CITÉ MÉMOIRE MONTRÉAL
In Old Montreal, the Old Port of Montreal, Downtown and Pointe-aux-Trembles, the work emerges right from the walls that surround us and the ground we walk on.
DOWNLOAD OR UPDATE THE FREE MONTRÉAL EN HISTOIRES APP
CITÉ MÉMOIRE MONTRÉAL
In Old Montreal, the Old Port of Montreal, Downtown and Pointe-aux-Trembles, the work emerges right from the walls that surround us and the ground we walk on.
For a complete Cité Mémoire experience, download the free Montréal en Histoires application and its contents. The soundtrack and historical contexts are available in 4 languages.
THE TABLEAUX
The tableaux presented in Cité Mémoire cover a range of milestones in Montréal’s history, well-known (or not so well-known) characters, or sometimes a local slice of life. Narrative or impressionist, touching or amusing, they express our values of coexistence, innovation, tolerance and generosity that are the foundation of our city.
Cité Mémoire’s Grand Tableau
Cité Mémoire’s Grand Tableau provides an overview of more than 375 years of Montréal’s history, using music and images projected onto the imposing walls of the Montréal Courthouse.
CHAMP-DE-MARS WITH SURROUND SOUND
Schedule
December 20 to January 6, 2025; Every day
January 7 to March 1, 2025; Friday and Saturday
Dorimène and Alphonse
A pioneering couple of entrepreneurs, Alphonse and Dorimène Desjardins work hand in hand to found and ensure the success of the first savings and credit cooperative in America.
COMPLEXE DESJARDINS
150, RUE SAINTE-CATHERINE WEST
The Point of the Island
Navigate through the history of Vieux-Pointe-aux-Trembles, beginning more than 13,000 years ago, in a constantly evolving journey where history, poetry and humanity meet.
POINTE-AUX-TREMBLES
PLACE DE VILLAGE DE POINTE-AUX-TREMBLES – NOTRE-DAME E. STREET
THE QUEEN ELIZABETH HOTEL
900, BOUL. RENÉ-LÉVESQUE WEST
For the schedule, contact the hotel
514-861-3511
The Bed-In
Illustrating John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s stay at the Queen Elizabeth hotel in 1969.
Agora at Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth hotel
The Agora Cité Mémoire
Great periods in Montréal’s history and some symbolic places and compelling people who used to live in Montréal.
Agora at Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth hotel
The interactive river
Symbolizes the time elapsed throughout Montréal’s history.
Underground walkway at the Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth hotel which leads to Place Ville-Marie.
APPLICATION
Download the Montréal en Histoires free application
The Montréal en Histoires free app is the best way to learn about Montreal’s history, with virtual and augmented realities, as well as points of interest. It allows you to enjoy the Cité Mémoire experience.
Get the best EXPERIENCE
DOWNLOAD OR UPDATE THE FREE MONTRÉAL EN HISTOIRES APP
CHOOSE AND DOWNLOAD YOUR CIRCUIT
BRING ALONG SOME EARPHONES
GO TO THE SUGGESTED DEPARTURE POINT IN THE CHOSEN SECTOR
CONNECT TO THE FREE MTL WIFI NETWORK
LEARN MORE ABOUT MONTRÉAL EN HISTOIRES’ APP WITH THE TUTORIAL
THE ARTISTS
MICHEL LEMIEUX
O.C., C.Q., C.A.L.Q.
The originality and scope of Michel Lemieux’s extraordinary creations have been astounding audiences since 1979, when he graduated from the National Theatre School of Canada’s production program. As far back as 1982, Lemieux’s onstage creations were already fusions of music, images, performance and projections. In addition to making an indelible mark on the national scene, L’Oeil rechargeable and Solid Salad were among the first Quebec productions to tour extensively around the world. Ever since, this multidisciplinary artist has defied classification. A creator, set designer, director, composer, performer and videographer, Lemieux continues to be at the forefront of the performing arts.
Lemieux’s meeting with Victor Pilon in 1990 marked a turning point in an already well-established career. With their production company Lemieux Pilon 4D Art, they devise singular shows in which new technologies intensify the audience’s sensory and emotional experience. The duo masterfully integrates theatre, film, dance, poetry, visual arts, music and sound to create unique theatrical worlds. Their close collaboration has yielded Dreamscapes, the installation presented at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts to mark the company’s 30th anniversary, Icare, La Belle et la Bête, Shakespeare’s The Tempest and NORMAN, a tribute to Canadian filmmaker Norman McLaren. Their partnership with the Montreal and Quebec opera companies resulted in the opera Starmania. TORUK—The First Flight was their fourth collaboration with Cirque du Soleil, after Delirium, Midnight Sun—which jointly commemorated the 20th anniversary of the Cirque du Soleil and the 25th anniversary of the Montreal International Jazz Festival—as well as a number for the show Michael Jackson ONE. They created Continuum, a production based on Philip Glass’s music catalogue, the first multimedia show presented at the Rio Tinto planetarium in Montreal. The duo also collaborates regularly on exhibitions and special events. With over 30 works to their credit, Michel Lemieux and Victor Pilon have garnered acclaim in Canada, the United States, Europe, Latin America, Australia and Asia.
