Playwright

Francis VEBER

This prolific French writer and director originally intended to become a doctor but switched to journalism before finding his calling on the stage and screen. In 1968, Veber enjoyed his first stage success with the play L’Enlèvement/The Kidnapping, which enjoyed an eight-month run in Paris. His second play, Le Contrat/The Contract led to a scripting assignment for the movie L’Emmerdeur/The Pain in the Ass (1973).

With 1971’s Il était une fois un flic/There Once Was a Cop (1971), Veber began his feature career in earnest. For much of the 1970s, he served as writer of a number of successful, farcical comedies that recalled the work of Neil Simon in that most revolved around odd couples. Among his more popular scripts were Le Grand blond avec une chaussure noire/The Tall Blond Man With One Black Shoe (1973, directed by Yves Robert), La Cage aux folles (1978, directed by Edouard Molinaro), for which he shared an Oscar nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay, and Jean-Jacques Annaud’s Coup de tête/Hot Head (1979). He made his directorial debut with Le Jouet in 1976. Veber’s infectious comedies include three pairings of Pierre Richard and Gerard Depardieu: La Chèvre/The Goat (1982), Les Compères (1983) and Les Fugitifs (1986). Several of these proved so successful in his native France that they were remade in Hollywood.

By the 80s, in fact, Veber was already gaining a toehold in Tinseltown, due partly to the success of La Cage aux folles. No less a talent than Billy Wilder used Veber’s play Le Contrat/The Contract as the basis for what became his last film — Buddy Buddy (1981). Utilizing his own boulevard comedy, Veber crafted one of biggest hits and most artistically satisfying films in his long career with 1998’s Le Diner de cons/The Dinner Game. Taking a fairly simple premise — a group of friends meet each Wednesday for dinner with the proviso that everyone is to bring a “world-class dimwit” as a guest — Veber spun a humorous and entertaining comedy.

(From movies.yahoo.com)

Director

Guy MIGNAULT

TfT’s Artistic Director since 1997, Guy is a multi-talented artist. At the helm of TfT, he is a performer whose comic talent is much appreciated by theatre and television lovers, and is also a director and playwright. Recently, he has been seen on the TFO series Francoeur and Météo +. On stage at TfT, Guy has played the parts of Josaphat-le-violon under his own direction in Michel Tremblay’s Bonbons assortis; Harpagon in the brilliant production de L’Avare, directed by Jean-Stéphane Roy; and the hilarious Monsieur Jourdain in Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme. When not performing his numerous roles at TfT, Guy fulfills his dream of creating musical productions: C’était un p’tit Bonheur, which received Dora for Best Musical Production in 1998; La, la la, mine de rien; Autour de Kurt Weill; and Et si on chantait… (2007). Finally, he is also the author of Bonjour, Monsieur de La Fontaine, a production for young audiences which toured Ontario for three consecutive years and was seen by 27,000 schoolchildren. Last year, he was seen in À toi, pour toujours, ta Marie-Lou, and in the fall, he played Henri in the Jean-Rock Gaudreault play Une Maison face au Nord, which returned to TfT after 110 triumphant performances across Canada.

Ralph MILAN

Paul ESSIEMBRE

Paul Essiembre returns to Théâtre Français de Toronto, where he was previously seen in Le Dîner de cons, Le Bourgeois gentilhomme, and Art. He has also appeared in The Normal Heart, The Overwhelming, and Stuff Happens (Studio 180 Theatre); To Kill A Mockingbird, The Odyssey, The Duchess of Malfi, and Macbeth (Stratford Shakespeare Festival); Don Juan (Théâtre du Nouveau Monde); Tillsonburg (Canadian Stage); Zadie’s Shoes, Oui (Factory Theatre); Sleuth (Saidye Bronfman); Othello (Atlantic Theatre Festival); Picasso at the Lapin Agile (Centaur Theatre); Taming Of the Shrew (World Stage Festival); and Goodnight Desdemona/Good Morning Juliet (Great Canadian Theatre Company). Paul’s recent film and television appearances include Nikita (The CW); Republic of Doyle (CBC); Suits (NBC); Flashpoint (CTV/CBS); Covert Affairs (USA Network); Warehouse 13 (SyFy); Good Dog (HBO Canada); and Degrassi The Next Generation (CTV). His voice work includes documentary narration, notably for Journey to the Edge of the Universe and Earth: The Making of a Planet (Discovery Canada).

François PIGNON

Pierre SIMPSON

Pierre is more than thrilled to return to annoy everyone as François Pignon, a part he delighted audiences as in Le Dîner de cons at TfT in 2009. Originally from Welland, Ontario, this University of Ottawa theatre graduate has had the great pleasure to act with the majority of Franco-Ontarian theatre companies. Since moving to Toronto in 2006, in addition to various appearances at the SummerWorks festival, Pierre has been seen on the TfT stage in Apocalypse à Kamloops, Le Misanthrope, Et si on chantait, and Les Médecins de Molière, a play that gave him the chance to tour from Vancouver to Moncton, and earned him a Dora Mavor Moore Award nomination as well as a Prix Rideau Award for his portrayal. On television, he has been seen on the series Nikita (CTV), The Border, (CBC), as well as on Francoeur II, Mission XY, Pointe-aux-Chimères, Météo+, and soon on Motel Monstre (TFO) and The St. Judes of North Ontario (ONF). He co-directed and co-designed the set of the Vox theatre children’s show Oz (Masque nominee 2007), and in 2006, he received Awards of Excellence from both Théâtre Action and the Ontario Ministry of Culture. Don’t miss him this summer in High Park, where he will perform in A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Canadian Stage.

