Jean-Louis Barrault

Actor, mime, and producer, born in Le Vesinet, NC France. He was a member of the Comédie Française (1940–6), then with his actress wife, Madeleine Renaud (1903–94), founded his own company, le Troupe Marigny, which became celebrated for its performances of Molière, Claudel, and the Gide translation of Hamlet. He became director of the Théâtre de France (1959–68), the Théâtre des Nations (1965–7, 1972–4), and first director of the Théâtre d'Orsay (1974). His films include La Symphonie fantastique (1942), La Ronde (1950), and The Longest Day (1962). His theories of dramatic art are expressed in his autobiographical Réflexions sur le théâtre (1949, Reflections on the Theatre). As a mime-actor he is best known through his appearance as Deburau in Marcel Carné's film, Les Enfants du paradis (1945, The Children of Paradise), set in 19th-c France.

Jean-Louis Barrault (September 9, 1910 - January 22, 1994 in Le Vésinet) was a French actor, director and mime artist - training that served him well when he portrayed the 19th-century mime Jean-Gaspard Deburau (Baptiste Debureau) in Marcel Carné's 1945 film Les Enfants du Paradis (Children of Paradise).

Jean-Louis Barrault studied with the mime artist Etienne Decroux and made his debut (at the age of 21) in the Théâtre de l'Atelier.

He was the uncle of actress Marie-Christine Barrault and sometime sponsor of Peter Brook.