Hosanna

by Michel Tremblay, John Van Burek (Translation), Bill Glassco (Translation)

A transvestite’s illusion of herself is shattered when she goes to a costume party dressed up as Elizabeth Taylor in Cleopatra . Cast of two men.

Genres: Plays, Theatre, Drama, LGBT, Queer, Canada, Fiction

88 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

Né en 1942, Michel Tremblay grandit dans un appartement de Montréal où s'entassent plusieurs familles. Ses origines modestes marqueront d'ailleurs ses œuvres, souvent campées au cœur de la classe ouvrière, où misères sociale et morale se côtoient. En 1964, il participe au Concours des jeunes auteurs de Radio-Canada, avec une pièce de théâtre intitulée Le train, et remporte le premier prix. C'est à peine un an plus tard qu'il écrit l'une de ses œuvres majeures, Les belles-sœurs, dont le succès perdure. La pièce est jouée pour la première fois en 1968 au Théâtre du Rideau Vert.

Michel Tremblay est l'auteur d'un nombre considérable de pièces de théâtre, de romans, et d'adaptations d'œuvres d'auteurs et de dramaturges étrangers. On lui doit aussi quelques comédies musicales, des scénarios de films et un opéra. Ses univers sont peuplés de femmes, tantôt caractérielles et imparfaites, tantôt fragiles et attachantes, qu'il peint avec réalisme et humour. Vivant les difficultés du quotidien, ses personnages au dialecte coloré ont d'ailleurs contribué à introduire dans la dramaturgie et la littérature d'alors un niveau de langue boudé des artistes : le joual.

En 2006, il remporte le Grand Prix Metropolis bleu pour l'ensemble de son œuvre.

En 2017, le Prix Gilles-Corbeil lui est décerné pour l'ensemble de son oeuvre.

Reviews

[Morgan M. Page · Rating 1 out of 5]

Whoa! Ok, so I already knew this was going to be terrible from reading Viviane Namaste's slam of it in Invisible Lives, but I was genuinely surprised at just how bad it was!

Basically the story is this: a 'pathetic' drag queen who longs to transition and is in abusive relationship with some piece of aged rough trade suffers a terrible public embarrassment and ends up giving up her entire identity as a result. And we're supposed to take this as a revelation, a moment of truth, a restoration. And also as an indication of gay identities ultimately being gentrified because her rough trade won't shut up about the lights being installed in Parc Lafontaine and how that killed cruising.

Fuck Michel Tremblay for being a transphobic douchebag. Fuck 'pathetic transsexual' narratives. Fuck the idea that biology = truth. And fuck this stupid play!

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Context.
Context.
Context.

Can it be read as transphobic? Yup. And we should talk about that.

Does it ever need to be commercially produced again? Nope. And we should talk about that.

Should it be recognized for it’s generative place in Canadian theatre and the freshly blooming Queer theatre scene of 1991? Abso-freakin-lutely!

If we don’t know our past, our appreciation for the present is qualified by deficiency, and our path forward is then more dimly lit.

And if you hate this play, I respect that.
And I respect even more that you read it.

[Elizabeth]

J'ai lu cette pièce avant d'en voir une version jumelée à une autre œuvre de l'auteur, et j'ai eu la chance de pouvoir écouter Michel Tremblay lui-même parler de ses intentions avec ces différentes œuvres. Bien que Hosanna ait été critiquée comme une pièce traitant de l'identité queer à travers un prisme contemporain, j'ai été étonnée de découvrir que pour Tremblay, la recherche de l'identité du genre n'était qu'une métaphore d'une autre quête identitaire : celle des Québécois après la crise d'octobre 1970. Soudain, certains des thèmes abordés dans Hosanna, comme la retenue de la violence, les larmes versées, etc. prennent une toute nouvelle dimension.

[MrsMarkWatney · Rating 1 out of 5]

Had to read this for a seminar, really not my kind of thing. At least it was short.

[Daniel Levy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Une étude des années 70 sur un couple d'homosexuels, dont l'un est drag queen et l'autre, macho en cuir. La scène que nous suivons est le retour d'une fête, où Hosanna a été humiliée et que Cuirette essaie de réconforter de façon plutôt gauche.

