20th Edition of Festival International de Casteliers

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Montréal, January 22, 2025—Puppeteers, theatre fans, and specialists from around the world will be on hand to celebrate the 20th edition of Festival international de Casteliers, March 3 to 9, 2025.

The festival line-up features remarkable creations from Belgium, France, Czechia, Germany, the United States, Québec, and Canada. Performances, a documentary film, a concert, exhibitions, professional networking events, workshops, and a parade will all contribute to the festive, artistic, and celebratory nature of this eagerly awaited annual event.

Through gesture, material, images and movement, the selected works feature stories about nature and the creatures that inhabit it: poetic legends, quirky tales, love stories, feats of courage, long-lost memories, and reclaimed objects.

Actress Cynthia Wu-Maheux is our spokesperson for this anniversary edition.

DIMANCHE (Focus and Chaliwaté Companies, Belgium) kicks off the 20th anniversary edition of the festival with a bang, at Théâtre Outremont, on March 5 and 6. This compelling show combines gestural theatre, objects, puppets, miniatures, and video to create the illusion of a humanity totally out of step with the times, yet doing its very best to preserve its everyday existence, to the point of complete absurdity. 12 years +

A SEA OF LOVE (La Salamandre, France) Inspired by the graphic novel with the same title, by Wilfrid Lupano and Grégory Panaccione, this show without words is full of emotion. It immerses the viewer in a story of love and courage, pollution and consumerism, with humour, sensitivity, and unusual sound effects! 7 Years +

KAR (Studio Damúza and Fekete Seretlek, Czechia) revisits the universe of Tolstoy and his masterpiece Anna Karenina in a masterful, surprising, and electrifying manner. At a funeral dinner, amid the clinking of glassware and the music of an orchestra, instead of saying farewell to his family and friends, the deceased comes back to life. A madcap puppet cabaret that will leave the audience transformed! 13 years +

L’ENFANT MASCARA (Barbaque Compagnie, France) combines the whimsy of object theatre with the requirements of theatrical text in this adaptation of Simon Boulerice’s novel, inspired by a real-life tragedy, a sad story of transphobia. This is theatre for teens that serves a valuable purpose, as it tries to mend humanity when, at times, it breaks down. 13 years +

SOUL MATES (Magali Chouinard, Gatineau) takes us to the world of the Wild Child that exists inside each one of us. A cross between visual art and performance art, soul mates offers a moment of silence, beauty, and wonder. A timeless moment, in black and white. 5 years +

POUR LA VIE (Théâtre à Bout Portant, Saguenay) is an intimate and surprising portrait of an elderly woman on the eve of a great upheaval. In a solo performance without words, and using a multitude of stage devices and ingenious objects, the artist takes the audience on a journey through time, imbued with magic and wisdom. 15 years +

VAGUES (Synthèse additive and Les Nouveaux Ballets du Nord, Montréal and France) is an invitation into the intimate universe of a creator and her unique relationship with water. At the crossroads of documentary, movement, and object, VAGUES brings to life a spellbinding, personal water story that touches on the universal. 14 years +

FRÉTILLANT ET AGILE (Jocelyn Sioui and Productions Illusion fabuleuse, Montréal) brings Auhaïtsic, an unlikely Wendat hero, back to life. A seasoned puppeteer and fabulous storyteller, Jocelyn Sioui delights in coaxing colourful, larger-than-life characters out of the shadows, in collaboration with two musicians and a sand artist. 12 years +

DISGRACELAND (Les Tables Tournantes, Montréal) is set in a mythical mansion where four housemaids huddle around a disgraced Elvis as he prepares to perform his final concert. A gem that explores iconoclasm through puppetry arts. 12 years +

NANATASIS (Musique 3 Femmes, Montréal and Guelph) is a contemporary opera for all, based on three traditional Abenaki legends written by storyteller and librettist Nicole O’Bomsawin, and set to music by Mexican composer Alejandra Odgers. Eleven musicians and four puppeteers sweep us up in a fantastic fusion of cultures. 6 years +

