Cabaret noir

DANCE / THEATRE

Cabaret Noir announces the colour—its colour. Consisting of a bouquet of musical, theatrical and choreographic bravura parts, the show questions the Black condition, claims it and celebrates it, while denouncing—with bittersweet humour, biting irony or painful emotion—the countless clichés and violence which it has always been subjected to.

Through excerpts from all kinds of works—sometimes funny, sometimes horrifying—an inventory of ordinary racism is sketched out, from Othello to Lance et compte, including Tintin in the Congo and some farcical passages from Lonely Planet on West Africa, oozing with commonplaces. James Baldwin, Normand Brathwaite, Aimé Césaire, Dany Laferrière, Spike Lee, Toni Morrison and many others are also called upon. Their words carry suffering, revolt, anger, despair but also hope, beauty, dignity, humour and sometimes joy.

Inspired by the trajectory of George Floyd but also by that of Barack Obama, Mélanie Demers orchestrates with grace, finesse and a wry pleasure this striking manifesto which is also a celebration, as joyfully demonstrated by the final banquet. The choreographer and director’s exceptional work, which weaves together poetry and politics, has recently been recognized with several prestigious awards.