The Mysterious Metamorphosis of Mr. and Mrs. Tacet

Our Creators

VÉRONIKA MAKDISSI-WARREN
Stage Director

Actress and stage director Véronika Makdissi-Warren is a graduate of the Conservatoire d’Art Dramatique de Québec and was trained in violin at the Conservatoire de Musique. A clowning enthusiast, she has created several shows, including Mammouth et Maggie, Moi aussi and King Lear contre-attaque. From 2003 to 2008, the actress travelled the world to act in two Ex Machina creations directed by Robert Lepage: La trilogie des dragons and The Busker’s Opera. She has also directed numerous productions, including Le psychomaton by Anne-Marie Olivier. A member of Théâtre Niveau Parking since 1999, Véronika has participated in a number of its productions, including Lentement la beauté, On achève bien les chevaux, Act of God and Le Dieu du carnage.

Véronika passes on her experience by teaching clowning and theatrical tactics, among other subjects, at the Conservatoire d’Art Dramatique de Québec. Since September 2018, the actress has served as L’Aubergine’s artistic director. A close collaborator of Les P’tits Mélomanes du Dimanche, Véronika Makdissi-Warren created the youth concerts La Mystérieuse Métamorphose de M. et Mme Tacet and Le petit musicien, featuring the Orchestre Symphonique de Québec.
 

CHRISTIAN FONTAINE
Set Design and Lighting

Christian Fontaine completed his studies in set design at the Conservatoire d’art dramatique de Québec in 1987. Since then, he has worked on over a hundred shows with multiple companies as a set and lighting designer, including designing the set and lighting for L’Aubergine’s production Gaspashow in 1993. In recent years, he has designed, among others, the set for Waiting for Godot (Théâtre de La Bordée), for which he won the Prix Jacques-Pelletier, War and Peace (Théâtre du Sous-Marin Jaune), and Les Misérables (Le Capitole). Most recently, he was the assistant set designer for the production Quills (Ex Machina).
 
He has been teaching set design at the Conservatoire d’art dramatique de Québec since 2009.

MAURICE LAFOREST
Musical Conception

A native of Rivière-du-Loup, Quebec, Maurice Laforest first learned piano from his mother. He went on to complete studies at Cégep de Sainte-Foy in Quebec City under the direction of Michèle Royer, and then at Université Laval under Robert Weisz. He also received instruction from such great masters as György Sebök, Menahem Pressler, Anton Kuerti and Brigitte Engerer. From 1997 to 1999, thanks to a research grant from Fonds FCAR, Maurice continued his training with pianist Robert Leonardy at the Saarbrücken music conservatory in Germany.

Maurice Laforest has given concerts in Switzerland, Italy, Germany, France and Quebec. He has also been invited as a soloist to the Orchestre Symphonique de Québec and the Orchestre Symphonique de l’Estuaire, as well as the Festival de Musique de Chambre de Sainte-Pétronille and the Concerts aux Îles du Bic. Maurice also plays piano and celesta with the Orchestre Symphonique de Québec.

He devotes a significant part of his time to training the next generation, both at the École Préparatoire de Musique Anna-Marie-Globenski and as a lecturer at Université Laval. He is the instigator and artistic director of the children's series Les P'tits Mélomanes du Dimanche, one of whose productions won the Prix Opus in the Young Audience Production of the Year category in 2021.

PATRICK OUELLET
Actor

Patrick Ouellet already had 14 years of musical training under his belt in his native home of Gaspé and in Montreal when he began studying acting at the Conservatoire d’art dramatique de Québec in 1997, completing his studies in 2000. Since then, he has starred in one musical theatre production after another. Audiences saw his musical prowess and acting talent on display in Les leçons de Maria Callas (2002), La bonne âme du Setchouan (2004), Satie: agacerie en tête de bois (2005), and Festen (2005). At Théâtre du Trident, he has played various roles over the years in Les enrobantes, Thérèse et Pierrette à l’école des Saints-Anges, Night of the Kings, The Threepenny Opera, The Green Bird, Jacques the Fatalist, and Antigone.
 
In 2007, with Théâtre Blanc, Patrick composed and played music for Frank, le garçon boucher, a co-production created in Brussels and Mons, Belgium. His music for Frank, le garçon boucher, La robe de Gulnara, and Frontières was nominated for multiple awards. His company, Campe, won the Bernard-Bonnier award in 2014 for the original music in Détour de chant. Most recently, he played Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
 
Since 2004, Patrick has taught voice and musical ear training at the Conservatoire d’art dramatique de Québec.

JOCELYN PARÉ
Actor

Jocelyn Paré is an actor and director from the Quebec City area with over ten years experience in theatre. Since graduating from the Conservatoire d’art dramatique de Québec in 2010, he has trod the stages of Théâtre du Trident (The Caucasian Chalk Circle, Romeo and Juliet), Théâtre de la Bordée (The Miser, CHSLD), and Théâtre Premier Acte (Trois nuits avec Madox, Rashomon). He has toured Quebec and Ontario with the production Danse de garçon (Montreal, Ottawa) and the children’s show The Mysterious Metamorphosis of Monsieur and Madame Tacet (Quebec City, Sherbrooke). On screen, you can catch him in various TV shows (Complexe G, Plan B, Une autre histoire, Escouade 99, La dérape), short films (La divine stratégie), and commercials (Tim Hortons, Hyundai). He is also the cofounder of La Trâlée, a company that creates original theatrical productions including object theatre and outdoor shows. The company’s latest production, Rashomon, was named show of the year for the 2018–2019 season by the AQCT (Association québécoise des critiques de théâtre).

In recent years, Jocelyn has taught acting at the École de cirque de Québec, as well as directed Théâtre sur la place and emceed the Cégep en spectacle contest at Cégep de Lévis-Lauzon.

KARINA WERNECK ASSIS
Actor

Brazilian actor Karina Werneck Assis has lived in Quebec since 2001. She studied at the Conservatory for Dramatic Arts at the Palace of Arts in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. While there, she had the opportunity to play various iconic roles in productions such as Salome by Oscar Wilde (directed by Antônio Melo) and Lysistrata by Aristophanes (directed by Rita Clemente).
 
Karina has been with L’Aubergine since 2008, where she has been perfecting her clowning skills in a touring production of Burletta under the direction of Paul Vachon, Michel Dallaire, and Christine Rossignol. In 2009, she joined the artists working for the Dr. Clown Foundation.