Denis Bouchard

Bouchard, Denis

Denis Bouchard, actor, director and author (b at Québec 9 Oct 1953). A 1978 graduate of the National Theatre School, the public quickly adopted this young actor thanks to his friendly face and eternally youthful appearance. He carried on an enviable career in theatre, television and film before turning to production and artistic direction.

In theatre, apart from some classics, Denis Bouchard performed above all Québécois dramatic works: Jean-Claude GERMAIN (A Canadian Play/Une plaie canadienne, 1979; Le Sot d'Ostie, 1981), and Roland Lepage (Le Temps d'une vie, 1980). Other styles ranged from the resolute Felquiste (member or sympathizer of the FRONT DE LIBERATION DU QUÉBEC) in Dominic Champagne's La Cité interdite (Théâtre Il va sans dire, 1991), to the naive Bousille in Gratien GÉLINAS' Bousille et les justes (Théâtre du Vieux-Terrebonne, 1996; Nouvelle Compagnie Théâtrale subscriber prize, 1997), through Sandra and Toothpick in Michel TREMBLAY's La Trilogie des Brassard (Théâtre d'Aujourd'hui, 1991). At the same time, he was a pioneer performer with the Ligue Nationale d'Improvisation (1978 -1986) who inducted him into their Hall of Fame in 2006. Fifty years after the creation of Gratien Gélinas' celebrated review les Fridolinades (1938); he donned the Montreal Canadiens hockey sweater of young Fridolin with youthful enthusiasm, directed by Denise FILIATRAULT (Théâtre du Rideau Vert, 1987).

As an author and actor, he took part in collectives of humorous bent that enjoyed resounding popular success. First, la Déprime (1981) and Raz de marée (1985) with his accomplices in the company Le Klaxon: Rémy Girard, Raymond Legault and Julie Vincent, then, at the Rideau Vert in La Farce de l'âge (1991) created with Suzanne Champagne, Pierrette Robitaille and Rémy Girard.

Since the late 90s, he has carried on a dynamic career as a television and stage producer lending his savoir-faire to a great number of variety shows, musicals, and comedies. At the Compagnie Jean-Duceppe, he produced Les Voisins (2001) and Appelez-moi Stéphane (2005) by Claude Meunier and Louis Saïa, as well as Meunier's Les Noces de tôle (2003). He made a stage comeback in 2007 with Bang! a one man show uniting acting and technology.

In cinema, he acted in more than 25 films. His moving performances in les Matins infidèles by Jean Beaudry and François Bouvier (1988) won the Guy-L'Écuyer award at the Rendez-vous du cinéma québécois and the Bayard d'Or at the Festival de Namur (Belgium). Under François Bouvier's direction, he then played in Histoires d'hiver (1998) and Maman last call (2005). He was seen in a comic role in Denise Filiatrault's C't'at ton tour, Laura Cadieux (1998), portraying a butcher unable to resist the seductive Madame Thibodeau (Sonia Vachon).

Since the early 80s, he has appeared regularly on the small screen. Although his interpretation of René Lévesque (1993) was not widely successful, his role as Lulu, the ingenuous sports caster in Lance et compte/He Shoots He Scores, on the other hand, garnered support and earned a Gémeaux in 1989. Moreover, he has won a prize every year since 2002 for his endearing role as Hugo in Annie et ses hommes: a Gémeaux, a MétroStar and a Prix Artis.