Jean Gascon (December 21, 1920 – April 13, 1988) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

opera director, actor, and administrator.

Career

Originally bent on a career in medicine, Gascon abandoned it for the stage after considerable work with amateur groups in Montreal. A scholarship in 1946 from the Government of France enabled him to study dramatic art in Paris. He studied with Ludmilla Pitoëff. After returning to Canada in 1951, he co-founded Montreal's Theatre du Nouveau Monde and became its first Artistic Director. During this time, he also started a long association with the newly established Stratford Festival in 1956, playing the

Constable of France The Constable of France (french: Connétable de France, from Latin for 'count of the stables') was lieutenant to the King of France, the first of the original five Great Officers of the Crown (along with seneschal, chamberlain, butler, and ...

in Henry V and directing three farces by Moliere. He returned to Stratford to direct

Le malade imaginaire ''The Imaginary Invalid'', ''The Hypochondriac'', or ''The Would-Be Invalid'' (French title ''Le Malade imaginaire'', ) is a three- act ''comédie-ballet'' by the French playwright Molière with dance sequences and musical interludes (H.495, H.49 ...

in 1958 and Othello in 1959. Between 1960 and 1963, he was founding Administrative Director of the

National Theatre School of Canada The National Theatre School of Canada (NTS, french: École nationale de théâtre du Canada) is a private institution of professional theatre studies in Montreal, Quebec. Established in 1960, the NTS receives its principal funding from grants ...

and was awarded the Canadian Drama Award, the Prix Victor Dore. In 1963 he returned to Stratford to direct ''

The Comedy of Errors ''The Comedy of Errors'' is one of William Shakespeare's early plays. It is his shortest and one of his most farcical comedies, with a major part of the humour coming from slapstick and mistaken identity, in addition to puns and word play. ...

'', and then Le Bourgeois gentilhomme and The Marriage of Figaro the following season. He was awarded the

Molson Prize The Thomas Henry Pentland Molson Prize for the Arts is awarded by the Canada Council for the Arts. Two prizes are awarded annually to distinguished individuals. One prize is awarded in the arts, one in the social sciences and humanities. The priz ...

in 1967. Then between 1968 and 1974, he was artistic director of

Stratford Festival of Canada The Stratford Festival is a theatre festival which runs from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was formerly known as the Stratford Shakespearean Festival ...

. In 1977 he became theatre director of the

National Arts Centre The National Arts Centre (NAC) (french: Centre national des Arts) is a performing arts organisation in Ottawa, Ontario, along the Rideau Canal. It is based in the eponymous National Arts Centre building. History The NAC was one of a number of ...

in Ottawa. Gascon's career in the Canadian theatre as a bilingual actor and director achieved an impressive reputation. He gained honorary degrees from McGill and Bishop's Universities. He was also awarded the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the cen ...

(in 1975), the Prix du Québec and the Royal Bank Award. Jean Gascon Pierre tombale

As an actor in both English and French languages, his credits include such noteworthy portrayals as Richard in ''Richard II'', and the Captain in ''Dance of Death''. He was the French/Indian ''Batise'' in the 1970 movie '' A Man Called Horse'' and was in a film in 1988 called À corps perdu (''Straight for the Heart'').

Personal life

He was the brother of actor Gabriel Gascon and filmmaker

Gilles Gascon Gilles Gascon was a Canadian cinematographer and documentary filmmaker. He was most noted for his work on Jacques Giraldeau's 1966 documentary film '' Element 3 (Élément 3)'', for which he won the Canadian Film Award for Best Colour Cinematograph ...

. Gascon died of a heart attack in 1988 in Stratford, Ontario and was entombed at the

Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery (french: Cimetière Notre-Dame-des-Neiges) is a rural cemetery located in the borough of Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Montreal, Quebec, Canada which was founded in 1854. The entrance and the grounds run a ...

in Montreal.

Filmography

Honours

* In 1967, he was made an Officer of the

and was promoted to Companion in 1975. * In 1985, he was awarded the Quebec government's Prix Denise-Pelletier.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gascon, Jean 1920 births 1988 deaths Companions of the Order of Canada Canadian male stage actors Canadian male television actors Prix Denise-Pelletier winners Male actors from Montreal 20th-century Canadian male actors 20th-century poets Burials at Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery Canadian artistic directors Canadian expatriates in France