Louise

Stéphanie BROSCHART

Stéphanie is very happy to return to the TFT stage after having played the part of Marlène in Le Dîner de Cons in 2009. At TfT, she has also appeared in Portrait Chinois d’Une Imposteure, playing the part of Nice, as well as three other roles, in Jeux d’amour et de folies: Feu la mère de madame; Une paire de gifles; and Une lettre bien tapée. She appeared as Angélique in Dying to Be Sick (Le Malade imaginaire, Pleiades Theatre) at the National Arts Centre, and was Almanda in the world premiere of Toronto the Good (Factory Theatre). A long-time presenter and performer for children’s television shows (TVOntario, TfO, and YTV), she currently works particularly in narration (radio, television, documentaries), as well as having recently appeared in King (Showcase) and Rookie Blue (Global/ABC). This wonderful French comedy is a real gift, and we hope that you enjoy yourselves as much as we have!

Floor supervisor

René LEMIEUX

Originally from Saint-Éphrem in Beauce, near Québec City, René came to Toronto more than 25 years ago. Long-time TfT viewers will remember him in Casino voleur in 1980, his first French-language part in Toronto. Since then, René has played, among others, Argan in Le Malade imaginaire, Vladimir in En attendant Godot, Harpagon in L’Avare, and Fabrizio in La Locandiera, all at TfT. He has also directed numerous productions at TfT and Theatre Glendon. René has played numerous roles on television and in film, participating in a great number of TFO series. The most recent, Météo +, is currently running on the network.

The policeman

Patrick ROMANGO

A professional actor, Patrick fell into the movies just like Obelix fell into the cauldon of magic potion. A recent resident of Toronto, Patrick left his hometown of Paris in October 2010 to breathe new life into his acting career. He gained notice in France playing the character of Sydney on the youth channel Nickelodeon for two years. In Toronto he was the good-humoured voice that woke up listeners from 6 to 9 am on CHOQ-FM, the francophone radio station. He will appear soon in TFO’s new quiz show, Au Défi, where Ontario youth compete against each other. L’Emmerdeur marks his first collaboration with Théâtre Français de Toronto.

Wolf

Manuel VERREYDT

Hailing from Belgium and France, Manuel Verreydt primarily studied in Brussels at the International school of Theatre Lassaad, a method based on the techniques of Jacques Lecoq. He then continued his training at Concordia University in Montréal prior to moving to Toronto. He has previously been seen onstage in Molière’s L’Avare as well as Jeux d’amour et de folie by Feydeau and Guitry, Le Misanthrope by Molière, and more recently in Des fraises en janvier by Évelyne de la Chenelière, all produced by Théâtre français de Toronto. He has also had the chance to act in I’ll Always Be There to Kill You by Sophie Tonneau, produced by Pure Cassis Productions, and Croquis urbains by Glen Charles Landry for Productions Croquis urbains. He is delighted to be a part of the L’Emmerdeur team and he wishes you a most enjoyable experience!

Stage management

Natalie GISÈLE

Natalie is excited to make her debut with Théâtre français de Toronto. She began stage managing in Ottawa after graduating from the Theatre Arts Program at Algonquin College. She has been stage manager for such productions as Another Home Invasion (Tarragon Theatre) Bell, Book & Candle and The Voice of the Turtle (Classic Theatre Festival), The Dining Room and All in the Timing (Down n’ Out Productions), Everyman & Henry V (Third Wall), Le Projet Rideau (Théâtre la Catapulte), and most recently, the Kinyarwanda version of The Monument at Harbourfront Centre’s World Stage. Natalie is very proud to be part of such an amazing team and to be working in her native tongue again.

Set, props & lights

Dominic MANCA

Dominic always greatly looks forward to the next project where he gets to work with the TfT team. Since arriving in Toronto in 2006, Dominic has worked as TfT’s stage manager for the productions of Bonbons assortis, Apocalypse à Kamloops, Le Misanthrope, and Des Fraises en janvier. He has also had the opportunity to work as a designer for Et si on chantait, Le Dîner de cons, Les Médecins de Molière and Zone. When not at the theatre, Dominic can be found just down the hall from TfT, in TFO’s the props department.

Costumes

Nina OKENS

Nina has made costumes for The Merchant of Venice, Titus Andronicus, and Much Ado About Nothing for Shakespeare in the Rough. Her costume credits also include The Awakening, Orchidelierium, and Medici Slot Machine for Pea Green/Theatre Voce.

Living in Toronto since 1996, Nina has also made costumes at Theatre Sheridan, and has been TfT’s regular wardrobe designer for several years. At TfT, she has worked on, among other productions, Le Collier d’Hélène; Jeux d’amour et de folie; Le Visiteur; Un Air de famille; La, la la, mine de rien; Grimm Grimm; La Critique de L’École des femmes; and Le Mariage forcé. Nina’s most recent projects at TfT are Le Dîner de cons; Les Médecins de Molière, Fragments de mensonges inutiles, Les Fridolinades, À toi, pour toujours, ta Marie‐Lou and Zone.