The Quebec government is pledging $13.5 million to the École nationale de l’humour to help it acquire a building in Montreal’s Quartier latin – where it will be relocated.
Culture and Communications Minister Mathieu Lacombe made the announcement on Friday.
The École nationale de l’humour building, located on Sherbrooke Street East, in the Sainte-Marie neighbourhood, has become “unsuitable and too small” to maintain activities at this time, according to a government press release.
The institution has been at this location since 2004.
The new building will allow the school to “benefit from a modern and functional environment” to train the comedians of the future.
As part of the relocation project, the school’s new buildings will be renovated, and their heritage qualities will be highlighted.
The government indicates in its press release that this new address will also help revitalize the Quartier latin, which has been affected by many departures in recent years.
“This project, which is part of our vision of revitalizing the Quartier latin, will transform this sector into a vibrant hub of cultural activity, while providing the comedy school with the means to continue to shine well beyond our borders,” said Minister Lacombe.
École nationale de l’humour Director Louise Richer said this is “big news” for the comedy school.
“Thanks to this new space, we will be able to continue to innovate with passion, diversify our approaches and enrich the cultural life of Quebec, in addition to continuing our push into educational environments, including francization, and into both corporate and community work environments,” she said.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews