“It looks like I'm slowly mastering it,” says Louis-José Houde during a conversation in the brothel's dressing rooms between two shows. The ? This also applies to the art of stand-up, which he has practiced with some success for more than 25 years. The press attended one of the final eves of You Are Not Special, the third “hidden show” of the man who does not hide his joy at becoming a father.
Published at 1:07 am. Updated at 5:00 am.
In the previous episode, Louis-José Houde confided to us, with a fragility that we did not know from him, his sadness at how the years passed while the dream of becoming a father eluded him. This fifth show, entitled “A Thousand Bad Choices”, will change the public's perception and also redefine the contours of what a comedy show can be in Quebec.
But because happiness sometimes lies alongside unhappiness, the comedian would soon meet the woman with whom he would finally be lucky enough to procreate. At 46, Louis-José Houde is now the father of a strong 10-month-old baby. “I wanted to avoid that passage that many of my colleagues make,” he admits of the compulsory work inspired by parenthood.
Then my son was born and suddenly I experienced many things that I had never experienced before. I didn't even have to force myself into writing sessions, things became funny on their own. And I learned that it's a good sign when things aren't forced, that is, when they're humorous.
Louis-Jose Houde
In the hospital canteen where the miracle of life occurred, dad Louis-José was already writing ideas in his little notebook, somewhere between sleepiness and euphoria. Therefore, he will quickly overcome his initial modesty, especially since his “venerable” age and the small generation difference between his lover and himself shape the story of his fatherhood.
PHOTO MARTIN CHAMBERLAND, THE PRESS
Louis-José Houde training in a brothel
“I speak to you directly from great joy. “I speak to you out of great exhaustion,” he announces with great poetry and aptly at the beginning of “You Are Not Special,” which he only has to recite about thirty times over the course of the course. In the next few months in places like… the Cinquième Salle at the Place des Arts, the Gesù or the Petit Champlain, a choice that we understand but that we can only gently criticize him for, since this show is one of his best.
This third “hidden show” contains everything that makes a Louis Jose Houde show a Louis Jose Houde show – its repetitions of the same idea in several synonymous variations, its addresses to the audience in the tone of an old crooner, this one haunting undertones of melancholy – but also new colors for him, including a particularly rough formula that he likes to trumpet, and an opening with a surprisingly calm rhythm. “I’ve never started a show so slow,” he said, “and that’s on purpose: I’ve never started a show so tired. »
PHOTO MARTIN CHAMBERLAND, THE PRESS
Louis-José Houde training in a brothel
An exhibition of small spaces
In the dressing rooms of the brothel, where he finished his enema at the end of December, Louis-José Houde showed his characteristic facial expression (translated: happy) during the break between his 7 p.m. show and the 9 p.m. and a little sleepy) of a father who is torn between the gratitude of being able to leave the house for a moment and the small feeling of guilt at having left his mother alone at the front.
If he decided to include “You Are Not Special” in his hidden show franchise, founded in 2007, to give a second life to excerpts from his first show, it was because he wasn't thinking of immediately setting off again into the vast streets the province, but above all because A Thousand Bad Choices taught him that a text rooted in very intimate material ages quickly.
As he announced on stage that we no longer believe in love and massaged his pregnant girlfriend's feet as he returned to the comfort of his marital home: Our man experienced a kind of cognitive dissonance at the end of his previous tour.
I immediately noticed that my new material sounded like a small event in a venue, in an intimate tone. I saw myself telling that to the people who follow me closely, and not four nights at the Théâtre Maisonneuve, a bit like a rock group that tours for three months and then it's over.
Louis-Jose Houde
How does Louis-José Houde compare to the career of the Rolling Stones, one of his favorite groups? “Pretty much a few girls.” » The 1978 album where Jagger and Richards tried to show the punks that they were punkier than them? “Yeah, I don't want to give the impression that I'm telling young people to shut up, especially because that's the appeal of brothel and Quebec humor: I can get just as much inspiration from watching it Martin Petit as a 21-year-old girl who is just starting out. »
“I said 'Some Girls',” explains the man, who now has seven fewer children than Grandpa Mick, “because I was thinking more about the idea of a new life.” And the Some Girls tour, which only lasted 25 dates. » And which is considered one of the most striking stones today.
A bright suite
Louis-José Houde always had the impression that he spoke “with his heart and gut” on stage. “We always think we do it, but looking back I realize I haven't done it that often,” he notes.
PHOTO MARTIN CHAMBERLAND, THE PRESS
Louis-Jose Houde
It wasn't until “A Thousand Bad Choices”, a turning point on a creative level, whose positive and bright sequel can be considered “You're Nothing Special”, the spectacle of a man who certainly wouldn't say no to a little nap. But he looks a lot better than the last time you saw him.
“A thousand bad decisions have opened up many opportunities for me to write humor,” he explains.
I realized that it doesn't have to be funny when you leave. In this new show, there are longer spaces where I just talk, and it's still fun.
Louis-Jose Houde
“I don’t have to chase the punch, I can take the time to put my stuff in its place,” he adds. Especially making people laugh every two seconds is something I did a lot, and like every artist, the sound changes. »
By continuing where he left off, Louis-José Houde also breaks new ground in a tirade in which he rebels against the triumph of emotions, which is why every television program, every sporting event, every commercial must necessarily end in a tearful session. with pompous music and a enumeration of the torments of the participant's family that have haunted him.
A “mind-boggling and extremely tacky” media bias coupled with a misrepresentation of the primary meaning of words by a number of companies, including that big brand of high-calorie donuts where you're greeted with the word “guest,” or at the car dealership Automobile, the We congratulate you on joining the “family” by handing over the keys.
“You think people are idiots when they pick words we like and put them somewhere,” complains the man who has rarely sounded more like a student of George Carlin than in this section about the plain register beyond observation, perhaps for the first time better addressing social commentary. “It's a lack of respect for words and a lack of respect for people. I'm not that fat! »
PHOTO MARTIN CHAMBERLAND, THE PRESS
Louis-José Houde in an interview
A question of vulnerability
Louis-José Houde therefore continues to work on becoming more real. But what is the truth for a comedian? He widens his eyes.
“It looks like I’m writing a thesis on it,” he says. It's not necessarily about telling something that really happened, even if what I say is mostly true. And it's not about telling something that people can relate to, because the less you try, the more they find themselves. »
thinks Louis-José. “The word vulnerability comes up far too often, but I think there’s something to it. I received many testimonials about A Thousand Bad Choices from people who told me that it was good for them to hear me admit that I was alone and depressed and that I had started taking antidepressants. 15 years ago I wouldn't have even thought about going on stage there, it would have bothered me too much. »
“When you talk about something that is close to your heart,” he adds, “you contain a part of the truth.” » Enough to conclude that Louis-José Houde, by coming to terms with his fatherhood, one of the most powerful and vulnerable human experiences, the truth could no longer touch.
To find out the dates of Louis-José Houde's performances, you must register with his fan club.