Francophone stage director Marie Brassard wins prestigious Siminovitch Prize

Celebrated theatre director Marie Brassard has won the coveted Siminovitch Prize for excellence in Canadian theatre.

It’s the most significant theatre award in Canada. Over a three-year cycle, the accolade celebrates a mid-career director, playwright or designer whose contribution to Canadian theatre is “transformative and influential.” This year, a total of $115,000 has been awarded: $75,000 to the Siminovitch Prize laureate, $25,000 to the Siminovitch protégé and $5,000 to each of the shortlisted artists.

Brassard is a groundbreaking director whose work has been performed on stages around the world. In 2016 she was initiated into the Order of Arts and Letters of Quebec for her contributions to Quebec’s cultural landscape. Brassard has created an enormous reputation for herself as a spirited collaborator and generous leader, known for working well with others to bring her larger-than-life ideas to the stage.

“The jury remarked on the theatrical poetry of Marie Brassard’s work, on its richness and multi-dimensionality,” said Siminovitch Prize jury chair Guillermo Verdecchia in a news release.

“Marie’s work is simultaneously dreamlike, ethereal and immediate, visceral and compelling. She is renowned for her long and patient development of work, for deep listening and for bringing out the best from her collaborators.”

In an interview, Brassard expressed supreme gratitude for the recognition from the Siminovitch Prize committee.

“I had this reaction of disbelief. I didn’t expect to win. I’m very thankful, of course … it’s absolutely lovely.

“It’s especially lovely because I’ve been chosen by my peers,” she continued. “This is recognition of my work by people who are doing the same sort of work in the same field as me. So it’s a very nice push and encouragement.”

Brassard might be a director first and foremost, but she has also written and acted. She rarely stages written plays and often works with her team to devise something totally new, a practice that has foundationally shaped her directorial style.

“I’m not an expert in anything,” she said. “But I’m doing a little of everything. I’m enriching my knowledge from the inside … and now I’m very interested in working with other people and directing other people onstage.”

A key component of the Siminovitch Prize is its emphasis on mentorship. Each award cycle celebrates not only the laureate, but a mentee of the winner’s choosing. Brassard has named Philippe Boutin as her protégé.

“Mentorship is essential when you get to a certain age,” said Brassard. “In my youth I was so encouraged, helped by people older than I was. They really helped to inspire me. And I think especially now, as a director, it’s getting more and more difficult to build a career. The Siminovitch Prize is a genius way of rewarding someone, but it also inspires that person to help another person. I think it’s beautiful.”

Brassard’s “La fureur de ce que je pense” is playing at Espace Go in Montreal through Dec. 3. Brassard will also direct a collective creation with recent theatre school graduates for the National Arts Centre in Ottawa in 2023.