In 1740, here in Quebec, the trial of Marguerite Duplessis took place.
Duplessis, a young Aboriginal woman, started a trial to claim her freedom. Bought to be sold, she was set to be embarked immediately on a merchant ship bound for Martinique. This was the first time in the history of New France that a Native person took legal action. It was also the first time that a person who had been enslaved tried to have her right to freedom recognized. Inevitably, Marguerite lost her case and was taken to Martinique. What happened to her afterwards is unknown.
It is Marguerite’s fire that inspired this show. It is the same fire that burns in all the Marguerites, those of yesterday and today, who fight for the recognition of justice. It is the fire of regeneration and recovered memory.
Marguerite: le feu is the stage version of a triad project that takes three forms. The show is accompanied by a podcast series entitled Marguerite : la traversée and a sound journey in the places of memory, Marguerite : la pierre.
