Theatre de la Jeune Lune records

Theatre de la Jeune Lune was a mid-size theater company founded in 1979 by Dominique Serrand, Barbra Berlovitz, Vincent Gracieux, and Robert Rosen. Before the formation of the company, Dominique Serrand and Barbra Berlovitz maintained a successful duo act, Berlovitz and Serrand, that toured in both the United States and France. Berlovitz and Serrand’s work drew from their training at École International de Theatre Jacques Lecoq in Paris, the work of Charlie Chaplin, and from Commedia dell’arte through the use of masks and treatment of characters.

Wanting to continue the ideas explored in their duo act, Berlovitz and Serrand founded Theatre de la Jeune Lune with Vincent Gracieux and Robert Rosen, both former students of École Lecoq.

During the early years of the company, the troupe split their time between Paris and Minneapolis, performing works in both French and English. Productions during this time emphasized the development of new and original works, some of which were written and created in close collaboration by the company. In 1983 actor Steven Epp joined the four original founders as a permanent member of the company and began having artistic input on the Theatrede la Jeune Lune’s direction.

In 1985, Theatre de la Jeune Lune permanently settled in Minneapolis, performing frequently at venues such as the Hennepin Center for the Arts andthe Southern Theater. In 1992 the company purchased the Allied Van Linesbuilding in the Minneapolis Warehouse District and renovated the space into performing and office spaces. The first production to open in the new theater was the critically-acclaimed company-created piece Children of Paradise: Shooting a Dream. Beginning in the late 1990s, Theatre de la Jeune Lune began to stage fewer original works in favor of reinterpretations of classics from theater and opera. Notable productions during this period includeDon Juan Giovanni, The Magic Flute, Carmen, Figaro, and Tartuffe.

The company continued to receive critical attention locally, nationally, and internationally: Theatre de la Jeune Lune received a Regional Theatre Tony Award in 2005 and, in the same year, both Serrand and Gracieux were knighted by the French government. The 2006-2007 season, however, brought major changes to the company’s artistic leadership, with Dominique Serrand named as sole artistic director, and the other founding co-artistic directors stepping down from the theater’s leadership. The 2006-2007 season featured remakes of previous productions as the company struggled to remain creatively and financially solvent.

Despite efforts to address a large accumulated debt, Theatre de la Jeune Lune's Board of Directors voted to close the theater in 2008 in order to meet the organization's financial responsibilities. The decision to shut down was announced June 2008, and the company officially ceased operations in July of that same year.

In the years following the theater’s closing, Dominique Serrand and Steven Epp continued to work closely with Theatre de la Jeune Lune company members Nathan Keepers and Christina Baldwin, founding a new theater, The Moving Company, in 2008. Robert Rosen established Studio 208, an organization dedicated to creating new work and to training performing artists, with choreographer Shawn McConneloug. Barbara Berlovitz continues to direct, act,and teach as a part of the faculty of the University of Minnesota Department of Theatre Arts and Dance, and Vincent Gracieux has remained an active performer with Footsbarn Théâtre in France.