Playwright of Filipino and Chinese origin Marie Leofeli Romero Barlizo won last night the Jovette-Marchessault prize, awarded this year to theater authors.
The prize, which aims to recognize and promote the contribution of female artists to the Montreal theater community, is accompanied by a $ 20,000 scholarship, which will be awarded by the Conseil des arts de Montréal to the winner.
Marie Leofeli Romero Barlizo’s deep commitment to the theatrical environment contributes to performing, then being heard, the essential voices of diversitysaid the Montreal Arts Council in a press release.
Marie Leofeli Romero Barlizo runs with Fanny Britt and Rebecca Deraspe.
Tiohtià: ke [Montréal] is my home and my heart. This land is home to the stories of so many unknown to our history, cinemas and mediasaid the author in a statement after receiving this award, which was presented to him at Espace GO in Montreal. The contributions of Filipinos and Filipinos in Canada and the province of Quebec have long been ignored […] They and they are the reason I keep writing. Their stories need to be told. This award is very important to me.
A big determination
Born in the Philippines, Marie Leofeli Romero Barlizo moved to Montreal with her parents when she was just five years old. She first had to fight to convince them of the viability of her artistic career, because in their eyes, their daughter’s success did not go through art and their sacrifices in this direction were worthless if she continued to this domain.
After graduating with a BA in theater from Concordia University in 1999, he became the first member of the visible minority to graduate from the English playwriting program at the National Theater School of Canada in 2002. He also holds an MFA from the University of British Columbia.
Author of a dozen plays, he has aroused the interest of several theater companies, such as the Centaur Theater and Geordie Theater in Montreal, or the Carlos Bulosan Theater in Toronto.
In my plays, I write about shame, survival, addiction, trauma, and mental illness. My writing is more inspired by watching my parents sacrifice their dreams so that me and my sister can have a better life.he explained in a press release.
During his stay at the Imago Theater, for example, he created the play The warriorbased on the tragic story of his uncle’s family, victims of atrocities committed by the Japanese army during World War II.
Source: Radio-Canada
