Georges Pitoëff
Georges Pitoëff (4 September 1884 – 17 September 1939) was a Russian émigré with an Armenian background who became one of the leading actors and directors in France. Early life and education. Pitoëff was born on 4 September 1884 in Tiflis, Russia (now Tbilisi, Georgia) to Russian-born of Armenian origins, he was the son of the Director of the Tiflis Theatre. After studying and graduating in Law at Paris University, he switched his focus to a career in the theatre. Career. In Russia, Pitoëff trained with Konstantin Stanislavski. In France he became a theatre director and producer, noted  for his popularization of the works of contemporary playwrights, especially George Bernard Shaw, Anton Chekhov, Arthur Schnitzler, Henrik Ibsen, and Eugene O'Neill. He was a founding member of the Cartel des Quatre (Group of Four), a group including Louis Jouvet, Charles Dullin, and Gaston Baty, dedicated to rejuvenating the French theatre. Death. Pitoëff died on 17 September 1939 in Bellevue, near Geneva, Switzerland. Family. One of his sons, Alexandre, known as Sacha Pitoëff, was himself a noted French theatre director and actor.