Bonjour my friends,
It has been far too long since we have connected by way of zeee blog. The last time you heard from us we were flying out from Blanc Sablon, making our way West for La Tabatière. Unfortunately, we were unable to make it there due to smog. So sorry Mecatina School :(
Our next stop was Chevery, where we were picked up by a taxi service. A taxi service like no other. One that allows you to be closer to nature. And not even the rain could change our smiling faces as we bounced around the back of a pickup truck.
When we arrived we picked roommates, dropped off our bags and headed out to the general store, which amazingly enough was run by the "taxi driver" who dropped us off twenty minutes previous. The rain did however manage to put a damper on our plans for adventure. So we moseyed on into the Motel "lounge"----Hey I got a joke for you...What do you get when 4 city slicker theatre folk walk into a bar in Chevery? give up? Shirley Temples and some extremely hazardous and potentially fatal dart tournaments.
After our shows the next morning we were to take a water taxi to Harrington Harbour.
Even after a week of being on the coast, we were still astonished by its beauty. Our first hours in Harrington Harbour were spent with our jaws on our chests and our eyes fighting our urge to blink. The town is made up of houses built on hillsides that are encircled by weaving boardwalks that serve as both sidewalks and roads, because it is a small island and because there are no roads there are no cars.
Everybody, including some children, gets around by ATV. It's a trip. An 11 year-old boy was gunning it down the boardwalk on one, he slowed down and pulled over next to us lifting the visor from his helmet. He looked like he was born on that thing. When he spoke I was a little confused, I guess I expected his voice to sound a little more Burt Reynolds-esque.
While in town we stayed at Amy's B&B. The graceful and soft-spoken Amy was an amazing host. She answered all our questions about her town and way of life. We also asked about "La Grande Séduction", a Québecois film that was shot there in 2003. She described it as one of the most exciting things to ever happen to that town. Over an amazing cod dinner, she offered to leave a copy of the movie out for us to watch. We did, and above and beyond the charm of the little town it truly is an amazing movie.
The next day there was a buzz going around town, people were talking, a wave of excitement had spread. No, it didn't have anything to do with us. It turns out the ducks were in town. Not the professional hockey team, actual ducks. Apparently every couple of years some ducks make their way into town, swim around for a while and fly away. If you think I'm joking, I can assure you that I am not. I was stopped three separate times by three separate locals on the way back from the school, they all said they same thing " Hey, the ducks are here!"
The audience for both shows were great. Amy attended, and she enjoyed them. She highlighted the importance of Smokescreen, because of new issues hitting the coast.
We had to say goodbye to Harrington Harbour and hello to St-Augustine. Yet another breathtaking gem of the coast.
The High School crowd was probably the most vocal one we've had to date, totally engaged. The fight between Jeff and Trent riled them up pretty good.
The Principal was a very nice man, who showed a true love for theatre. We learned that he had just helped one of his students get into the Theatre program at John Abbott College.
It was time to head home...Oh, the irony in it all...turns out it is "Home Sweet Home Sweet Home" to us as well.
More stories from the road to come, but for now I'll leave you with this "Once upon a time there was an actor who needed a nap" ...the END.
Jimmy Blais for the G-Team
Monday, October 26, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
Photos From the Road - Part II
Friendly faces from across Quebec!
A student makes friends with some ducks, and Murphy the Dragon.
A student makes friends with some ducks, and Murphy the Dragon.
Photos From the Road - Part I
Who knew that kids all over the province were really lions from Africa?
Students see Once Upon A Home at a pyjama party.
Students see Once Upon A Home at a pyjama party.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
To and From Blanc-Sablon
Right in to it...
I know, I know it has been a while since you've heard a word from your favorite touring troupe but I can assure you Canada there are many good reasons for this.
The most significant being our lack of modern day communication tools, i.e. the interweb and mobile telephone service.
The last time we spoke our team was heading to Sept Iles to begin our journey along the Coast. Looking forward, one of the bright points of this part of the leg was the lack of set. By this I mean that because of transport issues we were physically unable to bring our set along on this leg of the tour. At the time, sitting in Baie Comeau, the idea of touring without set was as exciting as let's say...winning the 6/49...like twice.
