2004 Spring Season 2004 Sp[i og Seasoo Brooklyn Academy of Music Alan H. Fishman William I. Campbell Chairman of the Boa rd Vice Chairman of the Board

Karen Brooks Hopkins Joseph V. Melillo President Executive Producer

presents The Imaginary Invalid (Le Malade imaginaire ) Comedie-Fran~aise

Approximate BAM Harvey Theater running time: Jun 9- 12, 2004 at 7:30pm; Jun 13 at 3pm Two hours; no intermission by Moliere Directed by Claude Stratz Set and costume design by Ezio Toffolutti Lighting design by Jean-Philippe Roy Original music by Marc-Olivier Dupin Choreographed by Sophie Mayer Make-up, wigs, and prosthesis design by Kuno Schlegelmilch

Engl ish titles by Mike Sens American Stage Manager Kim Beringer Performed in French with English surtitles

BAM 2004 Spring Season is sponsored by Altria Group, Inc.

Leadership support for The Imaginary Invalid engagement is provided by The Florence Gould Foundation and The Lepercq Foundation.

Calyon is the presenting sponsor for The Imaginary Invalid engagement.

Additional engagement support is provided by Association Franr;aise d'Action Artistique; Cultural Services of the French Embassy in the United States; Sofitel New York; Lepercq, de Neuflize & Co.; and Tocquevil/e Asset Management.

The opening night reception is sponsored by the French-American Foundation. Hors d'oeuvres are provided by A Table, Bacchus, Capsouto Freres, L'Absinthe, and Loulou. Wine is provided by The Charmer Sunbelt Group.

Leadership support for BAM Theater is provided by The Peter Jay Sharp Foundation, The Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, Inc., The Shubert Foundation, The Skirbal/ Foundation, and The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation. The Imaginary Invalid

Cast Alain Pralon Argan Muriel Mayette Toinette Catherine Sauval Beline Eric Ruf Cleante Christian Blanc Monsieur Diafoirus; Monsieur Purgon Alain Lenglet Beralde Nicolas Lormeau Thomas Diafoirus Christian Gonon Monsieur Bonnefoy; Monsieur Fleurant Julie Sicard Ange lique Alma Vincey. Penelope Cellier alternate as Louison

Musicians Karine Serafin soprano Christophe Ferveur tenor Valerie Wuilleme alto Anne-Laure Lelievre clavecin Philippe Degaetz bass Mathilde Vieillard-Baron viola da gamba

Titles provided by Med ia Writers & Translators.

Hair services provided courtesy of Amy Farid and Dante Pronio for Bumble and bumble.

ACTO RS' The actors in The Imaginary Invalid are appearing with the permission of Actors' Equity ~ ~ .\m:Y. Association. The American stage manager is a member of Actors' Equity Association.

Synopsis "

Act I Argan, the Imaginary Invalid, contrives to marry his daughter Angelique to Thomas Di afo irus, a medica l student and also the son of a doctor, with the hope of granting himself a lifetime of free medical care. Beline, Argan's second wife, plots with the help of an unscru pulous notary to send Angel ique to a convent and remove her from the line of inheritance. But the girl is in love with Cleante, and Toinette, the fa ithful house servant, endeavors to convince Argan to relinquish his ludicrous scheme, "ce dessein bu rlesque."

Act /I Cleante, posing as Angeli que's music instructor, pretends to give her a lesson but Argan insists on staying in the room. Diafoirus, the father-boastfully confident, and the son-a bore who can only utter meaningless words, drop in and ask for Angelique's hand. In front of th ei r eyes, Ange lique and Cleante fake an opera rehearsal and declare love for one another. At the end of the "lesson," Angelique turns down the chosen futu re husba nd, stands up to her stepmother and leaves the room. But a young man has been seen in Angeliq ue's room and Beralde, Argan's brother, intervenes to soften the anger of the "invalid." In order to change his mind, Beralde takes him to watch a play by ... Moliere.

