Born in
Toulon (
Var) on 24 July 1903, Julien joined the troupe of the
Copiaus founded by
Jacques Copeau in the 1920s and which became the Compagnie des Quinze (1930-1932) in 1929 when it was installed at the
Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier in Paris. It is within this group that he met the Swiss actor, singer and composer
Jean Villard, known as Gilles, with whom he created a vocal duo from 1932 to 1939, under the name "Gilles and Julien", which met with great success. From 1947 to 1966, he directed the
Théâtre Sarah-Bernhardt, where he founded the Festival d'Art dramatique de Paris in 1954 (renamed "Théâtre des Nations" in 1957), thanks to which he made the Parisian public discover, among others
Bertolt Brecht's
Berliner Ensemble and
Giorgio Strehler's
Piccolo Teatro di Milano. From 1959 to 1962, he was also director of the (RTLN), which included the
Opéra Garnier and the
Opéra-Comique. In this capacity, he chaired the jury of the
International singing competition of Toulouse on 2 occasions. Julien died in
Millau (
Aveyron) on 15 January 2001. == Selected appearances ==