About the
ASSIGNMENT
Founded in 2007, Théâtre À l'Envers (TAE) is dedicated to creating original works through a process of research and experimentation that blends artistic and theatrical forms for audiences of young people and youth. The company particularly favors contemporary puppet theatre, combining it with acting, shadow theatre, video, dance, masks, and more.
TAE aims to offer original theatrical performances where visual dramaturgy is sometimes imbued with poetry and sometimes with humor. TAE seeks to provide a unique perspective on the world, sometimes challenging the established order. Its productions are informed by cultural outreach projects that precede its creations. The company prioritizes the integration of artists from other artistic disciplines and cultural backgrounds to enrich its work.
Historical
Founded in 2007, Théâtre À l'Envers is both a researcher of shadows and puppets, drawing on the imagination of children for the craziest ideas to nourish its creations which allow us to dream and to take a new look at the world around us.
The company's first production, entitled Woânda, enjoyed wide distribution in Quebec (Montreal Arts Council touring, Réseau Scènes, ADICIM, ROSEQ tour, Objectif Scène, Réseau Centre, etc.) for nearly twelve years. In 2018, the play was presented in French and English in a co-production with Theatre Without Borders (England) for a tour of approximately twenty performances in the United Kingdom with a cast of half Canadian and half English performers. In 2011, the company created L'Ezdaï, which received support from the Cole Foundation and was the subject of a cultural outreach project with an elementary school in Parc-Extension.
Following a commission from the Grande bibliothèque nationale du Québec, the company created Tetsuo in 2012, a show combining shadows and manga, featuring Congolese artist Kens Mukendi, hosted as part of the Dém'Art-Montréal program of the Conseil des arts de Montréal.
To nurture its creative work, Théâtre À l'Envers prioritizes artistic outreach projects with children prior to its performances, in elementary schools, daycare centers, community centers, and other settings. The Maison de la culture Parc-Extension has also contributed to the company's development through artist residencies.
In 2017, Théâtre À l'Envers, in co-production with Place des Arts, created the children's show Mwana et le secret de la tortue (Mwana and the Secret of the Turtle), a play featuring a Congolese storyteller, a puppeteer, shadow puppetry, and object theatre. In just two years, the play has been presented more than 120 times (Montreal Arts Council tour 2018-2019, Réseau Ontario Francophone Schools Network (2019), Alliance Française, and the Toronto WEE Festival (2019), where it was presented in English, among other venues). At FrancoFête en Acadie 2019, the show generated significant interest from presenters in the Cerf-Volant network and received the 2019 Alliance RADARTS-RIDEAU Award. The tour planned for 2020-2021 ...
The show was postponed due to the global pandemic. The company also received support from the Quebec Government Office in New York to present its full show in English at Off-IPAY 2020 in Philadelphia (USA).
During the pandemic, the company co-produced with Theatre Without Borders (England) a shadow theatre film entitled The Golden Conch Shell, entirely created remotely by a team that was half Canadian and half English.
Alongside its shows, the company offers puppet and shadow theatre workshops in Quebec's primary and secondary schools through the Culture in Schools program, while also participating in residencies in schools to fuel its future creative projects.
DIRECTION
PATRICIA BERGERON
Co-founder / Artistic and General Director / Mediator Artist
Patricia is an actress and puppeteer by training, holding a bachelor's degree in acting and a master's degree in theatre from the École supérieure de théâtre de l'UQAM. She toured in Quebec, France, Tunisia, and England with over a dozen companies before co-founding Théâtre À l'Envers in 2007, where she serves as general and artistic director. It was there that she learned the ropes of managing a theatre company, while also working as a playwright (Woânda, Tetsuo, Mwana et le secret de la tortue) and director.
On stage, she is an actress and puppeteer. Passionate about human relationships, she creates cultural mediation projects prior to the company's productions, working with all kinds of audiences. She also worked as a cultural mediator at TOHU for three years. She offers shadow puppetry, mask work, and puppet manipulation workshops in Quebec schools, notably through the Culture in Schools program, and as a teaching assistant at the UQAM School of Theatre.