Act /II Bera lde tries to bring his brother back to his senses. Toinette, in the guise of a doctor, attempts in vain to fi ll her master with loathing for med ica l science, but Argan digs his heels in. Nevertheless, with Beralde's help she convinces him to feign death and expose everyone's true feelings. Argan discovers Beline's contempt and Angelique's sincere grief. He is moved and gives his daughter's hand to Cleante ... provided the young man becomes a doctor. Following his brother's advice, he resolves to become a doctor himself: a farcical parody of a ceremony attended by all the characters celebrates Argan's entry into the profession. I I~ The Imaginary Invalid

A comedy of the melancholy

When Moliere wrote The Imaginary Invalid, he already knew he was seriously ill. His final play is a comedy, but the end of each act evokes death. Behind the character of Argan, one cannot help feeling the presence of the dying author (the part was created by Moliere himself), who plays with suffering and death. This theme, tragic in real life, becomes comedy on the stage and the author chooses to make us laugh with misfortune.

In a century where writers refrain from talking about themselves, Moliere lets us in on a personal secret through the voice of Beralde, Argan's brother, who tells us "he is so weak that he has just enough strength left to bear his illness." The truly sick man pretends to be ill. The whole play revol ves around the opposition between true and fake: a true music teacher and an impostor, a true and a phony doctor, a truly sick man and an imaginary invalid; a true and a false death. This dialectic reaches its peak in the last act when, in a parody of a diagnosis (the lung being the cause of Argan's ills) Moliere has Toinette-disguised as a doctor~reveal the true nature of his illness: during the fourth performance, Moliere spit blood and died a few hours later, due to diseased lungs. This is deception squared: Toinette, posing as a doctor to denounce the doctor as impostor, finally tells the truth. Th e truth emerges from the lies. It is Argan's li e (when he pretends to be dead) that reveals Beline's treachery. It is when she decides to pretend to go along with Argan and Beline that Toinette will help Angelique. Cleante manages to get into the house by posing as the music teacher. One must be a hypocrite to denounce impostors and lies. On a deeper level , Moliere jokes about illness and death in an attempt to ward them off.

In this play, everything is a subject of parody. The most serious matters are treated as comedy that shows Moliere's penchant for the carnivalesque. Indeed, at the end of the third act, to justify the final parody~when Argan is made a doctor with much ceremony, Beralde points out that "it is authorized by the carnival." By organizing this ultimate entertainment~this "jesters' parade"~ Beralde literally introduces the carnival into this bourgeois house. The play was created in February 1673, during the carnival season.

The Imaginary Invalid has given rise to totally contradictory interpretations: Argan has been portrayed as a sick man, and one enjoying glowing health; he has been played as a tyrant and a victim; as a comic figure and a dramatic one. It is because all those options can be found in the play, not at the same time but successively. Moliere presents a formidable canvas, full of breaks and contradictions, where the comic and dramatic sides are intertwined and mirror each other. Behind this large-scale comedy that includes elements of farce, one discovers anxiety, selfishness, and cruelty.

Comedy of paradoxes? Nothing follows the right order. For example, unity of time is respected yet slightly subverted: the first act starts at the end of the afternoon and ends at sunset, the two following acts take place the morning and afternoon of the next day. Thus , Moliere's last play begins in the shades of a closing day; it is a twilight comedy tinged with bitterness and melancholy.

~Claude Stratz

c III Comedie-Eranc;aise In New York

The Comedie-Fran~aise was founded in 1680 following a royal order of Louis XIV; he merged all the existing Parisian troupes into one, among them the company created by Moliere, who had died seven years earlier.

Constituted as the "Societe des Comediens Fran~ais " (Society of the French Actors), the 55-actor troupe is a permanent company which gives around 900 performances of about 20 plays each season. The actors hand on a large repertory from one generation to the next, dating back to the source of the European theater and carrying on with contemporary texts.

