Setback for the Au pied des Demoiselles project in Havre-Aubert – Portail des Îles de la Madeleine

In the Magdalen Islands, the Au pied des Demoiselles project, which includes the conversion of the old school and church of Havre-Aubert into a cultural and tourist center, must be reviewed due to the economic context.

The vast project estimated at 20 million dollars led by the co-founder and president of Cirque Éloize, the Madelinot Jeannot Painchaud, will not be able to be carried out as it had initially been imagined.

The work which was planned this year to continue the transformation of the church into a real performance hall and the conversion of the old school into places of accommodation, catering and artistic creation is therefore put on hold, for at least a year.

The momentum and economic conditions of two years ago, with the excitement of nearly 80,000 tourists to the Islands, favorable interest rates and construction costs, have completely changed and that is what has weighed down the project, summarizes Jeannot Painchaud.

Two points of difference in interest rates, when you borrow millions of dollars from the bank, it completely changes the business model.

In 2022, Quebec had promised $2 million for the renovation of the old school, but the granting of financial assistance was conditional on a fully completed financial package. The promoter was unable to raise all the amounts within the required time frame, which caused him to lose this provincial grant.

Despite everything, Jeannot Painchaud emphasizes that the initial vision of the project remains the same, but that the realization will have to be done in several stages, over the longer term.

The Ministry of Culture and all our partners are still very supportive of the project, except that they are asking us to go back to the drawing board to redo a business model that holds up, then to come back to them when we are ready.explains the Madelinot. We are in the process of reimagining the project by developing it in phases.

We are going to go there realistically, with more partners.

To continue the work, Jeannot Painchaud says he has already found a new partner, whose identity he refuses to reveal for the moment. Together, they are giving themselves until January 2025 to find other investors, then six more months to clarify the new version of the project and the plans and specifications.

We are in the process of bringing together a new group of investors around us to bring more injections of private money into the projecthe explains. We still have the same intention of creating something for the community, of creating a large cultural and tourist space in the heart of Le Havre-Aubert, but the project is in the process of being redefined.

Jeannot Painchaud says he is still very motivated to carry out the project, but no longer dares to set a timetable for starting work. We are dependent on market turbulence and relationships with potential lenders.he maintains.

A new show this summer

The economic upheavals and the postponement of the construction site do not prevent Cirque Éloize from presenting a brand new show this summer in the old church of Havre-Aubert.

After the success of the show Between sky and sea in 2022 and 2023, it is a new creation entitled The cabaret at the end of the world which will be on view from July 26 to August 18.

Twelve performances of this show combining several circus disciplines are planned. The clown trio Foutiyayaï, composed of Madelinots Jean-Simon Larochelle and François-Guillaume Leblanc as well as Colin Heath, will also be in the show

The Cabaret du bout du monde is an eclectic cabaret that took shape in the 1930s, in the middle of a desert island, explains the president and creative director of Cirque Éloize, Jeannot Painchaud. We have all kinds of acts like aerial straps, Cyr wheel, hula hoop, aerial hoops, hand-to-hand and a trio of clowns. We make room for humor, we make room for absurdity.

Eight artists take part in this Cirque Éloize show designed especially for the Îles-de-la-Madeleine.