Les filles de Caleb: a few words in honor of a Québec musical

Image source: http://www.tandem.mu/photos/artistes/bannieres/fillesdecaleb2.jpg

This is a nostalgic post remembering an original musical Les filles de Caleb that we saw in 2011 at the Grand Théâtre de Québec.

From the promo campaign I knew that the music by Michel Rivard deeply rooted in Québec folk was very enjoyable but I had no idea what to expect from the stage production. Fortunately, the show itself turned out to be a delight - warm and charming, if uneven at times, but performed with such emotion and so enthusiastically received by the audience that we left the theater feeling like we've been to a party! In the trademark Québec style, the audience applauded, stomped their feet along with the podorythmist, sang along!.. What we attended was an opening night in Québec city, and so the sponsors (a gold mining company, no less!) was showering the audience with gifts: leather bound notebooks and chocolates both imprinted with a slogan: "Culture is our main natural treasure". For some reason that message went straight to my outsider's heart and made me emotional...

The 5 musicians including Michel Rivard himself and the indispensable and unforgettable Mario Légaré, sat right on stage and played remarkably. The red-hot opening piece (Dans les bois) alone made the show for me! In addition, some actors accompanied themselves on various instruments (Daniel Boucher on the mouth harmonica, Yves Lambert on accordeon, etc.) 

As for the play (adapted from a novel by Arlette Cousture), it was rather feel-good: not a single villain, all characters were good (except that one of them was complex). The plot was moved forward by the strong female characters who kept making various unexpected decisions. 

The first act (the better and the more "natural" one) told the story of Émilie and Ovila and ended with Blanche's birth. In the second act the events got told hastily, as if forced by duty and ended somehow unexpectedly. But the music was nice in both acts and the 3 hours flew by swiftly. And when in the final scene Émilie recalled her life and young Ovila (Daniel Boucher) with his mouth harmonica entered the stage again ... I confess, I shed a little tear.

© Simon Clark /Agence QMI. Image source: http://static.7jours.ca/sites/7jours.ca/files/field/image/2012-03/filles_caleb.jpg

As for performers, some of them came from theater and some from music industry, and so the ensemble was a bit unbalanced, but strong on charisma. Daniel Boucher (Ovila) was an ideal choice of a performer for the part of a charming loser. He left no one wondering about why a bright young teacher could fall head over heels for him. Luce Dufault (Émilie) aside from her great voice had a truly great presence, great magnetism and she easily stole every scene she was in. In the second act she was on stage a lot less and that was felt... By the way, the chemistry between Luce and Daniel was palpable and really held the first act together.

Another familiar face for me was Catherine Sénart (Berthe) - easily the best actress in the cast, despite the supporting role. I knew she was a good actress from her movie work (Felix Lecrerc), but turns out she is a suberb theater actress who also sings very well and looks breathtakingly beautiful on stage. Truly, she is one of Quebec's hidden gems.

Another great discovery for me was Yves Soutière (Douville), a truly remarkable actor. I often think there are talents in Quebec who unfortunately do not have opportunities to shine as bright and as far as they deserve. I wish I had more chances to see these actors perform. 

Bruno Pelletier graced the production by his participation and was nice in the role of a nice guy Napoléon. 

I also truly enjoyed performances by Marie Michèle Desrosiers (brimming with energy as Célina) and Yves Lambert (a presence powerhouse as Caleb), both of them singers by profession.

And finally, I somehow also still remember  Jean-Francois Poulin (Clovis), a very charming and very young man, who sang well and played guitar nicely. Strolling through the streets of Québec after the show we saw him walking with his guitar and his cell phone. Hope the future is bright for you, Jean-Francois! Hope the future is bright for Québec musicals.