The SAQ New France Festival Uncorks A New Set Of Events To Celebrate Its 10th Anniversary!
A Festival In Quebec City, Canada, August 2-6, 2006

Québec City- From August 2-6, 2006, the SAQ New France Festival will celebrate its 10th anniversary in style with a program that is even richer and more varied than usual. Exciting new arrivals will mingle with the traditional family favorites that have contributed to the festival's success and international standing, in the familiar surroundings of Old Québec.

New France giants parade in front of the Chateau Frontenac © Xavier Dachez

The organizers of this elaborate family festival, the Corporation des fêtes historiques de Québec and Gestev inc., have worked hard to prepare this 10th edition, ensuring the festival remains as fresh as ever and continues to whet visitors' appetites.

"We are proud to be putting on this 10th edition of the SAQ New France Festival, while highlighting the extraordinary work of our volunteers, artists and artisans, our collaborators and especially the remarkable contribution from our financial partners," says Gilles Lachance, president of the SAQ New France Festival. "Through their involvement over so many years, they have all breathed life into this event and have helped it grow and become more and more successful."

"This 10th edition will mark our 10th anniversary, proposing just the right mixture of new arrivals and old favorites," continues Mr. Lachance. "This winning formula has allowed the SAQ New France Festival to distinguish itself and to become the summer festival par excellence, making a name for itself among the tourist attractions for the greater Québec region."

Celebrating our 10th anniversary
A series of 10 shows will mark the SAQ New France Festival's 10th anniversary. Delicious shows concocted by the most talented artists promise a rich series of events to be savored individually.

Come and take part in our 10th anniversary celebrations, "Les Rendez-vous de nos 10 ans ", presented by Orléans Express with La Bottine Souriante, Claire Pelletier, Les Batinses, La grande Farandole, Grand Dérangement, Les Sortilèges, Buzz cuivres farfelus, Angèle Dubeau and la Pietà, Les Petits Chanteurs du Mont-Royal and Barrage.

Celebrating the relationship between France and New France
To our 10th anniversary celebrations will be added an exciting cocktail of around 100 fun and educational activities. This year, our program will be guided by the theme of France-New France. "France, New-France is an open-ticket to discover the impact both countries had on each other," according to event programming director Jean-François Brochard.

"Thanks to a whole series of shows, reconstructions and conferences, festivalgoers will be able to discover and understand for themselves the various links between France and New France, the impact of royal decrees and the direct impact the metropolis had on the colony's evolution. Social and everyday life, the relationship between the French and the Amerindians, communication, trade, fashion, trades and teaching will all be touched upon as we explore the key period of 1663-1713," adds Mr. Brochard.

The theme will also give the public the opportunity to meet a surprising and very charismatic character whose ideas influenced the great philosophers of the age of enlightenment. Louis Armand de Lom d'Arce, baron of Lahontan, was a writer and explorer who discovered the inner peace he had been searching through his dealings with the First Nations.

For this 10th edition, the Cour du Séminaire will become the king's gardens. The public will be invited to walk through these surroundings as though they were spending the day at Versailles. As well as meeting all of the French nobility, festivalgoers will be able to take part in the intrigue and the political world of the Kingdom of France, dance to the music of Lully and enjoy the theatre of Molière.

And it will even be possible to write to King Louis XIV himself! This new activity, Dialogus, will be offering a series of imaginary epistolary interviews with this real historical character… or should that be a series of real epistolary interviews with an imaginary character?

Celebrating with our Acadian and French cousins
Such grand celebrations deserve a list of important guests. The Acadians and the French are proud to be associated with this year's SAQ New France Festival.

Acadia, the first French colony in North America, was established in 1604. This year the Batterie Royale will become the meeting point for the whole Acadian region, giving visitors the opportunity to meet the Acadian people, proud of their origins and history and keen to share them. It promises to be well worth a visit, along with the Historical Acadian Village, the World Acadian Congress and the Société nationale de l'Acadie, in collaboration with the intergovernmental affairs secretariat.

Young festivalgoer dresses in historic costume. © Xavier Dachez

Meanwhile, Place Royale will be the place to sample France's finest wines! It's always a good time to taste the products of France's various wine-growing regions, whether they be white, red or rosé. These wines have crossed the ocean to make a name for themselves among the settlers of New France. Producers, oenologists and wine waiters will all be gathered together at Place des vins de France to give festivalgoers their very best advice and to help them discover the secrets of this divine beverage!

Celebrating with old friends - Visit www.nouvellefrance.qc.ca!
Over the past few years, the SAQ New France Festival has entertained young and old alike. This year, many of its activities will return to seduce the public through their creativity and originality. Among them, the Giants' parades continue to be very popular and will be bigger than ever this year with the addition of a new giant, RJ, the Belle Gueule emblem. As far as the parades are concerned, the opening parade on Grande Allée, Wednesday August 2, 8:30pm is not to be missed.

And, once again this year, a whole variety of shows will entertain festivalgoers across a host of different sites, the UPA market will fill you full of local flavour, while public auctions held at Place Royale will give the public the chance to close a good deal and a range of family activities will bring the Enfantaisie site to life for our younger visitors. Furthermore, historical conferences, the Historical Tribunal and guided tours will give you the opportunity to find out more about our past and to see the present day in a different light. Without forgetting that festivalgoers can also quench their thirst at the SAQ Chez Boivin Inn and the Belle Gueule Chez Boisdon Inn.

Walk From one basilica to the other, Sunday August 6, 2006, for a noble cause! Whether you are alone, part of a family or in a group, out for a long walk or a bit of a stroll, take part in this activity and pay tribute to the settlers who constructed the Route de la Nouvelle-France in 1737, the colony's first thoroughfare. Varying levels of involvement are proposed (from 8 to 38km). The walk is organized to raise funds for local charity les Petits frères des pauvres, which fights against social exclusion and solitude among the elderly. Reserve now: places are limited to 200!

In celebration of the theatrical performances that have punctuated the ten years of the festival, the SAQ New France Festival will be putting on, due to popular demand, L'Affaire Tartuffe, a production by the students of the Conservatoire d'art dramatique de Québec, who performed to the delight of so many festivalgoers last year. Set in 1694, the governor-general of New France, Frontenac, decides to put on Molière's Tartuffe, a play that ridicules hypocrites. But when rehearsals are already at an advanced stage, Bishop St-Vallier asks the governor to cancel the play. Who will have the last word?

The Bell Interactive Theatre, which made its début last year, returns with a brand new script for the audience to complete. At the end of each show, a question will be asked and visitors will have until 9pm to cast their vote with the Bell group or by visiting the festival site. The number of votes will determine the outcome which will be shown the next day. Time to get your thinking caps on!

Celebrating in costume
The number of festivalgoers who decide to get into the spirit of things by donning the fashions of New France increases with each edition. Whether from the palace or the countryside, these costumed visitors add a festive touch to the event, enriching its historical flavor. This year, the public is once again invited to take part in the now-famous New France fashion shows at the Place Laurier stage on Côte de la Montagne.

If getting dressed up is optional, acquiring an event pass is a must. Your passport to this historical trip back in time is offered at the reduced price of $6 from July 20 to August 1 in SAQ outlets in the Québec City region. It will then be available on-site, from August 2-6, at the price of $8.

Ten years of festivals, smiles, family fun, discoveries, laughter… There are many more than just 10 reasons to come and celebrate the New France Festival's 10th anniversary! Come and discover a few more reasons why and help make this year's event extra special.

The SAQ New France Festival will be celebrating its 10th anniversary in style this year from August 2-6, 2006. To find out further program information, please visit theNew France website.