Jean Mounet-Sully
Mounet-Sully, Jean
Born Feb. 27, 1841, in Bergerac; died Mar. 1, 1916, in Paris. French actor.
After graduating from the drama class of the Paris Conservatory in 1868, Mounet-Sully acted at the Odéon Theater and in 1872 made his debut at the Comedie Franchise. He toured abroad, performing in Russia in 1894 and 1899. Mounet-Sully achieved world renown for his roles in tragedies and romantic dramas, including Nero in Racine’s Britannicus and the title roles in Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex, Shakespeare’s Hamlet, and Hugo’s Ruy Blas.
Mounet-Sully was a master technician; his movements and gestures were highly refined and expressive. However, in his acting he stressed the showy, superficial aspect of his roles and failed to portray the depth of his heroes’ experiences. K. S. Stanislavsky considered Mounet-Sully to be one of those actors who practiced the art of the spectacular. Mounet-Sully wrote a book of memoirs.