Marie-Claude Verdier
Marie-Claude Verdier made her first foray into writing for the stage as a teenager. Her short story, Paradise.com was included 1999’s Les nouveaux Zurbains série III (Théâtre le Clou). The work was published in the collection Les Zurbains (Dramaturges éditeurs) and in Jamais de la Vie (Éditions du Passage). She continued her studies at the École supérieure de théâtre, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) in Criticism and Playwriting, followed by a Master’s in Dramaturgy from the University of Glasgow. In the fall of 2013, her first play, Je n’y suis plus, was produced at the National Arts Centre’s French Theatre, as part of the biannual festival Zones Théâtrales. The English translation by Alexis Diamond won the 2013 Playwrights’ Workshop Cole Foundation Translation award. The play was produced in London (UK), Montreal and at the Summer Works Festival in Toronto. In 2015, Marie-Claude returned to Les Zurbains after 18 years with her short play Le laboratoire, presented throughout Quebec. Her second play, Nous autres antipodes was nominated for the Gratien-Gélinas award for young playwrights. She was commissioned by the Montpellier companyAdesso e Sempre to create an in-situ and interactive audio adaptation of Antigone for teenage audiences. Andy’s Gone has toured France for 4 years and over a hundred performances. Marie-Claude was recently playwright in residence at Mariemont (Belgium) for the CED and at Le Rideau Theater in Brussels to work on her new sci-fi play, Cosmos. She is currently making a radio adaptation of Villiers de l’Isle-Adam’s Ève Future. She was in residence at the National Archives (BAnQ) to research material for her new play, Apparitions, a gothic retelling of Montreal’s history. Marie-Claude is also a dramaturg and has worked with several leading directors including Christian Lapointe (Sauvageau Sauvageau and Constituons!), Benoît Vermeulen (Bilan at TNM) and Marc Beaupré (L’Iliade). Marie-Claude has also been involved with many prestigious Canadian theatrical institutions. Upon returning from her M.phil in Glasgow, she was hired by the National Arts Centre as coordinator for the youth section under thedirectorship of Denis Marleau and Wajdi Mouawad. She later moved to Montreal to become head of CEAD’s documentation centre. She now works at the National Theatre School of Canada’s library.” www.agencerbl.com/en/talents/marie-claude-verdier/
Showcase
A Glimpse into New Translation: Seeker
By Marie-Claude Verdier
Translated by Alexis Diamond
Translated from Seeker (Quebec, Canada)
Discover the leading new works of francophone Canadian theatre, and meet the playwrights and their translators.
Pan Canadian New Translation Workshop: Andy’s Gone
ANDY’S GONE by Marie-Claude Verdier (Vancouver, Montreal & London)
Translation Workshop: I’m Not Here
In a torrent of words, a young woman describes her unraveling daily existence, slipping inevitably towards the brutal unknown. Between her boss’s cupcake schedule and the distractions of her life as an urban singleton, she breaks down: a total implosion. Nothing’s ever over because nothing ever starts.
West Coast
English Language Premiere