Theatre is a powerful time machine that Robert Lepage uses to explore the many layers and textures of Riopelle’s life: the student and his teacher Paul-Émile Borduas, who introduced him to the signatories of the Refus global; the émigré in Paris, alongside Breton, Beckett, Giacometti; Riopelle and Mitchell, in two parts, featuring two pairs of dazzling performers, including Luc Picard and Anne-Marie-Cadieux; and finally Riopelle in his twilight years on Île-aux-Grues, expanding his legacy with the famous silhouettes of birds and objects captured forever in spray paint. With his unique signature, his humour, his virtuosity as a dramatic storyteller and his perceptive view of Quebec’s identity, the creator of The Dark Side of the Moon and 887 revives the memory of an authentic free spirit in a tribute to one of the pioneers of contemporary art.