***THE BALLAD OF GEORGES BOIVIN: BACKSTAGE PASS***

**April 16 - May 5, 2024**
***We are thrilled to offer you these special extras to help celebrate the heartwarming story of The Ballad of Georges Boivin.***

This poetic and playful script is a tour de force for the solo actor who plays all four friends along for the ride. It’s also a heart-warming story that challenges the myths and assumptions around aging.

Award-winning Montreal playwright Martin Bellemare’s work has been produced extensively in Quebec and in Europe. When this script premiered in 2009 as Le chant de Georges Boivin, it was awarded the Prix Gratien-Gélinas. This translation, by Jack Paterson with Johanna Nutter, premiered in 2021 at Western Gold Theatre in Vancouver, in association with Bouche Theatre Collective.

Directed by Bronwyn Steinberg

Poster Artwork by Maezy Reign

Note: Video and audio recording of this production is strictly prohibited.

BUy tickets

Photos: Hannah Kerbes

Duval Lang

Duval Lang has been very active in the dynamic growth of the Calgary and Alberta theatre community for close to 50 years. He was a co-founder and Artistic Director of Quest Theatre, a prominent Canadian theatre for young audience company for 25 of those years.
In 2019 he co-founded Black Radish Theatre and starred in its inaugural production of Waiting for Godot. He is now busy as a freelance actor and director across the country. He has taught and mentored countless aspiring theatre artists over the many years.
Duval stars in the tour-de-force solo show of *The Ballad of Georges Boivin* playing at Lunchbox until May 5.

Yann Haute Patisserie

Music plays a part in The Ballad of Georges Boivin, and both of these songs are referenced in the show:

La Premiere Fille

Song by Georges Brassens

View the lyrics in English (PDF)
Note: English translation of these lyrics is AI-generated

A Note from Bronwyn Steinberg

"Welcome to the final production of our 49th season at Lunchbox Theatre! The Ballad of Georges Boivin finds us at a time where we are simultaneously looking back at 5 decades of lunchtime theatre and looking to the future as we gear up for our 50th season. And I couldn’t imagine a better play for this moment, both for Lunchbox and for us all. At its heart, this play is about love."

Playwright’s Notes - Martin Bellemare

“I’m very attached to this work. This is my first professional play. I was then asked for a solo. As we rarely saw them on stage, I wanted to give voice to an elderly person, thinking of a person I cherish, and who watches over me.”
“First of all thank you so much Jack Paterson for translating this work, and helping Georges complete his important trip, the kind of trip that guides you to yourself. Bronwyn, thank you for taking the wheel and driving all your team to this moment. Finally, thanks to you, dear attendants, for being here, ready to make it happen. Keep the road Georges.”

Martin Bellemare was nominated for the prestigious Siminovitch Prize in 2020.

Western Gold Theatre

This translation of The Ballad of Georges Boivin, by Jack Paterson with Johanna Nutter, premiered in 2021 at Western Gold Theatre in Vancouver, in association with Bouche Theatre Collective.

Western Gold Theatre is one of only two professional theatre companies in Canada solely devoted to centering the voices and stories of seniors and Elders (55+) across cultures and communities. We have the express mandate of addressing and mitigating ageism by presenting both theatre classics and newly commissioned Canadian works that reflect the rich experience of this rapidly growing demographic. The one thing all productions have in common, and which guides our artistic choices, is the all-important theme of how all of us embrace and/or confront our lives and the passage of time.

Learn more

Translation Production History

2024 | Alberta Premiere (Calgary, Canada)
THE BALLAD OF GEORGES BOIVIN
April 16 – May 5, 2024
The Vertigo Theatre Studio
(No. 161, 115 – 9 Ave. SE, Calgary, AB)
Directed by Bronwyn Steinberg | Featuring Duval Lang
Produced by Lunchbox Theatre

2021 | English Language Premiere (Vancouver, Canada)
THE BALLAD OF GEORGES BOIVIN
Nov. 10 – 28, 2021
PAL Studio Theatre (81 Cardero St, Vancouver BC V6G 3L2)
Directed by Jack Paterson | Featuring Jay Brazeau and John Innes in rep.
Produced by Western Gold Theatre in association with Bouche Theatre Collective
Nominated for 3 Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGE PRODUCTION HISTORY

This play has been presented at Théâtre du Rideau vert (Montréal, 2010), Théâtre de la Huchette (Paris, 2011), and la Maison-des-Arts (Laval, 2011) with Théâtre Bluff. 2013/14, a production directed by Mario Borges and featuring well known francophone actor Pierre Collin, was seen across Quebec and francophone communities across Canada including the National Arts Centre (Ottawa).