Montreal, March 12, 2025 — Stephie Mazunya receives the Blue Metropolis/Conseil des arts de Montréal 2025 New Contribution Prize for S’enjailler, published by Éditions du remue-ménage. Stephie Mazunya is a Burundian-born Montreal actress and artist, and this is her first book, a printed version of the play of the same name. Drawing on Haitian Creole, Quebec joual, English, French slang, Kirundi and Arabic, the play features four young Montrealers of African descent for whom daily struggles with the body, feminism, sexuality and racism take on cosmic proportions. The New Contribution literary prize, awarded jointly by the Blue Metropolis Foundation and the Conseil des arts de Montréal, aims to draw attention to the new, immigrant literary voices who are enriching our literature, for whom Montreal has become a nexus. It recognizes a work by an allophone Montreal author who is a first- or second-generation immigrant. This work may be a first book, or one of the author’s first three published works. All literary genres are eligible. The Blue Metropolis/Conseil des arts de Montréal New Contribution Prize awards the winner a $ 5000 grant. The jury found S’enjailler to be a “bold dramatic work” that “also stands out for its effective humor and thematic approach […] The text, at times crude and vulgar, at times deeply realist, offers a veritable ode to the cultural diversity of the Quebec metropolis.
Alternating between light-hearted moments and deeper reflections, the author questions the multiple dimensions of female identity,” while “the work simultaneously develops a nuanced approach to serious themes and contributes to a fairer and more diversified representation of frequently minoritized
voices.” In short, Mazunya is “a new and promising voice in the theatrical landscape”. Montreal actress and artist of Burundian origin, Stephie Mazunya, has published her first book. S’enjailler (Éditions du remue-ménage) was first performed at the Centre du Théâtre d’aujourd’hui in spring 2024, in a production by Porte débarrée. Published by Éditions du remue-ménage, the book is part of the La Nef collection, edited by Marie-Claude Garneau, Marie-Ève Milot and Marie-Claude St-Laurent.
Nathalie Maillé, general director of the Conseil des arts de Montréal, declared: ‘’The Conseil is delighted to award the New Contribution Prize to Stephie Mazunya for her piece S’enjailler, which stands out for the originality of its content and style. In this vibrant tribute to the communities of Afro-heritage that
make up Montreal, the author creates a polyphonic universe that alternates between joy and depth with great skill. Bravo and thank you to our winner for enriching our literary and theater scenes in such a significant way! ‘’
The members of the 2025 jury are Émeline Pierre (author and professor of literature at the Université de Montréal), Rose Carine Henriquez (author and librarian), and Annabelle Moreau (editor and scholar).
The two finalists for the New Contribution Prize are:
- Khawal. Le privilège de la beauté, de Nour Symon (éditions du Noroît)
- Je mets mes rêves sur la table, de Martina Chumova (éditions Cheval d’août)
Our congratulations to the winner and to the finalists.
The winner, Stephie Mazunya, will be present at the 27th edition of the Blue Metropolis International Literary Festival, which will take place in Montreal, from the 24 to the 27 of April, 2025.
The details and complete schedule of events can be found at: https://bluemetropolis.org/2025festival/
About the Conseil des arts de Montréal
Offering various forms of assistance, the Conseil des arts de Montréal identifies, supports and recognizes artistic innovation and creative expression in all their diversity to promote Montreal’s artists and arts organizations active in creation, production and presentation. Since 1956, the Conseil has played a unique role as a catalyst for this artistic ecosystem, helping make Montreal one of the world’s great cultural metropolises.
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Source: Marie-Andrée Lamontagne,
General Director, Programming and Communications
For details and interviews:
Relations avec les médias (français) : Felipe del Pozo
(514) 616-4713 ou felipe@feliperp.com
Anglophone media: Janis Kirshner
514 287-8912 ou jkirshner@sympatico.ca
