Is there a right way to say verse ? In a house like the Comédie-Française, where the art of telling is passed down from one generation to the next, on stage and in the corridors, there are many different approaches, but a common certainty : in verse as in prose, you have to tell a story and make meaning heard. Using Racine's Phèdre as a starting point, three great performers - Éric Ruf, Dominique Blanc and Denis Podalydès - evoke the modernity of classical verse.
Trained at the Cours Florent, where she studied under Francis Huster and Pierre Romans, Dominique Blanc began her career as an actress under the direction of Patrice Chéreau, who would remain the beacon of her career in both theater and film. It was in his production of Phèdre at the Odéon-Théâtre de l'Europe that she met ÉricRuf : she is his Phèdre, he is her Hippolyte.
On stage, she performed under the direction of Jean-Pierre Vincent, Antoine Vitez, Luc Bondy, Patrice Chéreau, Deborah Warner and others. Her film credits include Patrice Chéreau, of course, but also Claude Chabrol, Claude Sautet, Louis Malle, Christophe Honoré and Katell Quillévéré. In 2016, she joined the Comédie-Française and became a member in 2021, performing both classical and contemporary repertoires in productions by Stéphane Braunschweig, Julie Deliquet, Arnaud Desplechin, Ivo van Hove, Lars Norén and Guy Cassiers. In 2023, she entered the program for the theater baccalaureate and published Chantiers, je, a book of interviews in which she reflects on her career, acting and life.
Dominique Blanc is the 538th member of the Comédie-Française troupe.
Trained at the Conservatoire National Supérieur d'Art Dramatique under Viviane Théophilidès, Michel Bouquet and Jean-Pierre Vincent, Denis Podalydès made his Comédie-Française debut in 1997, playing Mikhaïl Alexandrovitch Rakitine in Ivan Tourgueniev's Un mois à la campagne. In 2000, he became the 505th member of the Troupe and was awarded the Molière for theatrical revelation for his role in Gogol's Le Révizor by Jean-Louis Benoit. Denis Podalydès has been called upon by many renowned directors in a wide variety of fields, and has directed a number of works including Les Fourberies de Scapin, Cyrano de Bergerac (awarded six Molières, including Best Director), Marivaux's Le Triomphe de l'amour and Mozart's opera La Clémence de Titus.
In addition to short films and TV movies, Denis Podalydès has taken part in a large number of films, including most of his brother Bruno's films, which he co-wrote : Versailles-Rive gauche, Dieu seul me voit, Liberté-Oléron, Adieu Berthe. Also an author, he has published several books, including Voix off (2008), Fuir Pénélope (2014), Albums de la Pléiade, n°55 : Shakespeare (2016). He is a Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres.
Denis Podalydès is the 505th member of the Comédie-Française troupe.
