Biography
Michel Tremblay (born June 25, 1942) is a French-Canadian novelist and playwright.
Born in Montreal, Quebec, Tremblay grew up in the French-speaking Plateau Mont-Royal neighborhood, which at the time was a working-class area characterized by the joual dialect—an influence that deeply shaped his work. His first professionally produced play, Les Belles-Sœurs, written in 1965, premiered at the Théâtre du Rideau Vert on August 28, 1968. This play revolutionized Canadian theatre by introducing joual to mainstream audiences and sparked controversy through its portrayal of working-class women's lives and critique of the conservative, religious society in mid-20th century Quebec.
Tremblay's early plays, including Hosanna and La Duchesse de Langeais, had a profound impact by breaking down societal barriers in Quebec. Prior to the Quiet Revolution in the early 1960s, Tremblay viewed Quebec as a poor, working-class province ruled by an English-speaking elite and the Roman Catholic Church. His work was part of a progressive, nationalist movement that contributed to the development of a modern Quebec society. Many of his notable plays focus on gay characters; Hosanna, performed in 1973 at Montreal's Théâtre de Quat'Sous, was the first Canadian play both about and starring a drag queen. The women in his plays are often portrayed as strong yet struggling with inner demons. He is thought to depict Quebec as a matriarchal society and is regarded as one of the finest playwrights for female characters. In the late 1980s, Les Belles-sœurs was adapted into Scots as The Guid-Sisters and produced in Scotland. His works have been translated into numerous languages, including Yiddish, and include titles such as Sainte-Carmen de la Main, Ç'ta ton tour, Laura Cadieux, and Forever Yours, Marilou (À toi pour toujours, ta Marie-Lou).
Openly gay throughout his career, Tremblay has written numerous novels—such as The Duchess and the Commoner, La nuit des princes charmants, Le Coeur découvert, and Le Coeur éclaté—and plays like Hosanna, La duchesse de Langeais, and Fragments de mensonges inutiles, all featuring gay protagonists. In a 1987 CBC Radio interview with Shelagh Rogers on The Arts Tonight, he shared that he has always avoided traditionally masculine behaviors; for example, he does not smoke and, at age 45, did not know how to drive a car. "I think I am a rare breed," he said, "A homosexual who doesn't like men." He has expressed regret for not having told his mother about his sexuality before her passing.
