Jean-Louis Bernard Barrault (; 8 September 1910 – 22 January 1994) was a French actor, director and mime artist who worked on both screen and stage.
Biography
Barrault was born in Le Vésinet in France in 1910. His father was "a Burgundian pharmacist who died in the First World War."<sup>:87</sup> He studied at the Collége Chaptal until 1930, when he began his studies at the École du Louvre.<sup>:32</sup> His first performance was a small role in Ben Jonson's Volpone. At the time, Barrault was unable to afford rent and Dullin allowed him to sleep in the theatre on Volpone's bed.<sup>:16</sup> It was at L'Atelier that he first met and studied under Étienne Decroux,<sup>:41</sup> with whom he would create the pantomime La Vie Primitive in 1931.<sup>:161</sup> In 1951 he published his memoirs, Reflections on the Theatre.
He was made director of Théâtre de France in 1959, and remained in the role until 1969. In 1971 he was reappointed director of Théâtre des Nations. He retired from the theatre in 1990.