A laugh at the opera!

Today, we're off to discover a program for young people concocted by our Civic Action and Education department, in collaboration with the young audience company Rigoletta, the Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec (BAnQ) and Une école montréalaise pour tous (UEMPT).

Did you know that Opéra de Montréal has been collaborating with UEMPT for 8 years now?

Thanks to support from you and the Ministry of Education, 250 students from underprivileged Montréal elementary schools enjoy an unforgettable artistic experience every year.

In 2024, Rigoletta joined forces with librettist Pascal Blanchet and director Alain Gauthier to pay tribute to two icons of Québec culture, La Bolduc and Lionel Daunais.

Performed by Charlotte Gagnon (La Bolduc), Pierre Rancourt (Lionel Daunais) and Laurence Lambert-Chan (Madame Colombe, the pianist/accompanist), the show invites children to plunge into a playful and unique universe, where folklore gives way to opera and the turlutte blends with classical singing.

It's a rich slice of Québec's heritage that Rigoletta is offering on this day, in the BAnQ auditorium, packed with 250 students, many of them in the process of francization.

Just as Daunais becomes La Bolduc's guide to classical singing (and vice versa for folklore), the show debunks certain common conceptions children have about opera ("people who sing loudly?").

That said, children don't arrive at the performance totally unsuspecting. Thanks to the Opéra de Montréal's educational kit, they can be prepared by their teacher for all aspects of the show - including the turlutte!

Arthur, a first-grade student, really enjoyed it: "I love singing. My friend Anya is too shy to sing. But not today! She loved it! When they were teaching us how to do the turlutte, everyone joined in. We made noise, we laughed, we really had fun!"

Photos © Thibault Carron 2024

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The turlutte is a way of singing, specific to Québec culture, in which onomatopoeia imitates musical instruments. In other words, no grammar or spelling, so it's very inclusive! Classroom workshops were particularly touching for Charlotte and Pierre when some of the students began imitating the sound of instruments from other continents. They were proud to be able to share a part of themselves, while actively participating in the show.

For Éric Caron, a teacher at Alice-Parizeau Elementary, this project is "a starting point for many, many more, given the enormous enthusiasm generated".

In addition to discovering Québec opera and folklore, this project is also an opportunity to promote Québec's musical and cultural heritage. A heritage that is still being built up today, with major new creations - just think, last February, of the success of La Reine-Garçon.

With initiatives like Opéra de Montréal and Une école montréalaise pour tous, we can hope that today's students will become... tomorrow's audiences.

This article was written thanks to the contribution of Éric Caron, sixth-grade teacher (Alice-Parizeau Elementary), Charlotte Gagnon, co-founder and general and artistic director (Rigoletta) and Pierre Vachon, director of Civic Impact and Education (Opéra de Montréal). Thank you for your support!