As part of its « 55 Years of television» cycle, Alliance française de Toronto revisits the path and works of one of the most important anthropologists of the 20th century, Claude Lévi-Strauss, with :

A special screening of the Apostrophes literary TV program devoted to Claude Lévi-Strauss

The screening will be followed by a Q&A with professor Michael Lambek

Born in 1908 in Brussels of French parents, Claude Lévi-Strauss studied law and philosophy in Paris. His career as an ethnologist began in 1934, as he was offered a position teaching sociology in São Paulo, where he remained until 1939. During this stay, he spent time among the Nambikwara, Caduvéo and Bororo native peoples, doing fieldwork and research, an activity he would pursue throughout his life. Claude Lévi-Strauss’ work marked the entry of anthropology in the field of French social studies during the 1960’s, and contributed significantly to the school of thought known as structuralism.

Michael Lambek is Professor of Anthropology at the University of Toronto and author of Knowledge and Practice in Mayotte (1993) and Human Spirits (1981), and co-editor of Tense Past: Cultural Essays in Trauma and Memory (with Paul Antze 1996.

Originally released : 09/09/1988

Duration : 1h56 minutes

La Route enchantée

A cabaret-chanson featuring Soozi Schlanger (guitar, violin, voice), Roxanne Potvin (guitar, voice), and Emilyn Stam (piano, violin, accordion, voice)

First, there is the desire to go find out what’s out there. Then there is the escape that the road offers, where one must lose oneself before finding oneself. Then, there is the end of the road and the inevitable questions: Have I reached my destination? What have I learned? On life’s journey, every stop is a song, an opportunity to reflect on what we witness and experience. In the footsteps of the memorable Racines et errance cabaret presented last year at AFT, Soozi Schlanger, Roxanne Potvin and Emilyn Stam present La route (en)chantée, a new project at the crossroads between chanson and theatre, with a extraordinary musical program featuring famous and lesser-known songs by Félix Leclerc, Noir Désir, Georges Moustaki, Louise Attaque and Gilles Vigneault, to name but a few.

Alliance française invites you to discover one of the most important composers of our time, with a conference by Mr. Philippe Leroux himself:

Philippe Leroux

Contemporary music: Defining one’s style in relation to the main currents of 20thcentury music

by Philippe Leroux

This conference will retrace the key works of Philippe Leroux, with numerous visual and musical illustrations. It will also allow us to explore the defining characteristics of the style and aesthetic of a 21st century composer, in relation to the various movements which marked the evolution of contemporary music since the 1960’s.

Born in 1959 in Boulogne (France), Philippe Leroux joined the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris in 1978. He was awarded three first prizes, and studied with such luminaries as Ivo Malec, Olivier Messiaen, and Ianis Xenakis. He has composed over 50 works of acousmatic, vocal, chamber, symphonic and electronic music, commissioned by French and foreign institutions, including the French Ministry of Culture and and the Radio-France Philharmony. His works, which earned him many awards, are performed in some of the most important international festivals. He regularly publishes articles on contemporary music and gives conferences and classes on composition at the Royaumont Foundation, IRCAM, in the USA’s most prestigious universities and the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in France.

Alliance française is pleased to present its new exhibit :

INVASION

INVASION is a work of art comprised of hundreds of elements scattered throughout the city, both in public and private spaces. Its individual components are small paper insect sculptures, based on some of the species commonly found in Ontario. INVASION is a community arts project created in partnership with Gabrielle Roy elementary school, in which artist Paul Walty has invited children and adults to work with him. Each participant must create three sculptures: one to set up at home, one to hang in a school, a store or a library, and a third to be displayed at Alliance française.

Visual artist Paul Walty is a graduate of U of T and OCAD. For the past 25 years, he has offered workshops in various schools in Ontario and Quebec. Walty is a member of numerous francophone artist centres. He is also the president of ARCCO (Association des centres d’artistes autogérés et des collectifs de l’Ontario).

As part of its Universciné cycle, AFT presents:

Le Tango des Rashevski
by Sam Garbarski

With Ludmila Mikaël, Michel Jonasz, Hippolyte Girardot

Our story begins with the death of Rosa, the Rashevski grandmother. Although she hated religion and rabbis, she had reserved a plot in the Jewish section of the cemetary. The Rashevski family is at a loss. Suddenly assailed by these new preoccupations, they cannot reach an agreement on how grandma should be buried...

Duration : 1h40min – Originally released : 2003

Two exceptional concerts of Philippe Leroux’s music in Toronto! Two can’t-miss events for contemporary music lovers...

Both concerts are presented by the RCM Glenn Gould School New Music Ensemble.

The December 3rd concert will be conducted by Brian Current, and the program will be comprised of works by M. Leroux, M. Lemay, M. Niculescu, and M. Lludgar.

The December 4th concert will be devoted exclusively to Mr. Leroux’s works (ALLER, Continuons, and Veni Sancte).

Cinema

Un conte de Noël
by Arnaud Desplechin

With Catherine Deneuve and Mathieu Amalric

Date de sortie : 2008, France – durée : 150 minutes

L’Île de Black Mor
by Jean-François Laguionie

Date de sortie : 2004 – durée : 85 minutes

A creation by the theatre français de Toronto

When exotic gardens flourish at the same time

Three one-act pieces in the same evening. A new work particularly close to our heart that celebrates the diversity of the French-speaking world.

Le Domestique is a short one-act monologue where a black servant exchanges views with his mistress, a rich, white, narrow-minded widow

In Rendez-vous Lakay news of their father's death comes to Canada, their mother sends sisters Josephine and Suzette on a trip to Haiti to bury a man they hardly knew. Josephine, whose memories of her father are clearer, is riddled with angst. Suzette has very little recollection of her father and looks forward to the trip as a free vacation. Les Noirs sont heureux is a boisterous settling of scores between a black married couple and a Russian expert on African studies. Inspired by a piece by Courteline, Martin-David Peters updates a classical comedy of the French theatre, putting it in a Torontonian context.

Concert with "Claire & Tom" Claire et Tom, charming and piquant, with piano and voice play well-loved (plus under-loved) French songs.

followed by Beats and rythms by DJ Nono (Accordeon, Rock, Reggae, DanceHall, Hip-Hop, Arabic, African, Soukouss, Zouk, Rai'nB, Salsa,...)