Georges Pitoëff

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Georges Pitoëff

Georges Pitoëff (born September 4, 1884 in Tbilisi , † September 17, 1939 in Geneva ) was a French director and theater director of Russian-Armenian origin.

Life

His father Ivan was the artistic director of the Tbilisi Theater. Pitoëff was formed by the Moscow Art Theater and came to Geneva with his family in 1905. After taking courses with Émile Jaques-Dalcroze , he founded his first theater company in Geneva in 1915 and performed with them in Paris. He soon switched to directing and celebrated his first success in Geneva in 1917 with L'Échange by Paul Claudel .

In 1921 he moved to Paris and performed with his troupe in various theaters in the city, from 1922 to 1934 that of Jacques Copeau . He then established himself at the Théâtre des Mathurins . In 1926 he founded the Cartel des Quartres with Louis Jouvet , Charles Dullin and Gaston Baty , which had an important influence on Parisian theater life in the following years.

His high artistic standards and frequent financial problems made it impossible for him to have a permanent venue. So he moved with his troupe again and again and played in small stages without public funding in order to be able to realize his ideas. The faithfulness had the poetic text should bring to bear for Pitoëff absolute priority, largely stylized productions. In order to maintain his independence, he went on numerous tours abroad. One of his most influential opponents was André Antoine , who feared foreign authors would infiltrate French theater.

In total, Pitoëff brought around 204 pieces by 114 authors to the Parisian stage, including many works by foreign authors such as Luigi Pirandello , George Bernard Shaw , Anton Chekhov , Arthur Schnitzler and Eugene O'Neill . As a result, he played a decisive role in opening up French theater to world drama. Particularly sustainable productions were in 1923 Six people are looking for an author and in 1925 The holy Johanna .

After his death, his wife Ludmilla Pitoëff , with whom he had been married since 1915, dissolved his acting troupe.

literature

  • Horst Schumacher: Pitoëff, Georges . In: Manfred Brauneck, Wolfgang Beck (ed.): Theater Lexikon 2. Actors and directors, stage managers, dramaturges and stage designers . Rowohlt's encyclopedia published by Rowohlt Taschenbuch Verlag. Reinbek near Hamburg, August 2007, ISBN 978 3 499 55650 0 , p. 564 f.

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personal data
SURNAME Pitoëff, Georges
BRIEF DESCRIPTION French director and theater manager
DATE OF BIRTH September 4, 1884
PLACE OF BIRTH Tbilisi
DATE OF DEATH September 17, 1939
Place of death Geneva