Certains des thèmes abordés (la gentrification de Montréal, les rôles de genre) sont encore pertinents aujourd'hui, alors que d'autres ont été, avec le temps, critiqués comme la supposée transphobie de la conclusion.

[Sena · Rating 2 out of 5]

Beautifully written and will remain a part of Montreal's literature–however, a poorly conveyed attempt of a "you should love yourself for who you are plot," since Hosanna struggles (and ultimately gives up) accepting her true identity. Cuirette's character only dragged down the conceptual value of this play, with his parts containing quite a bit of transphobic undertones. Nevertheless, it was not the most a painful read.

[GwenViolet · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have a high tolerance for outdated trans-rep. Like, I get it, I really do, things do not need to validate some contemp consenus to be good or convey what I like about trans ppl (if anything, I find older rep conveys a model of trans-ness that I find genuinely beautiful). That all being said, this is rather noxious, and I think that's mostly because it's so god-damn sadistic towards Hosanna. Like, fuck, I can tolerate "I'm a man actually" epiphanies but give me so god-damn glamour first!

[Emery Lightwood]

Note: anti-Semitic & transphobic

[Dr. Devine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like that when this play was first staged, it was groundbreaking and revelatory in Canada.

But now it seems dated, especially that ending.Yeesh.

[Flora · Rating 1 out of 5]

*1.5 stars

[Andromeda · Rating 2 out of 5]

So apparently being transgender/drag queen is supposed to be an metaphor/allegory for separatist Quebecois… so 1 star based off that.

That’s probably why it deals with queer identity and queer themes so poorly since it was never about being queer it was about being separatist quebecois

Tremblay decided to appropriate queer identity to explore themes of classism, Quebec separation, reinforcing gender stereotypes, bullying, and 🌈being yourself🌈

Beacuse of the appropriation of queer identity the whole play is muddied where it doesn’t say anything except 🌈be yourself🌈 though hosanna was being themselves the whole time and getting abused in an abusive relationship, and bullied, until finally they are accepted by abusive partner cuirette:/

Being trans isn’t a metaphor. Don’t use it as one.

The only reason I gave it 2 stars is because I don’t think it’s poorly written. This is hard since I would give it 3 stars but I think that even old works should be held accountable for harmful portrayals of marginalized people.

[Q]

UPDATE:
French Canadians (FC), although being an oppressive group, have also been marginalized. The sentiment/metaphor that FC have/do struggle to fit into Canadian identity is totally valid. So, yes I think there is an important message in this playscript.
...I will double down on the fact that the end of this play can be read as transphobic. HOWEVER, if we do not read Hosanna as a trans woman, then the play is not necessarily transphobic. Rather, it is a testament to the complexity of gender. We can read the end as an argument that gay men can embrace femininity and still be a man. A gender affirming perspective. We can also read the ending as a suggestion that it is okay for two men to be together. A relationship in which one man, or even both, can take on masculinity and femininity but still be gay men together. Does that make sense?

Upon first read this is troubling but with the proper background info and critical thinking, there's more to this play. I still won't put a rating on this. But I love the critical discussions that result from this piece.

OG review:
I can’t even give this a rating. This play is so transphobic, homophobic and disturbing. I read that Tremblay wrote this as a metaphor for Quebecois identity in Canada. I don’t know that I agree with the comparison. These are two entirely different subjects.

The characters do address the serious and emotional aspects of gender identity and confronting sexuality, which is brilliant. But the way it is written is terrifying. The play also touches on the theme of aging, precarious relationships and gentrification. Again, brilliant, real and important stuff. But the words used in direction, questionable…controversial…

Also the ending? The trope of just being yourself?…No no no, it’s lovely to think it’s that easy for everyone at the end of the day and that gender dysphoria just goes away but does it?

I do think that this play is timestamp nonetheless and that it makes way for incredible discussion. It also presents queerness to the stage in the 70s.

Maybe I’m missing something? I have a lecture on this play next week and I’ll update my review based on the perspective my professor has to offer.

[Circa24 Circa24 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a period piece that explores both transphobia and social bullying. In the late 20th century, Hosanna has a reputation in Montreal's trans community, and it's not a good one. We meet her on Halloween night. Something has happened that's upset her, and her rough-trade biker boyfriend, Cuirette, is less than sympathetic. Indeed, he has had trouble with her self-identification as female and the problems with their relationship. Both are aging and having more trouble fitting in.