Created in collaboration with Michel Marc Bouchard, Cité Mémoire, an urban multimedia experience, is their latest production.
VICTOR PILON
O.C., C.Q., C.A.L.Q.
Victor Pilon belongs to the first generation of artists described as multidisciplinary creators. A director, set designer, visual designer and photographer, he works on stage productions as well as large-scale public events. In the early 1980s, after two years in Europe, Pilon received a Bachelor’s degree in visual arts with a specialization in photography. As the Canadian government’s official photographer, Pilon has covered more than 30 visits by the British Royal Family. He has also photographed various other heads of state during their official visits to Quebec and Canada. Pilon’s work as a visual artist has been exhibited in galleries across Canada. His pieces are housed in the Canada Council Art Bank and Library and Archives Canada collection. A book on his artwork was published in 1988.
In the early 1990s, after moving to Montreal, Victor Pilon met the artist who would become his greatest collaborator: Michel Lemieux. With their production company Lemieux Pilon 4D Art, they devise singular shows in which new technologies intensify the audience’s sensory and emotional experience. The duo masterfully integrates theatre, film, dance, poetry, visual arts, music and sound to create unique theatrical worlds. Their close collaboration has yielded Territoires oniriques, the installation presented at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts to mark the company’s 30th anniversary, Icare, La Belle et la Bête, Shakespeare’s The Tempest and NORMAN, a tribute to Canadian filmmaker Norman McLaren. Their partnership with the Montreal and Quebec opera companies resulted in the opera Starmania. TORUK – The First Flight was their fourth collaboration with Cirque du Soleil, after DELIRIUM, Midnight Sun–which jointly commemorated the 20th anniversary of the Cirque du Soleil and the 25th anniversary of the Montreal International Jazz Festival–as well as a number for the show Michael Jackson ONE. They created Continuum, a production based on Philip Glass’s music catalogue, the first multimedia show presented at the Rio Tinto planetarium in Montreal. The duo also collaborates regularly on exhibitions and special events. With over 30 works to their credit, Michel Lemieux and Victor Pilon have garnered acclaim in Canada, the United States, Europe, Latin America, Australia and Asia.
Created in collaboration with Michel Marc Bouchard, Cité Mémoire, an urban multimedia experience, is their latest production.
MICHEL MARC BOUCHARD
O.C., C.Q.
Michel Marc Bouchard has written more than 25 plays, which have been translated and performed all over the world. Lilies, The Orphan Muses, The Tale of Teeka, The Coronation Voyage, Down Dangerous Passes Road and, more recently, Tom at the Farm, Christine, The Girl King and The Divine; a play for Sarah Bernhardt are his most well-known works. Michel Marc Bouchard has received many awards, including the National Arts Centre Award, the Chalmer’s Award, the Dora Mavor Moore Award, the Betty Mitchel Award, theatrical critics’ association awards in Quebec and Mexico, as well as the Primo Arte Candoni in Italy, the SACD Award in Paris, the American Lambda Award, the Gascon-Thomas and the Prix Laurent-McCautcheon. He is an Officer of the Order of Canada, a Knight of the National Order of Quebec and a member of the Académie des lettres du Québec. The film (Les Feluettes, The Orphan Muses and Heat Wave) and television adaptations (The Tale of Teeka) of his plays have earned him many awards including the 1996 Génie Award for Best Film and the Gémeaux for Best Dramatic Program in 1998. The film adaptation of Tom at the Farm directed by Xavier Dolan earned numerous awards including the International Critics Award at the 2013 Mostra in Venice. The year 2016 saw the release of La Reine-garçon by Mika Kaurismaki, the Finnish director for whom Bouchard wrote the screenplay, as well as the lyrical adaptation of his play Les Feluettes by the Opéra de Montréal. Bouchard was also behind the following major historic and thematic exhibits: Ludovica, Histoires de Québec (1998) for the Musée de l’Amérique française in Québec City, presented again in 2001 at the Museum of Aquitaine in Bordeaux, France; Talons et tentations (2001), for the Musée de la Civilisation in Québec City ; Maria Chapdelaine, Vérités et mensonges (2002), at the Musée Louis Hémon, Péribonka, Québec ; and the inaugural exhibition of the Grande Bibliothèque du Québec à Montréal Tous ces livres sont à toi ! (2005), presented again at the Musée de la Civilisation (2007).
Created with Michel Lemieux and Victor Pilon, Cité Mémoire, an urban multimedia experience, is the latest production to which he has contributed as a writer and dramaturg.
Tableaux past
On December 22, 2024, the Cité Mémoire grand tour, established in Old Montreal since 2016, closes.
After illuminating and animating Old Montreal for the past 9 years, these fabulous projections have charmed thousands of spectators from near and far.