Moliere, Racine, Marivaux, Beaumarchais, Victor Hugo ... , Claudel, Camus, Duras, Beckett, as well as classical and contemporary authors of all continents and languages ... The Comedie-Fran~aise operates three theaters in Paris allowing for the production of dramatic pieces of any nature and origin. Indeed, three American artists were recently on the program of our theaters in Paris- Tony Kushner with Homebody/Kabul, Bob Wilson who directed Les Fables by La Fontaine, and Henry James with The Aspern Papers. Since the theater is fundamentally an art of the exchange, it is fortunate that as a reciprocate of this American programming in Paris, Moliere can cross the Atlantic to meet an audience in love with the theater, and open to all differences. We are particularly thrilled to come back to New York at BAM, with The Imaginary Invalid in a new production that combines tradition and modernity under Claude Stratz's attentive guidance, while showing careful consideration to the text and fostering the joy of acting.

- Marcel Bozonnet President and Artistic Director of the Comedie-Fram;aise Who's Who

Claude Stratz (director) was born in Zurich and Acteurs de bonne foi (Comedie de Geneve; studied psychology with Jean Piaget at the Theatre de la Commune, Aubervilliers, 1992), University of Geneva. He taught dramaturgy Musset's Fantasio (Comedie de Geneve, 1995), and interpretation at the Superior School for Max Frisch's The Firebugs (Comedie de Dramatic Arts in Geneva (ESADl. He was an Geneve, 1995 / Athenee Theatre, 2001), assistant to director Patrice Chereau at the Ibsen's An Enemy of the People (Comedie Theatre des Amandiers in Nanterre from 1981 de Geneve; Theatre National de la Colline, to 1988; he directed the Comedie de Geneve 1996-98), Lord of the Flies adapted from from 1989 to 1999. In 1999 he became the William Golding's novel by Olivier Chiacchiari director of ESAD until 2001 when he was (Comedie de Geneve, 1998), Pirandello's Ce appointed director of the National Superior soir on improvise (Comedie de Geneve; Conservatory of Dramatic Arts in Paris. Since Athenee-Theatre Louis Jouvet, 1999), Moliere's 1975 he directed more than 20 plays, includ­ La Critique de I'Ecole des femmes and ing Euripides' Les Bakkhantes, Buchner's L'lmpromptu de Versailles (ESAD, 2000), Woyzeck at the Theatre de Carouge (1978), Nathalie Sarraute's Le Silence and Le Kleist's Le Prince de Hombourg at the Comedie Mensonge (ESAD, 2000), and Puccini's La de Geneve (1980), Marivaux's Le Legs and Boheme, Lausanne Opera (2003). L'Epreuve (Comedie de Geneve; Nanterre's Theatre des Amandiers, 1985), Nicolai Ezio Toffolutti (set and costume design), also a Erdman's The Suicide (a co-production of painter, was born in Venice and trained at the Comedie de Geneve/Theatre des Amandiers, Academy of Fine Arts. He designed his first set 1987), Pirandello's Chacun son idee (Comedie in 1973 for the Folksbuhne in East Berlin. He de Geneve; Strasbourg's National Theater, often worked with Benno Besson and for more 1989), Shakespeare's Julius Caesar (Comedie than 20 years, designed sets for plays Besson de Geneve, 1990), Claudel's COtage and Le directed in Berlin, Paris, and Avignon's theater Pain dur (Comedie de Geneve 1991 and festival (Shakespeare's As You Like It, Hamlet, 1992), Marivaux's CEcole des meres and Les Brecht's The Caucasian Chalk Circle), for the