LA PATIENCE DES CHOSES (Julie Desrosiers, Montréal) is an immersive visual exploration of objects, matter, and elements. Artists and audience are invited to join in an adventure that leaves room for the unexpected, the accidental, and for poetic magic. 12 years +

Other activities

From March 3 to 9, the festival’s anniversary line-up offers a range of free activities for all:

Ciné-Casteliers

JIM HENSON: IDEA MAN – MONDAY, MARCH 3 – THÉÂTRE OUTREMONT
Director Ron Howard gives us a glimpse into Jim Henson’s career and life, from his early years as a puppeteer on local television to the international success of Sesame Street and The Muppet Show. An entertaining and insightful look at this complex man whose limitless imagination changed the world. 12 years +

PUPPETS 4.0 – MUSEUM WITHOUT WALLS – MARCH 4 TO 8 – GOETHE-INSTITUT
A playful, immersive virtual exhibition that takes you on a journey through the history of puppetry, across time and around the world. From agitprop theatre to an Indonesian bazaar, Asian temples, and a Sicilian opera house, Puppets 4.0 – Museum Without Walls is an impressive tribute to the history of the 11th art, produced by the Deutsches Forum für Figuren Theatre und Puppenspielkunst (German Forum for Figure Theatre and Puppetry). 13 years +

SKAWANOTI – TUESDAY, MARCH 4 – NICOLAS VIEL PARK
This companion podcast to the show Frétillant et Agile lets you listen in on the history of Ahuntsic, the site of Montréal’s last indigenous village. On March 4, artist Jocelyn Sioui invites you to join him for a tree ceremony, followed by a stroll along the audio trail. 10 years +

FEKETE SERETLEK BAND CONCERT- WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5 – FESTIVAL HEADQUARTERS
This famous Czech band repurposes, modifies, and mixes motifs from world music, creating its own original and exhilarating compositions. Cello, accordion, trumpet, double bass, violin, drums, and five voices will electrify the night!

GAUDEŌ! 20 YEARS OF CASTELIERS – MARCH 6 TO MAI 25 – GALERIE D’OUTREMONT
VERNISSAGE MARCH 6
An exhibition commissioned by the borough of Outremont, celebrating Casteliers’ 20th anniversary. Presenting a selection of Québec shows, puppets, and sets that have marked two decades of this international festival, along with an overview of its impact on the borough.

MARIONNETTES EN VITRINES! – URBAN WILDLIFE – FEBRUARY 16 TO MARCH 16 – IN 30
OUTREMONT SHOP WINDOWS ON BERNARD, VAN HORNE, AND AVENUE DU PARC
This walkabout exhibition celebrates the creativity of the entire community with a cheery bestiary of creatures that live in our cities, created by students and families from across Greater Montréal. This remarkable mosaic of insects, birds, and mammals includes animals created by professional puppeteers for the Biodôme de Montréal.

URBAN WILDLIFE PARADE – SUNDAY, MARCH 9 AT 1:30 P.M.
The celebrations will come to a fitting finale on Sunday, March 9 at 1:30 p.m., with a citizens’ parade closing the 20th Festival international de Casteliers. Puppets, masks, and musicians will take to the streets, proceeding from Théâtre Outremont to the Maison internationale des arts de la marionnette (MIAM), where maple taffy and hot chocolate will be on offer!

GUIDED TOURS and CREATIVE WORKSHOPS will allow the whole family to enjoy the wide variety
of urban wildlife on display or take part in the Closing Parade!

Professional networking events such as the CAFÉ-CAUSERIE, ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION, LAUNCH OF THE MARIONNET.CA PORTAL, and the MARCHÉ INTERNATIONAL DE CASTELIERS performance market will bring together artists, enthusiasts, and presenters from here and abroad, encouraging conversation and reflection on artistic practice.

Partners:

Casteliers wishes to thank its major partners, the Caisse des Versants du mont Royal and REALTA real estate agency, as well as all its public, private, cultural, and media partners for their valued support. Together, they help to make this 20th edition a success.