Denise Boucher (born December 12, 1935) is a Canadian writer living in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

Biography

The daughter of Alexandre Boucher, police chief, and Justine Bélair, she was born in

Victoriaville Victoriaville is a town in central Quebec, Canada, on the Nicolet River. Victoriaville is the seat of Arthabaska Regional County Municipality and a part of the Centre-du-Québec (Bois-Francs) region. It is formed by the 1993 merger of Arthabaska, ...

, Quebec. She received a teaching certificate from the École normale Marguerite-Bourgeoys in

Sherbrooke Sherbrooke ( ; ) is a city in southern Quebec, Canada. It is at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers in the heart of the Estrie administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional cou ...

in 1953. She taught school in Victoriaville until 1961 when she began a career in journalism and broadcasting, moving to

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

. She contributed to various newspapers and was a freelance journalist for

Radio Canada The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government ...

. In 1978, she published the feminist work ''Cyprine: essai collage pour être une femme'', which incorporates prose, poetry and quotations. In 1978, her noted feminist play ' was presented at the

Théâtre du Nouveau Monde The Théâtre du Nouveau Monde (TNM) is a theatre company and Theater (structure), venue located on Rue Sainte-Catherine (Montreal), rue Sainte-Catherine in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in , it launched with the classic play ''L'Avare'' by Molière. ...

in Montreal. The play was met with strong opposition from the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

for its portrayal of the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

. An English translation '' The Fairies are Thirsty'' was prepared by Alan Brown. Her play ''Les Divines'' was presented at the

Théâtre d'Aujourd'hui The Théâtre d'Aujourd'hui is a theater in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located at 3900 Saint Denis Street in the borough of Le Plateau-Mont-Royal. It was founded in 1968, regrouping the product of three semi-professional theater companies: ...

in 1996. Her musical review ''Gémeaux croisées'' toured Quebec and France to sold-out audiences, featuring performances by

Pauline Julien Pauline Julien, (May 23, 1928October 1, 1998), nicknamed "La Renarde", was a singer, songwriter, actress, feminist activist and Quebec sovereigntist. Born in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Julien was the companion of the poet and Québec provincial ...

and Anne Sylvestre respectively and directed by Viviane Théophilidès. Her collections of poetry include ''Paris Polaroïd'' (1990) and ''Grandeur nature'' (1993). She has participated in numerous poetry festivals around the globe. Boucher has also written a

rock opera A rock opera is a collection of rock music songs with lyrics that relate to a common story. Rock operas are typically released as concept albums and are not scripted for acting, which distinguishes them from operas, although several have been ad ...

''Rose Ross'' (1983) and scripts for television and radio, as well as lyrics for popular songs for singers including

Dan Bigras Dan Bigras (born 23 December 1957) is a francophone rock singer and actor from Canada. He has released a number of albums of rock music, beginning with ''Ange Animal'' in 1990. He is the spokesman of ''Refuge des Jeunes de Montréal'' (meaning ...

, Pauline Julien,

Gerry Boulet Joseph Gaétan Robert Gérald (Gerry) Boulet (March 1, 1946 – July 18, 1990) was a French Canadian rock singer.

, Chloé Sainte-Marie and

Louise Forestier Louise Forestier (born Louise Belhumeur on August 10, 1942) is a Canadian singer, songwriter and actress. Biography Born in Shawinigan, Quebec, Canada, Forestier was trained in acting at the National Theatre School in Montreal, but it was as a ...

. From 1998 to 2000, she was president of the

Union des écrivaines et des écrivains québécois L'Union des écrivaines et des écrivains québécois (UNEQ; English: ''Québec Union of Writers'') is a professional union of writers in Québec, Canada. Founded on March 21, 1977 by some 50 writers following the leadership of Jacques Godbout, ...

Awards and honours

In 2002, she received the . In 2015, she was awarded the Prix Adagio.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boucher, Denise 1935 births Living people Journalists from Quebec Canadian women dramatists and playwrights Canadian women poets Canadian feminist writers People from Victoriaville Writers from Quebec