Much more concreted and asphalted than the old Zoological Garden, ExpoCité is certainly less enchanting than the last site where the famous ambulatory route of the Carrefour international de théâtre has taken up residence in 2022-2023.
You have to walk between large parking lots, cross Wilfrid-Hamel Boulevard and untangle yourself between the different warehouses to find the four paintings offered by the new version ofWhere you go when you sleep walking.
Apart from some volunteers, few signs or even decorative elements guide us through the spaces.
Along the way, we lose a little of the magic that makes the experience of this route so unique, the one that allows you to daydream while strolling under the moon in the middle of the city.
Although less enveloping than previous years, Where you go… still offers us some great shows this year. Works which, each in their own way, have something to delight our ears.
Because music has the best part in this 15th edition of the course, signed by Alexandre Fecteau and Nancy Bernier.
If there is no order to respect between the different paintings, it is nevertheless better to start your walk with Yahwatsira’, eccentric compared to the others. Located on the site of a former dealership, the creation of Aïcha Bastien Ndiaye and Lydia Wagerer immerses visitors in the heart of a large dance gathering. A space where different styles and several cultures mix for our greatest pleasure. From African percussion to indigenous dances.
With musicians on the roof of a truck and dancers climbing on scaffolds, Yahwatsira’ seems to bring together a group of free and rebellious young souls.
The show by Aïcha Bastien Ndiaye and Lydia Wagerer gave way to rhythm and dance in all its splendor. (Caroline Grégoire/The Sun)
Like Yahwatsira’, The night belongs to us offers to move around in an industrial space. Pascal Asselin, aka Millimetrik, and Jocelyn Pelletier give a completely different look to the ExpoCité cattle warehouse.
Between wooden pallets and other materials, the building houses under its roof a rave psychedelic. In front of an energetic DJ, several dancers, in eccentric costumes, jump around in the audience. Around the dance floor, artists create graffiti on wooden panels, surrounded by the scent of their spray paint.
It’s hard not to have a smile taped in the face when entering The big influence market. Very close to the planters for sale, maple products and other local merchandise, you can find influencers on the displays. Like the gym rat who hates “feminazis”, @toutedesF_69, the young woman who does makeup “tutorials”, @Amy-Lee_Make_U_Up, or even the “beige” and perfect parents, @monpetitchaosbienveillant.
“The planet is in crisis / We denounce in stories / When we run out of battery / We have to pay for a psychologist”
— Excerpt from the song Who is the product?
And no need to master all the codes of social networks to enjoy this painting signed by Nicolas Drolet and Erika Soucy, which takes on the air of a musical comedy with the song Who is the product?.
If The big influence market is the real gem of this edition ofWhere you go when you sleep walking, it is thanks to its designers and its performers, but also thanks to its catchy music (Sarah-Anne Arsenault), its decor (Vanessa Cadrin) and its magnificent, so realistic costumes (Géraldine Rondeau).
At the corner of rue Soumande and rue de l’Exposition, Étienne La Frenière offers us a completely different atmosphere with Mount Vesuvius. Inspired by the tragedy of Pompeii, the author and director takes us on a journey just before the explosion of the volcano, when warning signs could have caused the population to react.
Just like that of Pompeii, the volcano of Étienne La Frenière leaves little chance to its inhabitants who prefer to ignore the “warning signs” of tragedy. (Caroline Grégoire/The Sun)
Very poetic with well-orchestrated plays of light, the work presents a disturbing volcano which slowly awakens… until it rumbles and lets out shrill screams, swallowing all the inhabitants.
Built quite simply, with white tarpaulins, gray crinoline for smoke and strips of red fabric for lava, Mount Vesuvius does not, however, miss its target and manages to quickly captivate the attention of the spectators.
Where do you go when you sleep while walking…? is presented free of charge on the ExpoCité website every Thursday, Friday and Saturday, from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m., until June 8. For more details, you can visit the Carrefour international de théâtre website.