Man were we wrong, "The Coast" as locals call it, had much more in store for us than what we could have ever expected.
Sept Iles at first glance came across as somewhat of a dreary town, but after our very first interaction with the kids, we fell for it.
Both the elementary and high school can boast amazing students. They were excited, engaged and offered outstanding feedback. We would like to thank the amazing Cassandra. Years ahead of her time she offered conversation that most 20 year-olds would find hard to carry.
Shortly after our shows in Sept Iles we were scheduled to fly out to Blanc-Sablon. Which didn't happen. Yet we were on route to the airport at 4:30am the next morning.
It was about 5 minutes until we landed our 12 seater plane onto the run-way at the Blanc-Sablon airport. Just by staring out at the landscape I couldn't help but think that I was on a different planet, or at least in a different country. For the next 18 hours, without exaggeration, we as a group posed the question "Where the heck are we?" a combined 4,243 times. In between every one of these questions we learned more and more about this town. How lovely the people are, their incredible tolerance to cold weather, and their take on the English language.
From Blanc-Sablon we traveled 25 minutes to St-Paul's River, where we had the most fantastic stay at George and Ina's Bed and Breakfast. There are no words that exist in the English language to properly express the kindness and hospitality that this couple shared with us. It was soooooo nice to see, smell, and feel a home cooked meal. I've never been so happy to see spaghetti in my life. Their stories and the genuine passion in telling them is something that will be etched in my memory forever. Thank You George and Ina!
Along this leg of the tour we hit more and more issues with flight delays and cancellations, something that apparently just comes with the territory. I overheard a man telling an airport employee that he had been trying to get from Blanc-Sablon to Chevrey for 3 days. It's about a 25 minute flight. But fog and rain are much too frequent on the Coast.
Unfortunately that's all the time I have for now, but more tales from the Coast soon enough.
And, rest assured the Diva is still high maintenance but funny, the Authority is still as powerful, the Mad Scientist is still as genius, and I'm just as umpf as the day we left.
tata for now.
Jimmy for The G-Team
I know, I know it has been a while since you've heard a word from your favorite touring troupe but I can assure you Canada there are many good reasons for this.
The most significant being our lack of modern day communication tools, i.e. the interweb and mobile telephone service.
The last time we spoke our team was heading to Sept Iles to begin our journey along the Coast. Looking forward, one of the bright points of this part of the leg was the lack of set. By this I mean that because of transport issues we were physically unable to bring our set along on this leg of the tour. At the time, sitting in Baie Comeau, the idea of touring without set was as exciting as let's say...winning the 6/49...like twice.
Man were we wrong, "The Coast" as locals call it, had much more in store for us than what we could have ever expected.
Sept Iles at first glance came across as somewhat of a dreary town, but after our very first interaction with the kids, we fell for it.
Both the elementary and high school can boast amazing students. They were excited, engaged and offered outstanding feedback. We would like to thank the amazing Cassandra. Years ahead of her time she offered conversation that most 20 year-olds would find hard to carry.
Shortly after our shows in Sept Iles we were scheduled to fly out to Blanc-Sablon. Which didn't happen. Yet we were on route to the airport at 4:30am the next morning.
It was about 5 minutes until we landed our 12 seater plane onto the run-way at the Blanc-Sablon airport. Just by staring out at the landscape I couldn't help but think that I was on a different planet, or at least in a different country. For the next 18 hours, without exaggeration, we as a group posed the question "Where the heck are we?" a combined 4,243 times. In between every one of these questions we learned more and more about this town. How lovely the people are, their incredible tolerance to cold weather, and their take on the English language.
From Blanc-Sablon we traveled 25 minutes to St-Paul's River, where we had the most fantastic stay at George and Ina's Bed and Breakfast. There are no words that exist in the English language to properly express the kindness and hospitality that this couple shared with us. It was soooooo nice to see, smell, and feel a home cooked meal. I've never been so happy to see spaghetti in my life. Their stories and the genuine passion in telling them is something that will be etched in my memory forever. Thank You George and Ina!
