Grace et Gloria explores generational differences

Death is an unavoidable marker. It has a way of stopping you cold (no pun intended), and making you re-evaluate life and friendships in general.

At least that’s the premise of Grace et Gloria, the launch of L'UniThéâtre's 19th season, running Nov. 17 to 20 and 24 to 27 at La CitĂ© Francophone.

It was written by Chicago playwright Tom Ziegler and translated into French by francophone playwright Michel Tremblay. This sentimental crowd pleaser is a bittersweet drama that explores generational differences in a clash between traditional folk wisdom and modern education.

Artistic director Daniel Cournoyer believes Tremblay, who has a knack for recreating working class characters, was attracted to the script because of its similarity to the playwright’s hotly debated Les Belles Soeurs.

“It’s funny, it’s poignant and the women are very strong. It has grassroots appeal,” says Cournoyer, a former St. Albert resident.

Grace (Thérese Dallaire) is a 90-year old-illiterate, a rather feisty rustic dying of cancer. She has been released from hospital to die at home. But around her, real estate developers are dynamiting and bulldozing the farm she built with her husband.

“She’s strong. She’s stubborn. When faced with adversity, she pulls up your bootstraps and deals with it.”

Gloria (Kristi Hansen) is a stylish, university educated woman who has it all – a terrific job, a self-important title and a lawyer husband. Life is perfect until her 12-year-old son is killed in an automobile accident. Unable to cope, she moves to a small town and volunteers for hospice care. Grace is her latest assignment.

“She’s assisting the elderly, but it’s a form of escapism and the situation is not helping her forget.”

Although Grace et Gloria opened in various venues across Canada, Cournoyer was hesitant to stage it in Edmonton until now.

“You had to have a good cast. At first I didn’t have a big enough pool of artists that could speak proficient French.”

Grace is a heavy role, and Cournoyer cast Dallaire, a seasoned actress he’s worked with since his official directorial piece Les voisin in 1996.

“Her sense of comedic timing is wonderful. This is a great piece for an older actress to sink her teeth into and she has this incredible energy. I have to keep reminding her the character isn’t 40. She’s 90.”

As for Hansen, Cournoyer praises her award-winning work in Dying City and added it’s a bonus that her French is impeccable.

“Casting her is a great way to create a bridge between the two solitudes,” he says, referring to different English and French theatrical productions in the area that rarely intersect.

“Grace et Gloria will want to make you laugh. It will want to make you cry. It’s an all around good play.”