The Jacques LeCoq Centennial

French mime isn’t our thing per se, but we are of course very interested in physical movement in the theatre, especially as it relates to clown, so we feel the centennial of the birth of theorist/teacher/performer Jacques LeCoq (1921-1999) is worth a mention. LeCoq’s well-known pupils includedAvner the Eccentric, Steven Berkoff, Julie Taymor, Gates McFadden, Toby Jones, Geoffrey Rush, and Philippe Gaulier, who in turn taught Sacha Baron Cohen,Roberto Benigni, Emma Thompson and Helena Bonham Carter.

LeCoq’s original field of study had been physical education (in the sense of athletics), in particular gymnastics, running and swimming. Through an acquaintance with former basketball player and French Inspector General for Youth and Sports Jean-Marie Conty he was introduced to theatre arts and became exposed to the ideas and teachings of Jacques Copeau,Antonin Artaud, Jean-Louis Barrault, and others. For nearly a decade LeCoq lived in Italy, studying commedia dell’arte, mask and mime, frequently collaborating with Dario Fo. Returning to France in 1956, he founded his École Internationale de théâtre Jacques Lecoq, his platform for the next 43 years.

The two-part 1999 documentary Les Deux Voyages de Jacques Lecoq provides an accessible window into LeCoq’s methods. The clown (or anti-clown) style known as “bouffon” is said to have its origins in LeCoq, as we described here.

For more clown-relatedhistory see my books No Applause, Just Throw Money: The Book That Made Vaudeville Famous,and Chain of Fools: Silent Comedy and Its Legacies from Nickelodeons to Youtube