Yesterday the Children were Dancing, or Hier, les enfants dansaient, is a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, specifically Québecois

Quebec

Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

 play

Play (theatre)

A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...

 by Gratien Gélinas

Gratien Gélinas

Gratien Gélinas, was a Canadian author, playwright, actor, director, producer and administrator who is considered one of the founders of modern Canadian theatre and film....

.

The story is about a member of parliament, Pierre Gravel, who is offered the post of Minister of Justice

Minister of Justice (Canada)

The Minister of Justice is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for the Department of Justice and is also Attorney General of Canada .This cabinet position is usually reserved for someone with formal legal training...

. Unfortunately, on the same day he gets this promotion, he learns that one of his own son, André, is a Quebec separatist terrorist plotting to destroy a statue to James Wolfe

James Wolfe

Major General James P. Wolfe was a British Army officer, known for his training reforms but remembered chiefly for his victory over the French in Canada...

in the city. In the resulting argument, father and son debate their loyalties and motivations in a sort-of war over the affections of Louise Gravel, Pierre's wife.