IV ~ Who's Who

Spoleto Festival (Sophocles' Oedipus), in arts. His partnership with Brigitte Jaques and Stockholm (Brecht's Saint Joan of the Fran~ois Regnault led to fifteen music scores; Stockyards), at the Vienna Burgtheater (The the most recent ones include Ibsen's Hedda New Mendoza), at the Comedie de Gemlve Gabler for the Comedie de Geneve, Odyssee for (Flaubert's Le Sexe faible, Labiche's Moi, the Avignon Theatre Festival, and Plaute's La Comtesse de Segur's Mademoiselle Justine; Marmite for the Louvre's Auditorium. He is also Moliere's Don Juan) , at the Genoa Theater the author of several operas; with Ivan Grinberg (Hamlet), at Vidy-Lausanne Theater (Moliere's he composed two operas for children (La Reine Tartuffe). He worked steadily with directors des gourdes and La Pension du diable for the such as Hans Litzau (Claudel's Le Soulier de Bastille Opera's amphitheater), with Gerard satin, Salzburg; Garcia Lorca 's The House of Wajcman, Le Jeu du Narcisse, created in Bernarda Alba, Vienna's Burgtheater, 11994 in Aubervilliers, and with Ivan Grinberg, Chekhov's Uncle Vanya, at Munich's Michael Kohlhaas, created in 2000 and revived Kammerspiele, and King Lear at Munich's as part of Musicora; and was on the program Residenztheater). For eight years he designed of the Opera lIe-de-France in 2001. For film, sets for Claude Stratz (Marivaux's L'Ecole des he worked mostly for documentaries. On the meres and Les Acteurs de bonne foi, Synge's occasion of "Cinema en concert" organized by The Playboy of the Western World, Musset's the Louvre Museum, he wrote and directed a Fantasio, Max Frisch's The Firebugs, Ibsen's An music score for Charles Bryant's silent movie Enemy of the People); Jerome Savary Salome. At the same time, Dupin served as (Goldoni's Les Rustres, Brecht's Mother director of several conservatories . From January Courage and The Resistible Ascension of 1993 to September 2000, he directed the Arturo Ui, and Wilde's The Importance of National Superior Conservatory of Music and Being Earnest at the Theatre Chaillot). For the Dance in Paris. From then on, he was the opera he created sets for Rigoletto in Berlin music advisor of the minister of national (dir. by Harry Kupfer) , Les Noces de Figaro in education, at the mission for artistic education Hamburg and Munich, Danton's Death (dir. by and cultural development. Johannes Schaaf) , Les Maltres chanteurs at Milan's Scala Idomemee in Salzburg (both dir. Marcel Bozonnet (president and artistic direc­ by Nikolaus Lehnhoff), Cos! fan tutte, Titus' tor) studied philosophy at Dijon's University Clemenza, and La Cenerentola in Geneva , Le and theater at the same time. He was hired by Comte Ory (sets and costumes) in Marcel Marechal, then Patrice Chereau. He Glyndebourne (dir. by Jerome Savary), Elektra worked for Jean-Marie Villegier, Valere Novarina, in Rome (d ir. by Henning Brockhaus). He and became the assistant of Roger Blin. He directed Le Delire du tavernier Bassa at the interpreted contemporary and classic roles for Comedie de Geneve (1983), Gozzi's Zobeide in directors including Alfredo Arias, Georges