Marguerite Duras said that one must love men deeply, and Frères, Nathalie Doummar’s play and her directorial debut at Théâtre Duceppe, is a love letter to their vulnerabilities and their tenderness. Even if we hate to see them cry, the men who gather to argue and talk about life in a cabin that looks more like a dollhouse are incredibly realistic—and very, very endearing. And my God, how we love them!
Frères is playing at Théâtre Duceppe through May 16, 2026.
Our fathers, our uncles, our cousins, our brothers
The play is incredibly funny and—perhaps because my grandfather was from Alexandria—imbued with an intense nostalgia for the somewhat old-fashioned world of men from this generation and this part of the world. These are men we know well and love dearly, portrayed with touching accuracy by Nathalie Doummar, who are confronted with today’s modernity and its modern-day ills.
Generations are at odds over concepts that make these men uncomfortable (or not). Grief, divorce, girls—open-minded but not too much, annoying, very beautiful, inscrutable, or snobs—and masculine identity in a world spinning just a little too fast. It’s cathartic, imbued with the simplicity of men’s bygone lives in the good old days back home and the misplaced reactivity of sons who no longer know where to anchor their masculinity and who end up finding their fathers soft.
Nathalie Doummar wrote this play following the one that brought her to prominence, which centered on the women of the same family, Mama (2022). To explore the men, she places them in a dollhouse-shaped cabin, soaks them in hot water to soften them, and gives them the chance to talk about the things that upset them.
We recommend this play to those who feel the men in their family have the emotional range of an oyster, to those who listened to Oum Kalthoum records in the car during family road trips , to those who are a bit tired of the harsh looks we cast at one another, and to those who want to love men deeply.
Practical Information
Where? Théâtre Duceppe, 175 Sainte-Catherine Street West
When? April 15 to May 16, 2026—28 performances
What? To buy a ticket and learn more, click here
Text and co-direction by Nathalie Doummar
Co-directed by Jean-Simon Traversy
Cast: Paul Ahmarani, Mustapha Aramis, Étienne Coppée, Neil Elias, Ariel Ifergan, Jean-René Moisan, Nour Shoukry, Manuel Tadros (alternating with Jean-François Casabonne), and Antoine Yared
