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Denoncourt, Serge

CTE photo
Serge Denoncourt in the 1993 Espace Go production of Weingarten's L'Été

Quebec-based director/actor, born in 1962 in Shawinigan, founder of Théâtre de l'Opsis. Serge Denoncourt was also Artistic Director of Théâtre du Trident (1994-97).

He was planning to study medicine when he decided to audition for theatre school for fun. He was accepted into the school, then auditioned for the National Theatre School of Canada, was accepted there as well, but finally decided to enter the theatre course at CEGEP Lionel-Groulx.

Apart from his work for Opsis and the Trident, he has also directed at CEGEP Lionel-Groulx (Gorki's Les Estivants/Summer Folk); Nouvelle Compagnie Théâtrale / Théâtre Denise-Pelletier (Feydeau's Georges Dandin, Corneille's Le Cid); Théâtre de Quat'Sous (Mastrosimone's In Extremis/Extremities); Theatre du Nouveau Monde/TNM (Strauss' Le temps et la chambre and Les Estivants, for which he won the critics' circle award).

Also for Quat'Sous he directed (Je suis une mouette [non, ce n'est pas ça], 1999) for which he won a Masque Award in February, 2000, for best direction. He directed La Cerisaie/The Cherry Orchard (March, 2000) for TNM, He helmed the Jean-Luc Lagarce double-bill Les règles du savoir-vivre dans la soiété moderne & Music-hall (January 2001), and co-directed, with Pierre Bernard, the Lagarce play Juste la fin du monde (January, 2002) both at Espace Go. He then directed Michel Tremblay's Fragments de mensonges inutiles, with Compagnie Jean-Duceppe (2009); and Blues d'la métropole, a musical comedy based on songs by the rock group Beau Dommage (2010). In November 2022, he directed and acted in a new play by Tremblay at the National Arts Centre French theatre: Cher Tchekhov, in which the Russian playwright (Denoncourt) revisits a script while his actress siblings, their author brother (played by Tremblay) and a critic engage in a verbal sparring match.

Denoncourt has also directed for the Opéra de Québec (Cosi fan tutte).

His productions are marked by a heightened imagery (vivid use of colour), and a deep examination of subtext.

Profile by Gaetan Charlebois. Updated by Anne Nothof.

Last updated 2022-11-15