Marcel Pursued by the Hounds

Ian C. Nelson is assistant director of libraries at the University of
Saskatchewan, and président de la Troupe du Jour, Regina Summer Stage.

It seems a shame that the translators of this 1992 play should have used
the felicitous “hounds” in the title while reserving the word
“dogs” for many references within the text. The word “hounds”
evokes a gothic resonance that is certainly more in tune with the
fevered imagination of the main character, the teenage Marcel, who,
fearing dreadful pursuit, seeks refuge with his sister Thérиse.

Michel Tremblay portrays life on la rue Fabre and the Main in Montreal
with new twists of filial pettiness and vengeance. A chorus of
Québécoise fates provide a dramatic setting for the brother-and-sister
confessional and an occasional counterpoint to what is essentially a
narrative by two voices braving the chaos of the night. Basically, the
play deals with the terror of the outside world, and how Marcel derives
consolation from the voices in his head. One can’t help thinking that
his cri de coeur —“I don’t always see things like the rest of you,
I don’t think like the rest of you”—is that of the playwright
himself.