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| Kirsten McKinnon as Christine (played by Kirsten Leblanc at the performance our critic saw) in La Reine-Garçon. (Photo: Michael Cooper.) |
At a time when Canada’s cultural sovereignty faces external pressures, the Canadian Opera Company, in collaboration with Opéra de Montréal, has delivered a resounding artistic statement with La Reine-Garçon. This polished production, currently at Toronto’s Four Seasons Centre until Feb. 15, exemplifies the heights of Canadian operatic achievement.
Based on Michel Marc Bouchard's 2012 play Christina, La Reine-Garçon (later adapted as Christine, The Girl King for Stratford in 2014), the opera dramatizes a pivotal period in the life of Sweden's Queen Christina: her decision to abdicate the throne. Raised as a prince by her father, King Gustav II, she defied gender norms and societal expectations throughout her reign. Her refusal to marry and her passionate love for a woman placed her at odds with the demands of her court and country. Mentored by French philosopher René Descartes and deeply influenced by Lutheran reformist ideals, Christine ultimately chose personal freedom over political power, cementing her legacy as one of history's most enigmatic and unconventional rulers.
The opera’s daring spirit is matched by its creative team. French-Canadian composer Julien Bilodeau’s inventive score blends 17th-century musical traditions with influences from traditional Québecois music, producing a soundscape that feels both historically rooted and contemporary. Its textures—ranging from stark a cappella passages to sweeping orchestral waves—mirror Christine’s inner turmoil and the opera’s dramatic arc. Under conductor Johannes Debus’direction, the COC Orchestra brings out these contrasts with subtlety, ensuring the music remains tightly interwoven with the drama unfolding on stage.
Bouchard’s poetic libretto retains the sharp wit and emotional depth of his original play, translating its complexity into operatic form without losing its immediacy. Anick La Bissonnière’s stark winter setting and Sébastien Dionne’s gender-fluid costumes—rich with black leather, fur, and gold-thread brocade—add striking visual layers that reflect the tension between tradition and transformation at the heart of Christine’s story. Angela Konrad’s incisive direction ties these elements together cohesively, balancing spectacle with intimacy to create a production that feels both grand and deeply personal.
Following its Montreal world premiere last February, where it garnered acclaim and an International Opera Awards nomination, this nearly three-hour production has continued to captivate audiences. The Toronto debut has been met with standing ovations and glowing reviews, cementing its status as a contemporary masterpiece.
The Feb. 7 performance featured a cast that brought depth and charisma to their roles. Soprano Kirsten LeBlanc commanded the stage as Queen Christine, balancing regal authority with moments of raw vulnerability. Her voice carried both power and delicacy, particularly in the second-act aria where Christine wrestled with the weight of her crown—a moment that visibly moved the audience. Opposite her, tenor Owen McCausland imbued René Descartes with quiet intensity, his philosophical exchanges with Christine adding layers of intellectual tension to the drama.
Isaiah Bell delivered a magnetic performance as Johan Oxenstierna, exuding charm and ambition in equal measure. His physicality on stage was arresting, particularly in a stag dance sequence blending raw energy with symbolic grace. Baritone Daniel Okulitch provided a compelling counterbalance as Axel Oxenstierna, Johan’s father and royal counsellor, portraying him with understated authority and political shrewdness.
Queen Hezumuryango brought tenderness and poise to Countess Ebba Sparre, Christine’s confidante and love interest. Her duets with LeBlanc emerged as highlights of the evening—their chemistry vivid without veering into sentimentality. Meanwhile, Aline Kutan gave a chilling portrayal of Marie-Éléonore de Brandebourg, Christine’s obsessive mother. Kutan leaned into the character’s unsettling qualities with knife-sharp precision, crafting a figure whose influence felt both spectral and suffocating.
Philippe Sly, originally cast as Count Karl Gustav, Christine’s principal suitor, was replaced for this performance by understudy Nathan Keoughan. Despite stepping in on short notice, he was both assured and compelling, blending seamlessly into the production’s intricate dynamics. The chorus—dressed in stark black-and-white costumes evocative of Lutheran austerity—brought an imposing presence to the stage, embodying the rigid societal structures that Christine sought to challenge at every turn.
