Le Ballet national du Canada

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A truly multi-disciplinary experience, Frame by Frame sees legendary theatre director Robert Lepage collaborating with choreographer Guillaume Côté in an exceptional work that explores the life of Canadian filmmaker Norman McLaren, whose pioneering advancements in animation led to a prolific career with the National Film Board of Canada and influenced filmmakers worldwide. Frame by Frame brings McLaren’s films to life with a riveting mix of dance and technology, including live camera work, interspersed with footage from his ground-breaking films.

Cinq choses à savoir

1. 1Frame by Frame is the result of a close collaboration between two of Canada’s most esteemed artists: Guillaume Côté and Robert Lepage. The concept was several years in the making and evolved in a series of workshops with Lepage’s multidisciplinary production company, Ex Machina.
    
2. 2McLaren is celebrated for the ingenuity and aesthetic brilliance of his short films. He won an Oscar for Best Short Documentary in 1952 for Neighbours and a 1969 BAFTA Award for Best Animated Film for Pas de deux.
    
3. 3Lepage has said of McLaren: “There is something very pure about his vocabulary and very accessible and very universal. J’ai toujours été sensible à cela parce que je recherche désespérément des choses simples, des ressources, des idées qui puissent s’adresser à un public universel ou international. »
    
4. 4Frame by Frame brings McLaren’s films to life with a riveting mix of dance and technology, including live camera work. Key episodes from McLaren’s life move through this visual landscape, such as his relationship with National Film Board producer Guy Glover and his work with fellow animation pioneer, Evelyn Lambart.
    
5. 5McLaren loved ballet and produced several dance films. Côté also experiments with dance and technology and, in 2020, his film Lulu won Best International Short Film at the Milan International Film Festival. In 2021, Côté created Touch, an immersive dance experience fusing multimedia projections with original choreography in a 360 degree interactive performance space.

Watch and Explore

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Les créateurs

Guillaume Côté s’est joint au Ballet national du Canada en 1998. Il est devenu danseur étoile en 2004 et a été nommé associé chorégraphique en 2013. His choreographic works include Fractals, Being and Nothingness and Le Petit Prince, his first full-length ballet. Côté is also Artistic Director of the Festival des Arts de Saint-Sauveur.

Robert Lepage est l’un des artistes de théâtre les plus polyvalents et les plus estimés du Canada. Son approche originale du théâtre lui a valu une reconnaissance internationale, notamment pour son utilisation des nouvelles technologies. Il a reçu le Prix du Gouverneur général pour les arts du spectacle pour l’ensemble de ses réalisations artistiques et a été fait Compagnon de l’Ordre du Canada.

Le compositeur

Antoine Bédard est un musicien canadien spécialisé dans la musique électronique, qu’il enregistre sous le nom de Montag. He has released several albums, toured internationally and collaborated with theatre directors and choreographers such as Robert Lepage, Chris Abraham and Dana Michel.

Critiques

“Guillaume Côté and Robert Lepage have succeeded in creating an exceptional work for The National Ballet of Canada rich in its choreographic voice and profound in showcasing McLaren’s personal passions for dance, his relationships with his collaborators and the love of his life, Guy Glover.” – Chroniques de Danse 

“Haunting beauty… an example of how film and dance can blend on stage in a magically fruitful way it is an altogether remarkable piece of work.” – Dancing Times 

“Frame by Frame is a work of genius… a tour-de-force of astonishment… one of the greatest ballets ever made in Canada/fait au Canada. It is a masterpiece.” – Ludwig van Toronto.com 

Crédits

Directeur :
Robert Lepage

Chorégraphie :
Guillaume Côté

Direction et conception créatives :
Steve Blanchet

Musique et conception sonore :
Antoine Bédard

Conception de la scène :
Christian Fontaine

Conception des costumes :
Michael Gianfrancesco

Conception de l’éclairage :
Étienne Boucher

Conception de la projection d’images :
Laurie Shawn Borzovoy

Conception vidéo :
Thomas Payette/HUB Studio

Concepteur des accessoires :
Claudia Gendreau

Directrice adjointe :
Adèle Saint-Amand

Première mondiale : The National Ballet of Canada, Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, Toronto, 1 juin, 2018

Frame by Frame is a collaboration between The National Ballet of Canada, Ex Machina and the National Film Board of Canada.

Coproduit par le Sadler’s Wells Theatre, Londres, Royaume-Uni.

Lead philanthropic support for Frame by Frame is generously provided by The Walter Carsen New Creations Fund, with additional support from First Plazas Inc. in memory of Avie Bennett, The Catherine and Maxwell Meighen Foundation, Rosamond Ivey, The Hal Jackman Foundation and The Producers’ Circle.

The Producers’ Circle (2018): Gail & Mark Appel, John & Claudine Bailey, Inger Bartlett & Marshal Stearns, Susanne Boyce & Brendan Mullen, Gail Drummond & Bob Dorrance, The Thor E. and Nicole Eaton Family Charitable Foundation, Sandra Faire & Ivan Fecan, Kevin Garland & Roger Garland, C.M., Emmanuelle Gattuso, C.M. and Allan Slaight, C.M., Ira Gluskin & Maxine Granovsky Gluskin, The William & Nona Heaslip Foundation, Rosamond Ivey, Hal Jackman Foundation, Anna McCowan-Johnson & Donald K. Johnson, O.C., Judy Korthals & Peter Irwin, Judith & Robert Lawrie, Mona & Harvey Levenstein, Jerry Lozinski, O.C. & Joan Lozinski, O.C., The Honourable Margaret Norrie McCain, C.C., Julie Medland, Sandra Pitblado, C.M. & Jim Pitblado, C.M., Lynda & Jonas Prince, Susan Scace & Arthur Scace, C.M., Q.C., Gerald Sheff & Shanitha Kachan, Sandra Simpson and Noreen Taylor, C.M. & David Staines, C.M., O.Ont. 

Le Ballet national du Canada est reconnaissant du généreux soutien des organismes suivants :