The Invisible Man makes an appearance at Zoofest

As many a Montrealer can attest, there is a strange feeling of dislocatedness that comes with living between two cultures. This is the focus of Franco-Ontarian poet Patrice Desbiens’ The Invisible Man, a deeply personal piece about struggling to find a sense of belonging, both culturally and personally.

Local director Harry Standjofski has adapted Desbiens’ poetry book into a bilingual theatre piece of the same title, which begins its three-night run at Zoofest this evening. The Invisible Man has already had a short run here in Montreal, and returns to town after a recent well-received stint in Kingston. The two-man play, like its semi-autobiographical source book, flips back and forth between the two languages, each giving a unique nuance or flavour to the part of the story it tells.

Guillaume Tremblay and Jimmy Blais in The Invisible Man

Guillaume Tremblay and Jimmy Blais in The Invisible Man

As many a Montrealer can attest, there is a strange feeling of dislocatedness that comes with living between two cultures. This is the focus of Franco-Ontarian poet Patrice Desbiens’ The Invisible Man, a deeply personal piece about struggling to find a sense of belonging, both culturally and personally.

Local director Harry Standjofski has adapted Desbiens’ poetry book into a bilingual theatre piece of the same title, which begins its three-night run at Zoofest this evening. The Invisible Man has already had a short run here in Montreal, and returns to town after a recent well-received stint in Kingston. The two-man play, like its semi-autobiographical source book, flips back and forth between the two languages, each giving a unique nuance or flavour to the part of the story it tells.

Jimmy Blais, who plays the brain in the story, describes how, in the original poetry book, “the page is divided into two, on one side it’s in French, on the other it’s in English. At first it is an almost direct translation of the other, and as the story unfolds there are clear differences and lovely nuances between the languages all the while telling the same story.” He adds that, “it’s not a conventional plot because it’s not a conventional play.” ■

The Invisible Man runs July 26 – 28 at Balustrade – Monument-National 8:45 p.m., $21

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