Martin C. Barry
North Shore Liberal MPs Ramez Ayoub (Thérèse-de Blainville) and Linda Lapointe (Rivière-des-Mille-Îles) held a press conference outside the Odyscène theatre in Sainte-Thérèse last week to announce the organization is receiving a $73,000 grant from the federal government’s Canada Arts Presentation Fund to continue promoting local theatrical presentations.
Supported by cities
Odyscène is subsidized by seven North Shore cities: Blainville, Boisbriand, Bois-des-Filion, Lorraine, Rosemère, Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines and Sainte-Thérèse. The company helps stage more than 225 shows annually in three venues, reaching an audience of more than 90,000 in the process each year.
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Under the auspices of the Canadian Heritage Ministry, the CAPF provides financial assistance to organizations that professionally present arts festivals or performing arts series and organizations that offer support to arts presenters.
The CAPF helps provide access to a variety of professional artistic experiences in communities across the country.
Subsidy from Ottawa
Each year, the CAPF supports approximately 600 professional arts festivals and performing arts series, as well as other activities related to art presentation, in more than 250 cities or communities across Canada.
Ramez Ayoub said he was very pleased with the measures taken by the government to come to the assistance of theatre groups like Odyscène.
“The CAPF, which is an important component of Heritage Canada, makes a huge difference for organizations like Odyscène which work hard to promote and showcase the many artistic talents in Canada,” he said.
Helping theatre and the arts
“The arts have a particularly fundamental place in our culture and it is of utmost importance to allow our citizens to be able to see and celebrate them.”
Linda Lapointe was equally pleased to see Odyscène receiving the subsidy. “I am extremely proud of the work that Odyscène has been doing for 32 years now,” she said.
“Since its inception, access to culture has gone up exponentially in the Lower Laurentian region. Odyscène offers a great diversity of shows and it is just incredible to see that people now have access to such a diverse amount of programming.
Subsidies important: Lapointe
“Cultural activities also continue to take place because the governments are there to provide support,” she continued. “My riding, part of which is also in the MRC of Deux-Montagnes, also has the church in Saint-Eustache that offers shows.
“They are not competing with Odyscène, but this way people don’t have to go to Montreal to see shows. Heritage Canada is encouraging the arts precisely for this reason.”
