The National Arts Centre (NAC) announced today that Brigitte Haentjens, Artistic Director of NAC French Theatre, has agreed to extend her contract for two years, from September 1, 2016 to August 31, 2018.

Ms. Haentjens was appointed in September 2012, and is the first woman to occupy this prestigious position since the NAC was established in 1969. Her predecessors include such renowned theatre artists as Jean Herbiet, André Brassard, Robert Lepage, Jean‑Claude Marcus, Denis Marleau and Wajdi Mouawad.

“From the moment she joined the NAC, Brigitte Haentjens has been sharing her unique vision of theatre,” noted Peter Herrndorf, NAC President and CEO. “We are thrilled that she will be staying with us until 2018 as artistic director of our vibrantly dynamic French Theatre department. Brigitte is an outstanding mentor to theatre artists both in Canada and abroad. Inquisitive, sensitive, an experienced advisor, she regularly meets with and supports emerging playwrights, actors and directors, and we are proud to count her among the members of the NAC family.”

“I am honoured by this vote of confidence from Peter Herrndorf,” said Brigitte Haentjens. “Working with the French Theatre team is truly a privilege. These past four artistic seasons have flown by so fast, they’ve been so full of enriching encounters with artists and audiences … and there’s so much I still want to do!”

Artistic highlights of Ms. Haentjens’ mandate include the popular presentation Poésie, sandwichs et autres soirs qui penchent, directed by Loui Mauffette, and the North American premiere of two works by French playwright Joël Pommerat, a leading figure in contemporary theatre: La réunification des deux Corées, a powerful and inspiring meditation on the theme of love, and Cendrillon, a boldly inventive reframing of the familiar Cinderella story.

Brigitte Haentjens has also invited many guest artists to make their NAC debut, among them directors Catherine Vidal (Le grand cahier) and Alexandre Fecteau (Changing Room), playwright Olivier Kemeid (Moi, dans les ruines rouges du siècle), and actor Magali Lemèle (Je n’y suis plus). She has programmed both new works (including Mani Soleymanlou’s Un and Deux and Evelyne de la Chenelière’s Une vie pour deux) and classics of the dramatic repertoire (such as Oulipo Show by Denis Marleau, and Albertine, en cinq temps by Michel Tremblay, directed by Lorraine Pintal).

French Theatre’s programming and activities reflect the artistic director’s rigorous standard of excellence, and her commitment to presenting the very best in theatre and mounting coproductions with some of Canada’s leading French-language theatre companies, such as Sudbury’s Théâtre du Nouvel-Ontario (Zesty Gopher s’est fait écraser par un frigo) and Moncton’s L’Escaouette (Visage de feu and Le long voyage de Pierre‑Guy B). The current season’s popular successes include Molly Bloom, directed by Brigitte Haentjens and starring the vivacious Anne‑Marie Cadieux, and Kiss & Cry, a remarkable show created by a group of Belgian artists, including Michèle Anne De Mey and Jaco Van Dormael. Still to come this season: an updated version of Robert Lepage’s Les aiguilles et l’opium (Needles and Opium), which premiered at the NAC more than 20 years ago, and a much-anticipated new production of Shakespeare’s Richard III directed by Brigitte Haentjens.

BIOGRAPHY

Brigitte Haentjens was born in Versailles, France, and studied theatre in Paris with the renowned Jacques Lecoq. In 1977 she moved to Ontario and quickly emerged as a leading figure in Franco-Ontarian theatre, notably in Ottawa and Sudbury, where she was artistic director of the Théâtre du Nouvel-Ontario for eight years. In 1991 she moved to Montreal, where she soon gained a reputation for her powerful, original and personal style. As artistic director (1991–94) of the Nouvelle Compagnie Théâtrale, she programmed brilliant seasons featuring memorable productions, including Albert Camus’ Caligula (1993). After a decade as co-artistic director of the Carrefour international de théâtre du Québec (1996–2006), she founded her own company, Sibyllines, in 1997. The common thread running through all of her productions is her commitment to the text, to the creative process, to the courage and determination it takes finally to arrive at the “I,” without compromise or concession to outside influences. Brigitte Haentjens’ work revolves around three thematic poles—one could almost say obsessions: identity, sexuality and power. In a career spanning more than 35 years, she has directed close to 50 productions and garnered numerous awards and honours, including, in 2007, the Siminovitch Prize in Theatre and the Gascon-Thomas Award (National Theatre School of Canada).

BRIGITTE HAENTJENS’ PRODUCTIONS AT THE NAC

NAC French Theatre audiences were introduced to Brigitte Haentjens in the 1980s, when she directed several staged readings and productions, including two landmark creations coproduced by the Théâtre du Nouvel-Ontario and NAC French Theatre: Nickel, co-written by Ms. Haentjens and Jean Marc Dalpé, in March 1984, and Jean Marc Dalpé’s Le chien in April 1988. As well, she directed two NAC family presentations: Louise Painchaud’s Des yeux au bout des doigts (February 1987) and Louise Bombardier’s Hippopotamie (November 1992). In 2002–03, French Theatre under artistic director Denis Marleau offered her a “carte blanche” creative residency and featured three of her productions during the season: Bernard‑Marie Koltès’ La nuit juste avant les forêts, with James Hyndman (October 2002), and Feydeau’s Farces conjugales (two short comedies) and Marguerite Duras’ L’éden cinéma (May 2003). Since then, French Theatre has presented virtually all of Ms. Haentjens’ productions, including her adaptation and staging of Sylvia Plath’s La Cloche de verre (The Bell Jar, December 2004); the theatrical event Tout comme elle, with a cast of 50 actresses (October 2006); Vivre, based on the life and work of Virginia Woolf (April 2007); Georg Büchner’s Woyzeck (February 2010); Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill’s L’opéra de quat’sous (The Threepenny Opera, February–March 2012); Lars Norén’s Le 20 novembre (March 2013); Koltès’ La nuit juste avant les forêts, featuring Sébastien Ricard (May 2013); and Ta douleur, a theatre/dance piece co-created with Anne Le Beau and Francis Ducharme (December 2013). As well, in spring 2007 Brigitte Haentjens directed the sixth annual Laboratoire du Théâtre français (French Theatre lab), which she entitled L’acteur vertical (“the vertical actor”).

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For more information, please contact:

Carl Martin
Communications
National Arts Centre
613-947-7000, x560
carl.martin@nac-cna.ca