February 28, 2014
The GazetteFebruary 27, 2014
By Pat Donnelly
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English version of Tremblay adaptation opens in October at Segal Centre
MONTREAL — Within days of the première of the French musical version of Michel Tremblay’s iconic play Les Belles-Soeurs in 2010, producer Allan Sandler was planning to make the English-language version of the musical into an international hit.
Now the inaugural Montreal production is about to become a reality. Belles Soeurs: The Musical will open Oct. 19 at the Segal Centre as part of its 2014-2015 season.
The creative team was introduced to local media Thursday at the centre.
Segal Centre artistic producer Paul Flicker said it is a great honour to launch Belles Soeurs: The Musical, which will feature top talent from across the country: “I just want to say how excited I am and how perfect a piece this is for the Segal Centre.”
This unique bicultural collaboration will debut at the same theatre where the Tremblay play premièred in Yiddish in 1992.
It took Sandler and his Copa de Oro Productions four years to bring this project (co-produced with the Segal Centre) to fruition. Along the way, he experienced a near-fatal illness, and the first translation of the script (by Linda Gaboriau) was rejected as too literal for the lyrical. Still, Sandler persisted, as did Tremblay’s agent, Nathalie Goodwin, who is executive producer of the show.
As soon as he saw Belles Soeurs, Sandler said, “it got to me in a way that shows seldom do.” The French musical, directed by René Richard Cyr, soon became a huge Quebec hit and played Paris in 2012.
Two New York-based Canadians, Brian Hill and Neil Bartram, already a proven musical team (The Story of My Life), were asked to do the book and lyrics. After seeing the show, “we jumped at the chance to do it,” Hill said.
Cyr was retained as director. The original sets and costumes remain. The direction, Cyr assured, will also remain essentially the same.
The music of Daniel Bélanger was adapted, by Bartram, to flow with the English lyrics. Belles Soeurs: The Musical will have more songs, fewer characters and a dash of joual. Chris Barillaro is the musical director.
“There was no question of altering the characters or their situation,” Cyr said. The challenge was to adapt the material to “the code and structure” of North American musical theatre, without losing the soul of the original, he added.
The full cast will be announced on March 27, along with the rest of the Segal Centre’s new season.
Belles Soeurs: The Musical runs from Oct. 19 to Nov. 9 at the Segal Centre, 5170 Côte-Ste-Catherine Rd. Tickets cost $32 (students) to $64. Call 514-739-7944 or visit segalcentre.org.