Berne (1993), Cos! fan tutte for the Paris Aperghis, and Antoine Vitez. He was influenced Opera (1996), Cimarosa's Mariage secret at by musical theater and contemporary ballet. In Vienna's Kammeroper (1997) and Don 1982, Bozonnet joined the Comed i e-Fran~aise, Giovanni in Holland (1998). In 2000, he hired by Jacques Toja to play Victor in Vitrac's re-teamed with Benno Besson in Helsinki on Victor au les enfants au pouvoir. He played Moliere's Dam Juan and in Genoa on Tartuffe among others: the title role in Corneille's Cinna and he created the sets for Turrini's Joseph et directed by Jean-Marie Villegier, Antiochus in Marie and Janacek's The Cunning Little Fox in Racine's Berenice directed by Klaus-Michael Berlin. Gruber, Pasqualino in Goldoni's L'impresario de Smyrne directed by Jean-Luc Boutte, and Marc-Olivier Dupin (composer) started learning Roger in Genet's The Balcony directed by the violin with his father before entering the Georges Lavaudant. He became a member in National Conservatory of Music in Paris, where 1986 and acted in Moliere's Les Femmes he studied alto, music writing, analysis, and savantes directed by Catherine Hiegel (Vadius), conducting. For 20 years he had a double Claudel's Tete d'Or directed by Aurelien career as a composer and a teacher in charge Recoing, Brecht's Galileo directed by Antoine of academic institutions. As a composer, he Vitez, Moliere's Le medecin malgre lui directed wrote mainly for the theater and audiovisual by Dario Fo (Valere), Beaumarchais' Le Barbier Who's Who de Seville directed by Jean-Luc Boutte (Don in Her Ear, Astrov in Chekhov's Uncle Vanya Bazile), Strindberg's The Father directed by directed by Felix Prader, Deeley in Pinter's Old Patrice Kerbrat (Le Pasteur) , Aime Cesaire's La Times directed by Jean-Pierre Miquel, Figaro in Tragedie du roi Christophe directed by Idrissa Bea umarchais' Le Barbier de Seville and Le Ouedraogo. From 1979 to 1984 he taught at Mariage de Figaro, Pasquin in Marivaux' Le Jeu the ENSATI (National Superior School for de I'amour et du hasard, Don Cesar de Bazan Dramatic Arts and Techniques). In 1993 he in Victor Hugo's Ruy Bias . He has played roles was appointed director of the National Superior in Shakespeare's Richard III (Catesby), Pericles Conservatory of Dramatic Arts. He directed for (Lysimaque) and this season he is Leontes in Rouen's Theatre des Arts Jarry's Le Surmale, a Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale directed by modern operetta, M me de la Fayette's La Muriel Mayette. He has directed plays by Princesse de Cleves which is still touring Georges Courteline (La paix chez soi) , Elisabeth around and outside France. In 1998, he directed Janvier (Embarquement immediat) and, adapted for the European Academy of Music Purcell's from Alexandre Dumas, Ah, vous voila Dumas?!. Dido and Aeneas for the International Festival of Aix-en-Provence and in 1999, he directed Muriel Mayette (Toinette) joined the Comedie­ and played Creon in Sophocles' Antigone. Fran~aise in 1985 after training at the National Since August 2001 he serves as president and Superior