Best-selling novel written by Michel Jean | The healing power of Kukum

The successful novel written by Michel Jean is heading to the Théâtre du Nouveau Monde. Behind this highly anticipated adaptation of Law is a team made up of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people. Everyone is united behind the story of the heroine, Almanda, who embraces Innu culture to follow her lover.

In this novel, Michel Jean recounts the life of his grandmother Almanda, a strong and resilient woman who, as a teenager, left the small agricultural village of Saint-Prime to live with the man of her life, an Innu named Thomas Siméon arrived by Lake Saint-Jean as if pushed by the wind.

Adopted by her new community, she made this indigenous culture her own and raised her large family on the vast Innu territory before settling in Mashteuiatsh. With her family, she saw the great forests of the North being swallowed up by machines, the rivers bursting their banks and the children heading to boarding schools.

So that the members of the team feel Almanda’s change of scenery in their bones, but also her visceral love for her adopted culture, director Émilie Monnet proposed an unusual journey. For a week in September, Innu actor Jean-Luc Kanapé hosted members of the cast and the design team at his home in Jetée-Raquette. “It’s in the territory, an hour and a half north of Forestville, near the Katekaukass River,” explains the man who plays Malek Siméon in the play, but who is also widely known for his commitment to saving the caribou.

At Jetée-Raquette, the team was able to breathe the fresh air of Nutshimit, “the territory” in innu.

For the artist born in Anishinaabe by her mother, it was essential that performers and designers could immerse themselves in this immense nature and learn about the ancestral knowledge of the Innu. “I wanted to infuse indigenous knowledge into the creative process. »

If indigenous culture – and the nature in which it is part – takes an important place in the play based on the novel, Law remains a great love story in the eyes of Émilie Monnet. “It’s a love that unfolds in four acts, over four seasons. First there is the epidermal love of Almanda [interprétée par Léane Labrèche-Dor] for Thomas [Étienne Thibeault]then the love of Nutshimit, the love of her family and finally, the love she feels for the Innu people. »

« Lawfor me, it is the love of the territory, of the family, of the transmission of knowledge and the language,” adds Jean-Luc Kanapé.

The anthem on the boards

If Jean-Luc Kanapé has already made cinema, he lives with Law his first experience on the stage. “And I love it!” But initially, what convinced me to participate was Malek Siméon [le personnage du père de Thomas]. My grandmother is a Siméon. I am from Malek’s lineage. It made me want to honor my family. This is the history of the house. Besides, how can you say no to a role played entirely in Innu? »

Indeed, the Innu language is very present in the adaptation made by Laure Morali, in collaboration with the poet Joséphine Bacon. In fact, approximately a third of the text is in Innu; the French version of the lines will be projected on the set. “It was very important for me,” says Émilie Monnet. This language, one of the first in this territory, must resonate on the big stage of the TNM for the first time. It’s such a poetic language. Spectators will realize its richness, its depth. I am very, very happy to share all of this. »

The director also wanted to pay homage to Innu culture by integrating ancestral songs and original music composed by Mathieu McKenzie, Kim Fontaine and Hugo Perreault into the show. “All the Innu I know sing and make music. And they are all very good! In the show, we can hear the voices of Florent Vollant, Joséphine Bacon, and Jean-Pierre Fontaine for the hunter’s song. What an honor! »

Archive images signed by Jean-Claude Labrecque also bear witness to the reality of the First Nations. “Everything is integrated into projections by my sister Caroline, where she adds her more contemporary style,” says Émilie Monnet. And for the costumes, Sophie El-Assaad and Kim Picard started with traditional elements and then did very unusual things. People will be surprised! »

Laughter rather than sadness

Adapting Michel Jean’s text for the stage, written in the first person singular and which traces the life of Almanda Siméon over nearly 80 years, was not easy. “The adaptation was a challenge,” confides Émilie Monnet. How do you adapt a linear story into a play for several characters? It was important for me to respect Michel’s family, to respect these people who existed and who still exist. We also had to make choices. » In particular not to dwell too long on the painful chapter of residential schools.

“I didn’t want the actors to have to tell that story night after night,” she says. I didn’t want to rehash these things or make a didactic show. I assume that the audience is well aware of what happened at the residential schools. Otherwise, there are many resources available for information. We want to show resilience, strength, laughter and the beauty of transmission. »

The actor is, in the words of Émilie Monnet, a “caribou man”. He dedicates his life to saving the species, but there is more. “It was the priests who gave the name Siméon to Malek,” explains Jean-Luc Kanapé. His Innu name was Atik, which means caribou. It really touches me! And the caribou led me to transmit our culture not only to my people, but to the entire Quebec community. »

“I have always thought that we needed a bridge to bring our two peoples together. Law can be used for this. The piece will make us more visible. This is what I wish for all the young people in my community: that they come into the spotlight instead of remaining in the dark. There are so many bridges in Montreal! We can definitely take one! We will all cross it together, towards the TNM. »

Émilie Monnet agrees. “ Lawit’s more than a big theater project! I hope that with this show, people will want to get closer, to cross the bridge, as Jean-Luc says, to come and meet the Indigenous people. I want them to discover the immense talent that is in our communities. There is something healing about this room. Because we talk about love. »

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