April 27, 2006 -

Ottawa, Ontario -- The National Arts Centre (NAC) French Theatre is pleased to present La Cité des Loups, a captivating puppet show created by Montreal’s Théâtre de l’Œil (who also brought us La Félicité/Dear Fizzy, Le Porteur/The Star Keeper, and Le Secret de Polichinelle). Premiered at Montreal’s Maison Théâtre in March 2005, La Cité des Loups will be presented in the NAC Studio on Saturday, May 6 at 13:30 and Sunday, May 7 at 13:30 and 15:30. This engaging tale of instinct, joie de vivre and healing — the 22nd original production by this acclaimed company, founded in 1973 and specializing in the magical art of puppetry — showcases the talents of three outstanding creative artists: writer Louise Bombardier (Ma mère chien, Hippopotamie, Dis-moi doux), master puppeteer André Laliberté (artistic director of the Théâtre de l’Œil), and director Martine Beaulne (Avaler la mer et les poissons, La Savetière prodigieuse, Dom Juan). La Cité des Loups brings Ms. Beaulne and Mr. Laliberté together for the first time since 1995, when they collaborated on Michelle Allen’s Zoé perd son temps.

The little girl who looked like a wolf

October 31, present-day Montreal. In the City Hospital, 9½-year-old Élise is suffering from a disfiguring illness that turns her face into a wolf’s mask. One night, two real live wolves pad into her hospital room: they’re looking for someone who can guide them back to their city. Tapping into her own long-dormant animal instincts, Élise discovers the intuition and strength to lead the wolves home . . . and to vanquish her illness.
“La Cité des Loups is a visual treat, and delivers a beautiful message of hope and courage that urges us to reconnect with our fundamental nature — just as Élise does when she agrees to help the wolves, and manages to keep going even when things seem hopeless.”
– Christian Geiser, La Presse

La Cité des Loups
Written by Louise Bombardier
Directed by Martine Beaulne and André Laliberté
Puppets, sets and props by Richard Lacroix
Lighting by André Rioux / Music by Silvy Grenier
Puppeteers: Félix Beaulieu-Duchesneau, Sébastien Gauthier, Jean Cummings, Marie-Ève Pelletier and Graham Soul
Stage managers: Gilles Perron and Alexandra Sutto
Produced by the Théâtre de l’Œil (Montreal)

Saturday, May 6 at 13:30
and Sunday, May 7 at 13:30 and 15:30
in the NAC Studio

Tickets $11.50 (children and adults)
Available in person at the NAC Box Office (53 Elgin Street, Ottawa), through Ticketmaster (all outlets or by ‘phone at 613 755 1111), and online at www.nac-cna.ca

About the playwright: Louise Bombardier

Louise Bombardier has written several plays for stage, radio and television, including Pension vaudou, Noëlle en juillet, Le Champ, Le Cygne (translation), Hippopotamie, La Cité des Loups,and Bibi et Geneviève. She directed her own play, Dis-moi doux, and recently completed a new script, Ma mère chien, which premiered in September 2005 at Montreal’s Théâtre d’Aujourd’hui, directed by Wajdi Mouawad.
As an actor, she has worked with directors Denis Marleau (in Le Petit Köchel and, most recently, Normand Chaurette’s Les Reines); Claude Poissant (Louisiane Nord by François Godin, La Salle des loisirs by Reynald Robinson, Lion dans les rues [Lion in the Streets] and Je suis à toi [I Am Yours] by Judith Thompson, Les Amis [Friends] by Kobo Abe, Sortie de secours which she co-wrote); Serge Denoncourt (Silence en coulisses [Noises Off] by Michael Frayn); Martine Beaulne (Les Années [The Years] by Cindy Lou Johnson); René Richard Cyr (L’Opéra de Quat’sous [Threepenny Opera] by Bertolt Brecht, Bain public which she co-wrote); and Alice Ronfard (Billy Strauss by Lise Vaillancourt).

About the directors: Martine Beaulne and André Laliberté

Martine Beaulne is an actor, writer and director. Over the past 15 years she has directed some 30 plays, including Avaler la mer et les poissons by Sylvie Drapeau and Isabelle Vincent (Théâtre de La Manufacture), Top Girls by Caryl Churchill (ESPACE GO), La Savetière prodigieuse by Federico Garcia Lorca (Théâtre du Nouveau Monde), Le Monument [The Monument] by Colleen Wagner (Théâtre de La Manufacture), Dom Juan by Molière (Théâtre du Nouveau Monde), and Albertine, en cinq temps [Albertine, in five times] by Michel Tremblay (ESPACE GO). For the Théâtre de l’Œil, besides La Cité des Loups she directed Zoé perd son temps by Michelle Allen, which won a Citation of Excellence in the Art of Puppetry from UNIMA-USA (the North American branch of the Union internationale de la marionette). A graduate (in 1975) of Montreal’s Conservatoire d’art dramatique, Ms. Beaulne is currently a professor and director of the Master’s programme in dramatic arts at the Université du Québec à Montréal.

André Laliberté co-founded the Théâtre de l’Œil in 1973, and is currently its Artistic Director and General Manager. Though nowadays he spends most of his time directing the company’s productions (La Félicité/Dear Fizzy, Le Jardin de Babel, Le Porteur/The Star Keeper), he has also contributed (sometimes simultaneously) as writer, puppeteer and director. Mr. Laliberté is a staunch supporter of the new generation of puppet artists, whom he credits with revitalizing his own exploration and practice.

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For more information, please contact:
Guy Warin, Communications & Media Relations Officer
French Theatre – Canada’s National Arts Centre
(613) 947-7000 or 1 866 850-2787, ext. 759
gwarin@nac-cna.ca