Groundbreaking for its day (1973), Tremble wrote Hosanna at a time when much of the complex vocabulary about gender identity had not yet come into our consciousness. At that time, a chasm existed between the L/G (not even the "B" in it yet) and trans communities, with many LGs viewing bisexuals and transgender people as in denial about being gay. In this atmosphere, Tremble portrayed Hosana as a nasty, catty diva in a dysfunctional relationship who is trying to survive in an unwelcoming society rife with discrimination.

It can be viewed as a play about being a bully rather than about gender. Her actions and behavior have led to the evening's payback, not her self-identification as female.

Her rough-trade boyfriend has chosen a polar-opposite leather drag, more akin to the hyper-masculine images drawn of Tom of Finland. Both use their clothing and appearance to present themselves to the world in a specific way. And their polar extremes create the tension that drives the story forward as they fight with their own biases about gender and identity. Hosanna can be seen as an allegory for the rising identity among the Québécois. The New York Times quoted the playwright as saying he did not want to be "a transvestite in my own country."

Is it transphobic? By today's standards, yes, but when read in its historical context, like one would read The Wells of Loneliness or Strangers on a Train, it becomes a powerful drama about dysfunctional relationships and people within an intolerant society, and the transphobic elements of the play magnify its message.

[Surreysmum · Rating 3 out of 5]

[These notes were made in 1982; I read the play in John van Burek's English translation:]. Much of the enjoyment of this play was, of course, picturing Monette in the role. Then, too, there is the utter novelty of the situation - the inevitable and rather pleasurable rearranging of mental attitudes - the simultaneous self-congratulation and humility of coming to recognize the "person-ness" of a transvestite. Only safely on stage, of course; let's not flatter our hypocritical selves too much! Ennyhoo, I'm not convinced that the play as it stands is a great piece of literature, or even a great piece of drama. I can see that it could be quite devastating on stage, especially for an upper middle-class audience (among whom I number myself), if the cast were strong enough. By all accounts (I read reviews), it was. The New York press insisted on its allegorical politics - if that element really is there, I didn't pick up on it, unless in fleeting flashes. I would have liked to have seen it - much of the rhythm is lost on a page, as well, of course, as the immediacy of visual impact.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe it's because I'm not a drag queen living in 1970's Montreal and dealing with the fall-out of a public humiliation, but I found myself thinking of high-school. The re-molding of identity, the easy switch from triumph to embarrassment, the savagery of peers, the whole emotional drama of it all. But Hosanna isn't in high-school. S/he's aging, which is also added to all of the above.

At the end of this short play mostly I was left feeling really thankful that I don't have to actually live through this sort of angst - I can just safely experience it by reading this play, and then move on.

[Czarny Pies · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michel Tremblay established himself as French Canada's greatest playwright with Les Belles-Soeurs in which he portrayed French Candians as being jealous and continually on the watch for opportunities to stick knives in the backs of their friends. Hosanna which is Tremblays other great masterpiece for the theatre he deals with a homosexual hairdressers whose homosexual friends find a way to stick a knife in his back.

This is a very funny play when seen on stage and painfully dull on paper. Do not pass up an opportunity to see it performed. Read it afterwards if you think you missed any important lines.

[Tybalt Maxwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked this up today at a library book sale.

The work is a character study with a minimalist scope, so I basically have no reason to not like it. As a bonus, the piece also contains liberal use of montage, which is my favourite literary device.

I can't really think of anything bad to say about it, the formatting makes it simple to read, and it kept me engrossed for its two hour~ duration.

[Rebecca Nagrodski · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this several years ago for a course in university and decided to pick it up again for a quick read.

I still love the pacing of it - and I think it would be interesting with great actors, but now I see the transphobia in it, it's also become very problematic for me.

I'm still giving this three stars because of how it addresses other topics - but I'm also acknowledging it has problems.

[Knitography · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's always awkward to read a play, given that they're written with performance in mind. Be that as it may, Hosanna is a very worthwhile read, with a lot to say about identity and aging. I can imagine that with good actors, it would make for a very powerful performance.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fast, enjoyable read.