One of the opera’s most striking features is its use of kulning, an ancient Scandinavian herding call traditionally sung by women to communicate across vast landscapes. This piercing chant-like motif threads through the score like an echo from Sweden’s rugged terrain, its raw quality reverberating with an animalistic energy that connects nature to human emotion. On this occasion, it was performed offstage by soprano Anne-Marie Beaudette, whose voice carried the haunting call with precision and power. More than just a sonic flourish, the kulning became a metaphor for Christine herself—a voice calling out for freedom across impossible distances.
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– Deirdre Kelly is a Toronto-based journalist, author and internationally recognized dance critic and style writer on staff at The Globe and Mail newspaper from 1985 to 2017. She writes for Dance Magazine in New York, the Dance Gazette in London, and NUVO in Vancouver, and is a contributor to the International Dictionary of Ballet and AWOL: Tales for Travel-Inspired Minds. The best-selling author of Paris Times Eight and Ballerina: Sex, Scandal and Suffering Behind the Symbol of Perfection, she is a two-time recipient (2020 and 2014) of Canada’s Nathan Cohen Prize for outstanding critical writing. In 2017, she joined York University as Editor of the award-winning The York University Magazine where she is also the publication’s principal writer. In 2023, she published her latest book, Fashioning The Beatles: The Looks That Shook The World.
Isaiah Bell delivered a magnetic performance as Johan Oxenstierna, exuding charm and ambition in equal measure. His physicality on stage was arresting, particularly in a stag dance sequence blending raw energy with symbolic grace. Baritone Daniel Okulitch provided a compelling counterbalance as Axel Oxenstierna, Johan’s father and royal counsellor, portraying him with understated authority and political shrewdness.
Queen Hezumuryango brought tenderness and poise to Countess Ebba Sparre, Christine’s confidante and love interest. Her duets with LeBlanc emerged as highlights of the evening—their chemistry vivid without veering into sentimentality. Meanwhile, Aline Kutan gave a chilling portrayal of Marie-Éléonore de Brandebourg, Christine’s obsessive mother. Kutan leaned into the character’s unsettling qualities with knife-sharp precision, crafting a figure whose influence felt both spectral and suffocating.
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| Nathan Keoughan as Count Karl Gustav. (Photo: Michael Cooper.) |
Philippe Sly, originally cast as Count Karl Gustav, Christine’s principal suitor, was replaced for this performance by understudy Nathan Keoughan. Despite stepping in on short notice, he was both assured and compelling, blending seamlessly into the production’s intricate dynamics. The chorus—dressed in stark black-and-white costumes evocative of Lutheran austerity—brought an imposing presence to the stage, embodying the rigid societal structures that Christine sought to challenge at every turn.
One of the opera’s most striking features is its use of kulning, an ancient Scandinavian herding call traditionally sung by women to communicate across vast landscapes. This piercing chant-like motif threads through the score like an echo from Sweden’s rugged terrain, its raw quality reverberating with an animalistic energy that connects nature to human emotion. On this occasion, it was performed offstage by soprano Anne-Marie Beaudette, whose voice carried the haunting call with precision and power. More than just a sonic flourish, the kulning became a metaphor for Christine herself—a voice calling out for freedom across impossible distances.
.jpeg)
– Deirdre Kelly is a Toronto-based journalist, author and internationally recognized dance critic and style writer on staff at The Globe and Mail newspaper from 1985 to 2017. She writes for Dance Magazine in New York, the Dance Gazette in London, and NUVO in Vancouver, and is a contributor to the International Dictionary of Ballet and AWOL: Tales for Travel-Inspired Minds. The best-selling author of Paris Times Eight and Ballerina: Sex, Scandal and Suffering Behind the Symbol of Perfection, she is a two-time recipient (2020 and 2014) of Canada’s Nathan Cohen Prize for outstanding critical writing. In 2017, she joined York University as Editor of the award-winning The York University Magazine where she is also the publication’s principal writer. In 2023, she published her latest book, Fashioning The Beatles: The Looks That Shook The World. 
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