: we were moving towards a recovery that was not going to respond to all our problems of working conditions, socio-economic conditions, mental health. There was something very worrying and we had to admit that the Jasette would not be enough to transform our environment”, summarizes Pascale St-Onge, author interviewed by The duty with four other members of the Table de concertation, which has about fifteen.
“We felt that it was ripe and we noticed that among the members of the next generation, there is a lot of distress and loneliness, adds Josianne Dulong-Savignac, playwright and assistant director. It is even less a criticism than a call for solidarity to do this recovery together. »
The actress Rosalie Leblanc extends the list of “ruins” noted during the discussions: the absence of a social safety net for artists; reliance on programmers; little access to material or financial means to support dissemination.
“There is little or no intergenerational dialogue,” she says. There are also all those creations that never saw the light of day. We’ve been doing laboratories for two years, workshops, and we find ourselves without a place to present our work because of the traffic jam on the stages. 2020 shows are rescheduled, and others want a seat. What do we want to say after this pandemic? We want to talk about it with the sponsors, the programmers. »
We felt that it was ripe and we noticed that among the members of the next generation, there is a lot of distress and loneliness. It is even less a criticism than a call for solidarity to do this recovery together.
Pascale St-Onge also mentions the questions posed by succession within companies. “Should we continue to subsidize them at the same level even if their founder withdraws? Should we really keep the same envelopes, which are huge compared to what new emerging companies receive? she asks.
Outcomes
A document summarizing the great Jasette of May 24, 2021 details dozens of issues which, taken together, accentuate the impression of crisis: the lack of work for graduates; the future of theater in the digital age; territorial decentralization; the decolonization of the boards, etc.
The thesis also offers dozens of possible solutions. In the only section concerning “overcrowding in programming”, it is proposed to create a venue for the next generation, to consider adding opening acts (on the model of the American star), to imagine distribution partnerships with established companies, to make the selection of projects more transparent, etc.
The initiatives taken in the emergency of the pandemic are welcomed and it is now a question of extending and perpetuating them, says the group by rebelling against the culture of precariousness and the precariousness of culture.
“We also need strong allies and structuring initiatives,” says Marie-Ève Groulx, actress and director. It’s all well and good to distribute creation grants, but what’s the point if there’s no more space afterwards to present the work? »
Rosalie Leblanc underlines the difficult conditions of creations themselves. “There is this reflex in our environment to do as many projects as possible with as little money as possible,” she says. The money doesn’t even get to the base. This problem was named during the pandemic. It was hoped that theaters could slow down, choose projects better and pay artists better. The second the theaters opened, we felt this kind of desperate need to offer as many things as possible to everyone, and we find ourselves in the same, or even worse, situation. »
This overproduction with its corollary of lack of distribution, including successes, has been denounced for years by some. Raymond Cloutier drew a book from it (The beautiful environment. Chronicle of a diatribe1999).
So is it hopeless to see that exactly nothing changes under the theatrical sun?
” Hopeless ? No, answers Josianne Dulong-Savignac. We want everyone to be part of the solution, but we won’t wait to initiate it because we know that no one will do it for us. »
Four meetings are planned in the coming months with students from specialized or alternative training schools, self-taught people and the English-speaking community. A delegation will also discuss with programmers and broadcasters.
And on the political side? “We obviously don’t say no to meeting someone,” says Marie-Ève Groulx.