Conservatory of Dramatic Arts and artistic director of the Comedie-Fran~aise for became a member in 1988. She has interpret­ which he directed in 2003 Racine's Esther ed numerous roles under the direction of with music by Jean-Baptiste Moreau. Antoine Vitez (Areuse in Fernando de Rojas' La Celestine, 1989), Claude Regy (Estelle in Alain Pralon (Argan) started with the CF in Sartre's No Exit, 1990), Jacques Lassalle (Le 1965 and became a member in 1972. He has Chevalier in Marivaux' La Fausse Suivante, interpreted the great roles of classic and con­ 1991; Angelique in Moliere's George Dandin , temporary theater under directors such as 1992), Philippe Adrien (Madame in Genet's Jacques Lassalle (Trivelin in Marivaux's La Les Bonnes; Hermine in Hugo Von Fausse Suivante, the title role in Moliere's Hofmannsthal's L'lncorruptible), Matthias George Dandin, Brighella in Goldoni's La serva Langhoff (Alice in Strindberg's Dance of Death, amorosa and Doudakov in Gorki's Les 1996; Rosetta in Lenz, Leonce et Lena, Estivants) , Alain Fran~on (Ekdal in Ibsen's The 2002). She also played Varia in Chekhov's The Wild Duck, Pishchik in Chekhov's The Cherry Cherry Orchard directed by Alain Fran~on, Ruth Orchard), Philippe Adrien (Tom Stoppard's in Pinter's The Homecoming directed by Arcadia; Hugo Von Hofmannsthal's Catherine Hiegel, and the title role of /'Incorruptible; Moliere's Monsieur de Sophocles' Antigone directed by Ottomar Pourceaugnac), Matthias Langhoff (The Krejca. During the 2003-04 season, she was King in BOchner's Lenz , Leonce et Lena), featured as Anna Vo·'nitzeva in Chekhov's Jean-Pierre Vincent (Banquo in Shakespeare's Platonov directed by Jacques Lassalle.As a Macbeth, Simon Podsekalnikov in Nicola·, director, she staged several plays, including Oh, Erdman's The Suicide, Lefort in Henry mais ou est la tete de Victor Hugo? at the Becque's Les Corbeaux) . He has played roles Theatre National de l'Odeon, transferred in most of Moliere's plays, including La Fleche later at the Theatre du Vieux Colombier, in L'Avare, Covielle and Dorante in Le Crommelynck's Les Amants puerils, Corneille's Bourgeois gentilhomme, Clitandre in Le Clitandre, Feydeau's Chat en poche, Karin Medecin malgre lui, Scapin in Les Fourberies Mainwaring's The Rain Dancers and, at the de Scapin, Chrisale and Trissotin in Les Studio-Theatre, Shakespeare's Winter's Tale, Femmes savantes, Alcidas in Le Mariage force, which opened March 2004. Outside of the Dubois and Philinte in Le Misanthrope, Comedie-Fran~aise, she played in Moliere's Le Mercure in Amphitryon. He acted in Misanthrope directed by Andre Engel (MC93 Tourgueniev's A Month in the Country directed Bobigny) and Gogol's Revizor directed by by Andre·, Smirnoff, Gogol 's Revizor directed by Matthias Langhoff. She acted in films with Jean-Louis Benoit and Feydeau's Occupe-toi Pascale Ferran (Petits arrangements avec les d'Amelie directed by Roger Planchon. He was morts), Claude Mourieras (Ois-moi que je the lead actor in Diderot's Le Paradoxe du reve) , and Jacques Renard (Poil de carotte). comedien , Romain Tournel in Feydeau's A Flea

