Opening production of the Festival du Monde Arabe’s 20th anniversary

Et la Femme chanta Dieu

At the dawn of his creation, Man was already complaining pitifully of his loneliness. God created Woman, and Woman recreated Man and sang of her God!

A great artistic community, consisting entirely of women, will be performing this liturgical rite on the stage of the Théâtre Maisonneuve to extol the Almighty, with whom they share the mysteries of creation. Three female singers, accompanied by more than 25 female musicians, choristers and dancers, along with a whirling dervish, will be meeting and joining forces, with exhilaration and ecstasy, to transcend the fractures of a world afflicted by decay.

On the evening of October 25, we shall be praying behind Them, Priestesses of a future era, celebrating a just, gentle and loving rite. They will be singing and dancing to remake paradise, wafting some of the warmth of their hearths, where the true taste of heaven, honey and love may be found.

Where better nowadays than the holy stage of a performance venue to foil arbitrary aspects of religions and to rediscover the reason for the religious life? Who better than Womankind to find in otherness a tiny bit of the same?

Following its two flagship productions The Circle of Ecstasy (2003) and God in 3D (2012), the Festival du Monde Arabe is applying the gauge of womanhood to round out its trilogy of the Sacred for its 20th anniversary opening show. Notched between a pungent sweetness and a provocative devotion, the Place des Arts is where Françoise Atlan, Dorsaf Hamdani and Ghada Shbeir will be lending their voices to sacred chants, whether Jewish, Sufi or Christian, Oriental or Gregorian, bringing vocal offerings to life for two hours, with praise in three dimensions to this God whose outlines, deep meaning and path we are still seeking.

Choreography: Diana Léon
Dancers: Diana Léon, Claire Campbell, Sara Harton, Shraddha D. Blaney (whirling dervish)
Multimedia creation: Hassan Aziz
Musical direction: Katia Makdissi-Warren
Orchestra: OktoEcho

For information and tickets: www.placedesarts.com  514-842-2112 or 1-866-842-2112