Bouche Theatre Collective

Speak Beyond Language

This translation was made possible by a grant from Canada Council for the Arts.

L’Amour looks something like you

By Eric Noel
Translated to English by Rhiannon Collett

Both theatre and an intimate diary, L’Amoure Looks Something Like You is inspired by Kate Bush’s music and real events in May 2020.  Imagine a mystical and telepathic love story between a humpback whale lost in fresh water and a non-binary person confined to Tiohtiake-Mooniyang-Montreal Island. In a dead-end world where revolutions are struggling to happen, where whales are venturing into hostile territories and where the systemic violence of our societies forces us to take refuge in ourselves, two sacred beings rise and dream together of new and mysterious forms of love. Beyond fear and despair, their love is one of resistance, transgressing the barriers of language, gender and species.

L’Amoure Looks Something Like You received a development workshops at Actoral Festival, (Marseille, 2020) and OFFTA (Montréal, 2021).  The play will be produced at the Salle Fred-Barry, Théâtre Denise-Pelletier (TDP), Montréal, produced by Production Exlibris and TDP, in September 2023.

Meet the Playwright & Translator

About the playwright

Eric Noel

(Iel)

Eric Noel (they, them) is a Quebecois playwright and graduate of NTS French language writing program. They are the author of Faire des enfants (2009), Tirade pour Henri (2010), Ces regards amoureux de garçons altérés (2015) and L’Amoure Looks Something Like You (2020). They are also the author of a libretto for an opera by Vincent-Olivier Gagnon, Sans électricité, les oiseaux disparaissent (2009), and the children’s theatre piece La Mère, le Père, le Petit et le Grand (2012). They also adapted Saint-Exupéry’s The Little Prince for Theatre La Roulotte Asteroid B612 (2018).

About the translator

Rhiannon Collett

(They, Them)

Rhiannon Collett is an award-winning non-binary playwright, performer, director and translator based in Montreal and Toronto. Their work explores the ritualization of grief, gender performativity, queer/trans identity and the psychological effects of sexual objectification. Selected playwriting credits include Miranda & Dave Begin Again (2016 Playwrights Guild of Canada RBC Emerging Playwright Award); Wasp; The Kissing Game); Tragic Queens; La Somnambule (an immersive, site-specific adaptation of Djuna Barnes’ Nightwood); The Revolutions (commissioned and produced by Spiderwebshow, a cross-country collaboration featuring artists broadcast live from Montreal, Toronto, Kingston and Vancouver); There are No Rats in Alberta. Their theatre criticism has been featured in The Globe and Mail, Now Magazine, Intermission Magazine and HowlRound. www.rhiannoncollett.com

Related Projects & News 

Artists in Conversation – Contemporary Writing in Canada & USA

Artists in Conversation – Contemporary Writing in Canada & USA

Tues, Feb 23 at 14:30 PST | Free
Co-writers Marie-Ève Milot and Marie-Claude St-Laurent with translator Rhiannon Collett join Brittany K. Allen (Studio Theatre, Washington USA) and Keith Barker (Playwrights Guild of Canada) in conversation and introduce excerpts from their latest works.