VI ~ Who's Who

Catherin e Sa uval (Beline) took classes at the Anatoli Vassiliev. Outside the Comedie­ National Superior Conservatory of Dramatic Franc;aise, he played Abad in Bernard-Marie Arts with Jean-Pierre Vincent, Jacques Lassalle, Koltes' Quai Ouest directed by Thierry de and Denise Bonal after training at the Amiens Perretti, Philipetto in Goldoni's Les Rustres Conservatory. A member of the Comedie­ directed by Jerome Savary, and the title role in Franc;aise since 1990, she has interpreted the Peer Gynt directed by Philippe Berling. He was ingenue roles including the Young Girl in Jean seen at BAM (1996 Spring season) as Don Audureau's Felicite, directed by Jean-Pierre Carlos in Moliere's Dam Juan directed by Vincent; Helene in Labiche's Un chapeau de Jacques Lassalle. Currently, he plays The King paille d'/talie, directed by Georges Lavaudant; in Calderon's Le Grand theatre du monde Helena in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's directed by Christian Schiaretti. He acted in Dream, directed by Jorge Lavelli; Junie in films with directors Manuel Fleche (Marie­ Racine's Britannicus , directed by Jean-Luc Louise ou la permission), Yves Angelo (Le Boutte; Celimene in Moliere's Le Misanthrope, Valeur de vie), Nicole Garcia (Place Vendome) , directed by Simon Eine; Claudine in Moliere's and Bruno Nuytten (Passionnement). Georges Dandin, directed by Jacques Lassalle; and Irene in Feydeau's Occupe-toi d'Amelie, Christian Blanc (Monsieur Diafoirus and directed by Roger Planchon. She also played Monsieur Purgon) premiered at the Comedie­ Catherine Ginori in Musset's Lorenzaccio Franc;aise in Brecht's Galileo directed by directed by Georges Lavaudant, Charlotte in Antoine Vitez and became a member in 2000. Tennessee Williams' The Night of the Iguana Before that, he performed under the direction directed by Brigitte Jaques, Charlotte in of Marcel Marechal (Moliere's Le Bourgeois Moliere's Dom Juan directed by Jacques gentilhomme), Roger Planchon (Planchon's Lassalle, Annette in Adamov's Ping-pong Bleu Blanc Rouge), Jerome Deschamp directed by Gilles Chavassieux and Melanie (Deschamp's Les precipitations), Lucian Pintilie Galattis in Hugo von Hofmannsthal's (Ce soir on improvise and II faut passer par les L'lncorruptible directed by Philippe Adrien. nuages) , and worked steadily with Gildas Recently, she was seen as Nicole in Moliere's Bourdet from 1975 to 1985 (Racine's Ie Bourgeois Gentilhomme directed by Jean­ Britannicus, Bourdet's Le Saperleau, Gorki 's Louis Benoit, Sophia legorovna in Chekhov's Les Bas-fonds, Claudel's Le Pain dur ... J. Platonov directed by Jacques Lassalle, and He interpreted the roles of Sganarelle in Hermione in The Winter 's Tale directed by Moliere's Le Medecin Volant directed by Dario Muriel Mayette. She also created the part of Fo , Cardinal Cibo in Musset's Lorenzaccio Anna in Marie N'Diaye's Papa doit manger directed by Georges Lavaudant, Kazarine in directed by Andre Engel. Lermontov's Bal masque directed by Anatoli Vassiliev, Rustighello in Hugo's Lucrece Borgia Eric Rut (Cleante) joined the Comedie­ directed by Jean-Luc Boutte, Argante in Franc;aise in 1993, still a student at the Moliere's Les Fourberies de Scapin directed by National Superior Conservatory of Dramatic Jean-Louis Benoit which toured in Argentina Arts. He played Gennaro in Victor Hugo's and Brazil , and Tubal and Venice's Duke in Lucrece Borgia directed by Jeim-Luc Boutte, Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice directed the title role in Racine's Bajazet directed by by Andrei Serban. Television and film work Eric Vigner; and Louis Laine in Claudel 's includes Train d'enfer, directed by Roger Hanin , L'Echange directed by Jean Dautremay. He Blanche et Marie directed by Jacques Renard , became a member in 1998 and worked in La Lectrice directed by Michel Deville and Va Corneille's Clitandre au !'Innocence delivree nu pied, directed by Philippe Lioret. Recently, directed by Muriel Mayette, Tourgueniev's A he appeared in Ostrovski's La Foret directed by Month in the Country directed by Andre', Piotr Fomenko (Milonov), Chekhov's Platonov Smirnoff, L'Avare directed by Andre'! Serban, (Petrine) directed by Jacques Lassalle, Les Le Mariage force directed by Andrzej Seweryn, Fables de la Fontaine directed by Robert and L'Ecole des femmes directed by Eric Wilson, and Shakespeare's The Winter 's Tale Vigner. In 2001, he held the title roles in Victor (Dion) directed by Muriel Mayette. Hugo's Ruy Bias directed by Brigitte Jaques­ Wajeman and Moliere's Amphitryon directed by Alain Lenglet (Beralde) started at the Comedie­ Franc;aise in 1993 and became a member in

