After Hairspray And The 3 MusketeersOlivier Dion is preparing to return to musical comedy. The singer will be from the new version of Don Juanwhere the Italian Gian Marco Schiaretti and the Quebecer Cindy Daniel will succeed Jean-François Breau and Marie-Ève Janvier in the roles of the lovers of Seville.
Two decades after its inception, Don Juan is getting a makeover for a brand new world tour. The titles “Changer”, “Only Love”, “Du Pleasure”, “Women” and “Only Others” will appear in cinemas, albeit in a revised form, in addition to a new cast.
This new version of the musical allows Olivier Dion to return to the stage after a detour to host the series L’île de l’amour last spring. For this occasion he will play Don Carlos, friend and protector of Don Juan.
“I just released an album, so I hesitated before taking on another music project. But Don Juan’s songs were such a big part of my life; My parents listened to it in the car at home… so I couldn’t pass up a role like Don Carlos,” says the singer.
A more mature distribution
After playing the role of Elvira when the show was created in 2003, Cindy Daniel will now take on the role of Maria, a genius sculptor who falls under the spell of Don Juan. She will be surrounded by Roxane Filion (Isabel), Robert Marien (Don Luis) and Philippe Berghella (Raphaël), who will thus find the character he created in 2003.
From left to right: Roxane Filion (Isabel), Olivier Dion (Don Carlos), Cindy Daniel (Maria), Gian Marco Schiaretti (Don Juan), Robert Marien (Don Luis), Alyzée Lalande (Elvira) and Philippe Berghella (Raphaël) . Photo agency QMI, Mario Beauregard
Sales are therefore more mature than they were 20 years ago. Marie-Ève Janvier, for example, was less than 20 years old when she brought the character of Maria to life; Cindy Daniel, on the other hand, celebrated her 37th birthday last spring.
“I want my experience and my maturity to come through in my character. “Falling in love at 19 is not the same as falling in love in your 30s, so I see the character as a woman who has seen snow and is ready for true love,” says Cindy Daniel.
Cindy Daniel and Gian Marco Schiaretti will be Maria and Don Juan. Photo agency QMI, Mario Beauregard
An Italian in Seville
It is the artist of Italian origin Gian Marco Schiaretti who will slip into the shoes of Don Juan for this new series of performances. Accustomed to major musical comedies, he played the title roles in Casanova and Tarzan in Europe, as well as appearances in productions of Notre Dame de Paris, Moulin Rouge!, West Side Story and Evita around the world.
He was also scheduled to headline a new version of Don Juan in Russia in March 2020; However, the pandemic caused performances to be postponed and then canceled.
“We are ready; We received the news of the cancellation the day before our first appearance. We were practically sold out, so you can see that people wanted to hear Don Juan’s songs again. And after the pandemic, I think we need it even more,” admits Gian Marco Schiaretti.
The show “Don Juan,” which first premiered in 2003, made it to the stage the following year with a world premiere at the Théâtre St-Denis in Montreal. This musical comedy introduced the singers Jean-François Breau and Marie-Ève Janvier to Quebec audiences at the time. Over the years, the cast has included artists such as Mario Pelchat, Jonathan Roy, Natasha St-Pier, Rita Tabbakh and Étienne Drapeau.
A new album with the current line-up will also be released on Valentine’s Day.
- The world tour Don Juan will stop at the Place des Arts in Montreal from August 7th and the Grand Théâtre de Québec from August 27th. For all dates: donjuan2024.ca.