Joël Pommerat (born 1963) established the Louis Brouillard Company in 1990. He directs only his own plays, trying to create a visual theatre that is, at the same time, intimate and spectacular. He produced the shows Le théâtre (1991), Des suées and Les Evénéments (1994). In 1995, he created Pôles, the first text which he considered artistically complete and which was published by Actes Sud-Papiers Publishing House. Until 2000, Joël Pommerat focused on film research before making a definitive return to theatre. At Paris-Villette Theatre, he re-staged two of his creations, Pôles and Treize étroites têtes, and directed the new production Mon Ami. He created Grâce à mes yeux (2002), Qu’est-ce qu’on a fait (2003), Le Petit Chaperon Rouge (2004), and, in 2005, his first performance for children, D’une seule main. After the company relocated at the National Theatre of Chambéry and Savoie, in 2006 he created Les Marchands (Grand Prize for Dramatic Literature) and Cet enfant (Award for Best Work in French). Au monde, Les Marchands and Le Petit Chaperon Rouge were restaged at the Avignon Festival in 2006. In 2007, the year when Je tremble (1) was produced, the company started its residence at the Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord and the director staged Cet enfant in Russian at the Praktika Theatre in Moscow. In March 2008, Joël Pommerat produced Pinocchio and, a few months later, he produced Je tremble (2) at the Avignon Festival. He also restaged Je tremble (1). In January 2010, he produced Cercles/Fictions (Molière Award). In October 2010, Joël Pommerat produced Pinocchio in Russian at Moscow. He then wrote the libretto for the opera Thanks to My Eyes, based on his play with the same name, for the Festival d’Aix in July 2011. In October 2011, he produced Cendrillon at the Brussels National Theatre. In December 2011, he produced La Grande et Fabuleuse Histoire du Commerce at the Comédie de Béthune (National Drama Centre) in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais. In September 2010, Joël Pommerat began a three year partnership with Odéon-Théâtre de l’Éurope and a five-year partnership with the National Theatre in Brussels. In 2011, he produced Ma Chambre froide and received the awards Molière des compagnies and Molière de l’auteur francophone. Directed in 2013, La Réunification des deux Corées (The Reunification of the Two Koreas) and the project Cities on stage/Villes en scène, he was awarded the prize Beaumarchais/le Figaro for Best Author, the prize Palmarès du Théâtre for Best Performance and the prize for Best Work in French. In 2015, he received the prize for the World Premiere at the International Opera Awards, for directing the opera Au monde, and in 2016 he was awarded the Europe Theatre Prize for his entire activity as a playwright.
Constantin Chiriac:
''The new star of Francophone performing arts, Joël Pommerat, is awarded a star on the Sibiu Walk of Fame for the concept of total performance in theatre and opera. He has been developing this concept using his own text, and aided by actors, musicians, and costumes, which, reunited under his direction, in an empty space, make up a real Miracle!''
Star offered with the support of: BRD Groupe Société Générale