VII Who's Who

2000. He created the roles of Frederic and Dr. Holland (Europa-Europa) , Francis Girod Pie-Pirouni in Georges Shehade's Monsieur (Lacenaire), Bruno Podalydes (Oieu seul me Bob'le, directed by Jean-Louis Benoit at the voit) , and Anne-Marie Etienne (T6t ou tard). Vieux-Colombier in 1994. He was also Reali in Italo Svevo's Un mari directed by Jacques Ch ristian Gonon (Monsieur Bonnefoy and Lassalle (1994), Don Apostolo Gazella in Victor Monsieur Fleurant) debuted with the Comedie­ Hugo's Lucrece Borgia , directed by Jean-Luc Fran~aise in 1998. He worked with Jerome Boutte (1994), and Osmin in Racine's Bajazet, Savary in Cyrano de Bergerac; Jacques Weber directed by Eric Vignier at the Vieux-Colombier in Alexandre Dumas' Monte-Christo; Luce (1995). He played Prince Floridan in Corneille's Berthomme in Giraudoux' Ondine ; Fran~ois Clitandre ou /'Innocence delivree directed by Bourcier in Moliere's Les Fourberies de Scapin; Muriel Mayette, Ie Comte in Marivaux's Les Paul Golub in Caryl Churchill'S 7th Heaven , Fausses confidences directed by Jean-Pierre Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream , Miquel which was featured at BAM in 1996, Macbeth; Anne Delbee in Racine's Mithridate Sebastien in Shakespeare's The Tempest direct­ and Andromaque, Shakespeare's Othello, ed by Daniel Mesguich, Ariste in Moliere's Antoine Vitez' L'Ombre du bonheur. At the CEcole des maris directed by Th ierry Hancisse, Comedie-Fran~aise his roles include Pacorus Klaus von Karadine in Fran~ois Billetdoux's Va in Corneille's Surena directed also by Anne donc chez T6rpe directed by Georges Werler at Delbee, Eilif in Brecht's Mother Courage the Vieux-Colombier, and Sganarelle in directed by Jorge Lavelli, Korobkine in Gogol's Moliere's Sganarelle ou Ie Cocu imaginaire Revizor directed by Jean- Lou is Benoit, Acaste directed by Thierry Hancisse at the Studio­ in Moliere's Le Misanthrope directed by Theatre. Recently he was Antolycus in Jean-Pierre Miquel, Maxime in Corneille's Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale directed by Cinna directed by Simon Eine, Bassanio in Muriel Mayette. On film, he acted under the Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice directed direction of Bernard Fa vre (La Trace, Vent de by Andre'! Serban, and Loevborg in Ibsen's Galerne), Robert Guediguian (Qui 10 sa; Dieu Hedda Gabler directed by Jean-Pierre Miquel. vomit les tiMes; A la vie, a la mort, A Recently, he acted under director Robert Wilson /'attaque; and La ville est tranquillel. in Les Fables de la Fontaine ; he held the title role and directed Fabrice Melquiot's Bouli-Miro. Nicolas Lormeau (Thomas Diafoirus) joined the In 1991, he was awarded the Prix Jean Marais Comedie-Fran~aise in 1996 after training at for his interpretation of d'Artagnan in The Three the National Superior Conservatory of Dramatic Musketeers directed by Jean-Louis Martin Arts with Denise Bona l, Daniel Mesguich, and Barbaz. In film, he acted under the direction Jean-Pierre Vincent. He worked with directors of Claude Sautet in Un Coeur en hiver. Jean-Pierre Miquel (Marivaux' Les Fausses Confidences and Le Legs), Jean-Louis Benoit Julie Sicard (Angeliquel, a National Superior in Les Fourberies de Scapin (Leandre), Daniel Conservatory of Dramatic Arts graduate, was Mesguich in Offenbach's La Vie Parisienne hired by the Comedie-Fran~aise in 2001 and (Bobinet). He also played Victor in Adamov's played the role of Clelie in Moliere's Sganarelle Ping-pong directed by Gilles Chavassieux, ou Ie cocu imaginaire directed by Th ierry Pancrace in Moliere's Le Mariage force directed Hancisse, Mathurine in Moliere's Dom Juan by Andrzej Seweryn , and Don Alonse in directed by Jacques Lassalle, Clara in Moliere's Dom Juan directed by Jacques Feydeau's Le Dindon. Earlier she worked with Lassalle. During the 2003- 04 season he's directors Alain Milianti (B. Chartreux' Le appearing in Les Fables de la Fontaine directed Tombeau de Richard G., Brecht's Saint Joan by Bob Wilson, as Glagoliev II in Chekhov's of the Stockyards) , Jean-Pierre Berthomier Platonov directed by Jacques Lassalle, Fabien (Moliere's Amphitryon, Wedekind's Spring in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night directed by Awakening, Eugene Durit's Les Eaux dor­ Andre', Seweryn. Lormeau has also directed mantes, and Ariane Mnouchkine's 1789). for the Comedie-Fran ~ aise the following plays: Most recently she acted in Les Fables de La Courteline's Courteline au Grand Guignol, Fontaine under the direction of Robert Wilson Musset's CAne et Ie ruisseau , Baumarchais' Le and she portrays Dorcas in Shakespeare's The Photographe. In film, he acted for Agniezka Winter's Tale directed by Muriel Mayette.

VIII h