Along this leg of the tour we hit more and more issues with flight delays and cancellations, something that apparently just comes with the territory. I overheard a man telling an airport employee that he had been trying to get from Blanc-Sablon to Chevrey for 3 days. It's about a 25 minute flight. But fog and rain are much too frequent on the Coast.
Unfortunately that's all the time I have for now, but more tales from the Coast soon enough.
And, rest assured the Diva is still high maintenance but funny, the Authority is still as powerful, the Mad Scientist is still as genius, and I'm just as umpf as the day we left.
tata for now.
Jimmy for The G-Team
Monday, September 28, 2009
La Tuque
Our night was long, beds were hard to come by but eventually we landed in a wonderful little Chalet about 40 minutes away from the city. We woke up to a beautiful river that the night was hiding from us just 7 hours previous. Vladimir started us off on a good foot with coffee, hard boiled eggs and toast. We were ready for the day. As we left the chalet someone remarked on the smell coming from the garbage can sitting right outside the door. We got to the school, and it seemed as though the smell was following us, Antoine even smelled himself to make sure that it wasnt him. We eventually figured out that the Sulfur plant was the culprit. The people were lovely and we broke the record for fastest strike, 15 minutes, with the help of 8 very eager 11th grade guys.
Chibougamau
There are some perks that come with being so remote, an abundance of stars being one of them. Just before we hit the town we pulled the van over onto the shoulder of the highway, hit the hazards and stepped out to take in all the sky had to offer. While setting up at the school passing students would stop infront of the set to ask what "the Cage" was for. Some were convinced that Antoine and I were gonna wrestle in it, while others thought it was for the lions. Needless to say they were an awesome and imaginative bunch.
Jonquiere
The end of the week brought us to one of the bigger cities we've seen in a while. The show was well recieved, and Antoine and I spontaneously broke out into a subtle and silent three stooges pre-show spectacle which turned out to be a favorite with some of the kids. With only one show to do in Jonquiere it left us with some time to rest, and that is what we did. The Holiday Inn beds felt like a cuddle with Santa Claus, and let's just say we put in alot of quality time in with old Saint Nick.
Tadoussac
It was the weekend and we decided to spend it in Tadoussac. This is something that everyone should decide to do...spend a weekend in Tadoussac that is. While there we managed to walk on the beach, walk through the town and visit some whales. Simply put, a charming town.
Baie Comeau
Another town that sports a very indentifiable smell. Pulp and paper plants provide the town's je ne sais quoi. A cozy space allowed for us to have a very intimate show with an engaged audience. Smoke went over a little better than Home did. But both were definately well appreciated. The English teacher told us that it was one of the best Geordie shows yet. You might think that typing and patting your own back at the same time would be difficult...Uh it turns out that it's not so tough. We were treated to an amazing evening from Max. He brought us out onto the bay in his sail boat. We made friends with some whales as we took in his never ending knowledge. Max my friend, you will make a great tour guide someday.
We are off to Sept-Iles tomorrow, until the next time...
Jim-Bob out
Actor's log, stardate - September 2009
The Mission : To bring these two beautiful shows and everything that they entail to schools across eastern Canada. The Team:
- "The Diva"....Antoine - Although he is high maintenance, he makes up for it with comic relief. He also wanted me to mention that he is the star of the show. LOL
- "The Authority"...Vanessa - Let`s just say nobody gets in her way.
- "The Mad Scientist"...Vladimir - Always has a solution.
- "Cool Hand Luke"...Jimmy - Ok Whatever
Click here to read our biographies
Laval Liberty High School
Our first destination was Laval, where we would show "Smoke" (Smokescreen) to High School students for the first time. The auditorium was full with 9th graders who seemed to relate to Trent (Antoine). They laughed at his sarcastic wit and frowned at those who stood in his way. The students were vibrant and engaged, a perfect first audience. At the time we took the space for granted, but now we realize how advanced it was compared to some of our future destinations.
Coronation School
The poem that we use at the end of the play came from this school, so it was important for us to nail this part. Ehhh not so much, but we assure you Coronation School we have been doing your poem much justice since our visit. The students were an amazing bunch. From here we hit the road to take our plays to students across Quebec.
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