Moby Dick
Plexus Polaire
Hydro-Québec Auditorium
PRESENTED FOR THE FIRST TIME
In French with some English (with French surtitles)
Moby Dick is the tale of a whaling expedition, but it’s also the story of an obsession and an investigation into the unexplained mysteries of life. To quote Melville, “It is the image of the ungraspable phantom of life; and this is the key to it all.”
With seven actors, fifty puppets, video projections, a drowned orchestra and a whale-sized whale, Yngvild Aspeli is working on a visual adaptation of this wonderful beast of a book.
Nov 24 to 26, 2022 — 85 minutes with no intermission $49 — $64
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What People Are Saying...
“This is the magic of a total show. Not to be missed.”
“It’s a creation of great poetic power, melancholic, visually stunning…”
“…[A] dark and powerful philosophical tale.”
“A visually splendid performance.”
The cold and bluish lights, the smoke that envelops the stage, and the musicians with their instruments and their bewitching songs, in English and Norwegian, create an atmosphere that is both mystical and dismal. The puppeteers demonstrate surgical precision, giving fluidity and strength to their wood partners. They don’t hide behind their puppets but interact with them. As the raging Captain Ahab tries to anticipate Moby Dick’s journey, allegories of death dance around him and guide his movements toward what will lead him to his downfall. “All visible objects are just cardboard masks,” yells the captain, beard and hair unkempt. In Moby Dick, the puppets have a soul; they are characters in their own right.
“Yngvild Aspeli’s work is magnificent. The atmosphere created by the lights, video and music is magical. The voices of the actors bring out beautiful passages from Melville’s text; the puppets bring the boat, the crew and the world of the depths to life. They are splendid, disturbing, foolish and bearers of death like Ahab.”
Performers
Actors and Puppeteers
Benoît Seguin
Viktor Lukawski
Andreu Martinez Costa
Daniel Collados
Madeleine Barosen Herholdt
Cristina Iosif
Laëtitia Labre
Credits
Director Yngvild Aspeli
Assistant Director (Québec) David Lejard-Ruffet
Composers Guro Skumsnes Moe and Ane Marthe Sørlien Holen with Havard Skaset
Musicians (live) Guro Skumsnes Moe and Havard Skaset
Puppet Makers Polina Borisova, Yngvild Aspeli, Manon Leblanc, Sebastien Puech and Elise Nicod
Scenographer Elisabeth Holager Lund
Lighting Designers Xavier Lescat and Vincent Loubière
Video Designer David Lejard-Ruffet
Costume Designer Benjamin Moreau
Sound Designer Raphaël Barani
Lighting Technician Morgane Rousseau
Video Technician Hugo Masson
Sound Technician Simon Masson
Stage Technician Xavier Lescat
Assistant Director (Creation) Pierre Tual
Dramaturg Pauline Thimonnier
Outside Eye Paola Rizza
Tour Booking Claire Costa
Administration Anne-Laure Doucet and Gaedig Bonabesse
