Félix, Je Me Souviens: A Multidisciplinary Tribute to Félix Leclerc
Martin Genest directs Félix, je me souviens, a multidisciplinary stage production honoring the life and work of Félix Leclerc, featuring 19 artists (9 musicians, 8 actor-singers and 2 circus artists). The project was conceived by producer Jean Pilote to introduce Leclerc’s legacy to a new generation.
The Genesis of a Multidisciplinary Tribute
Producer Jean Pilote, head of LCQ Productions and known for rebuilding the theater Capitole in 1992, first envisioned a stage performance celebrating Félix Leclerc. To bring the vision to life, Pilote turned to Martin Genest, whose career spans 20 years of blending theater, circus, puppetry, opera, music, digital art, and magic alongside collaborations with Cirque du Soleil, Ex Machina, Flip Fabrique, Machine de Cirque, and the Opéra de Montréal.
Jean m’a demandé d’imaginer un hommage, un spectacle qui traduise l’importance de l’artiste et du citoyen. En effectuant des recherches, je me suis rendu compte que je ne connaissais que quelques chansons, quelques romans, autrement dit seulement une toute petite partie de ce que Félix a écrit.
Born in La Tuque in 1914 and passing away on the Île d’Orléans in 1988, Leclerc worked as a singer-songwriter, poet, writer, radio and television host, screenwriter, director, and actor. Genest noted that compressing such a sprawling career presented significant creative hurdles. Key historical markers in the production include Leclerc meeting Guy Mauffette in 1939, achieving uncommon success in France during the early 1950s, and performing alongside Gilles Vigneault and Robert Charlebois before 120,000 spectators on the Plains of Abraham in 1974, prior to receiving the Grand Prix spécial de l’Adisq in 1979.
Rather than a conventional musical revue or circus act, the production draws freely from multiple artistic disciplines. Genest integrated live animation films and crafted a circus performance set to the song La drave, drawing a parallel to the acrobatic nature of historical river drivers.
Leclerc Weighed His Duty to Quebecers Against Personal Humility
The staging centers on a core dilemma in Leclerc’s life: the friction between a life as a singer and that of a man attached to nature. Long before impresario Jacques Canetti persuaded him to perform in France, Leclerc viewed himself primarily as a writer rather than a singer.
Leclerc lived in France for three years, recognizing that his presence served a cultural purpose. Genest described the artist as a pioneer who used his guitar simultaneously as a passport and a burden, constantly weighing personal humility against a sense of duty to speak on behalf of Quebecers, covering topics such as the French language and Indigenous living conditions.
The structural narrative is split into two distinct chapters. The first half, designated as the “hare” section, traces Leclerc’s early life, youth, and initial employment up to his departure for France. Following the intermission, the “angry lark” section reflects on his maturity and worldview during his fifties.
Collaborative Execution on Stage
To establish a functional balance between visual staging and textual depth, Genest brought in dramaturg Jean-Philippe Lehoux. Dialogue is delivered by characters representing colleagues, family members, patrons, and friends who break the fourth wall to address the audience directly.
The cast features Nicolas Drolet, Kathleen Fortin, Pierre-Olivier Grondin, Laetitia Isambert, Jean Maheux, Klara Martel-Laroche, Jean-François Poulin, and Redgee. Leclerc’s own recorded voice will sound out on stage in both spoken and sung forms, used to evoke the artist rather than being impersonated by a single actor.