Months after language controversy, Repercussion Theatre makes its Brossard debut

CTV Montreal: Theatre in the park Months after a language controversy, the Repercussion Theatre opened its production of Julius Caesar in a Brossard park.

Months after a language flap nearly derailed its plans, the Repercussion Theatre Company was able to make the show go on in Brossard on Tuesday evening with a performance of Shakespeare’s ‘Julius Caesar.’

“We have a lot of people from the South Shore who come to see us in other places on the island and say, ‘Why don’t you come play on the South Shore?’ said the theatre’s artistic director Amanda Kellock. “So we’re excited to finally be here in Brossard.”

In December, the city denied the company’s request to perform in a park, saying they didn’t allow plays to be performed in English.

“So that was a bit of a back-and-forth, just wondering if that was actually accurate, that they don’t do programming in English and what about the Anglophone population in Brossard?” said Kellock.

Once the issue went public, residents began contacting the city to complain. In January, the city reversed its decision, saying the whole thing was a miscommunication.

On Tuesday, several councillors attended the all-female performance of the classic tragedy.

“It was a big mistake from one person and we solved that problem,” said councillor Serge Seguin.

For their part, the audience was appreciative of a chance to catch one of the Bard’s most famous plays outdoors and in its writer’s language.

“It’s very rare that we have any events in English, so we wanted to support this event and hopefully there’ll be more,” said one attendee.