Upstaged

The Omicron variant caused plenty of drama for Quebec’s theatre industry. On December 20, 2021, the premier, François Legault, shuttered all performance venues with four hours’ notice. They were permitted to reopen in February at half capacity, with the ironic result that the most popular shows were cancelled, as there was no fair way to distribute the tickets. For an art form that depends on physical presence for much of its appeal, the pandemic has been punishing. Against this backdrop, spending time with plays recently published by Atelier 10 is both a reminder of what’s been lost and a source of hope for what’s to come.

Atelier 10 is a Montreal collective, supported by the Université du Québec à Montréal, that releases the twice-yearly cultural magazine Nouveau projet, as well as Documents, a series of essays on contemporary social dilemmas. The most original of its offerings, however, is Pièces, a series that features new drama. Three or...