Robert Lepage is arguably the most daring and innovative artist currently working in Canadian film and theatre, and he remains uncompromising in his commitment to pushing the artistic envelope
Lepage studied at the Conservatoire d’Art Dramatique de Québec and Lain Knapp’s theatre school in Paris. After completing his studies, he returned to Quebec City and joined the Théâtre Repère. It was Lepage’s 1984 creation, Circulations, that brought him to the attention of artistic directors and theatregoers across Canada. The following year, his growing reputation for avant-garde experimentation expanded beyond Canada’s borders with his internationally acclaimed work The Dragon’s Trilogy. In 1986, Lepage’s first solo piece, Vinci, was another global success. In the late 1980s, his place among the movers and shakers of contemporary world theatre was confirmed with The Polygraph and Tectonic Plates.
In 1989, Lepage became artistic director of the National Arts Centre’s Théâtre Français in Ottawa, where he remained until 1993. His 1992 production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream marked the first time that a North American had directed a play by William Shakespeare at London’s Royal National Theatre. That same year, Lepage brought his unique skills to the world of modern opera with superb productions of Bluebeard’s Castle and Erwartung, the latter of which won the Edinburgh International Critics Award.
Lepage staged Peter Gabriel’s Secret World Tour in 1993, then directed productions of Macbeth and The Tempest in Japanese at the Tokyo Globe Theatre.
His first feature film, The Confessional, was selected to open the 1995 Cannes Film Festival Directors’ Fortnight. Lepage has acted in films including Jésus de Montréal and Stardom.
Lepage’s body of work has earned him numerous accolades and awards, including the Creation Award from the Conseil de la Culture de Québec for overall artistic achievement, the French title of Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, the National Arts Centre Award and the Order of Canada. He has also received the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award, the Médaille de la ville de Québec, and the Glenn Gould Prize awarded by the Glenn Gould Foundation.
