The concert “Bonne Fête Montréal” was held at Centre Bell last night in celebration of Montréal’s 375th anniversary. Guy A. Lepage hosted the event organized by Juste pour rire and theatre director Serge Denoncourt. The audience of 11,617 was treated to a diverse mix of music and comedy. The Orchestre Métropolitain and its dynamic conductor Yannick Nézet-Seguin accompanied the featured performers and kicked the evening off with an excerpt from Richard Wagner’s Lohengrin. Local star Boogat then took the stage with his eclectic mix of hip-hop and Latin music.
Laurent Paquin, Louis-José Houde and Gad Elmaleh headlined the comedians to take the stage. The musical performances were notably diverse. Hip-hop group Dead Obies shared the stage with young pop stars Marie-Mai, Arianne Moffat and La Bronze. Veteran singers Diane Dufresne, Robert Charlebois, Kim Richardson and Michel Louvain also performed, as did folk musicians Anna McGarrigle and Rufus and Martha Wainwright. This diversity of the artists on stage was a reflection of the city of Montréal’s rich cultural life.
The Jacques Cartier Bridge was also illuminated in celebration of the city’s 375th anniversary. You can watch a video from the bridge’s inaugural light show here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKLQaA-vJZU
