Legendary Quebec stage and screen star Janine Sutto died Tuesday in Montreal. She was 95.
Her son-in-law, Jean-Francois Lepine, in a statement confirmed her death due to natural causes after a short stay in palliative care. Born in Paris in 1921, Sutto and her family emigrated to Quebec in 1930.
During a 70-year career, she appeared in more than 75 TV series including Les Belles Histoires des pays d’en haut, Joie de vivre, Septième nord, Symphorien and Poivre et sel. Her film roles included Kamouraska, Congorama, La Capture and Route 132.
Sutto also made her name as the grande dame of Quebec theater, starting with minor roles in Montreal in the late 1930s before she co-founded Theatre de l’Equipe with Pierre Dagenais in 1943. She then became a headliner at the Théâtre Arcade and Théâtre du Nouveau Monde, appearing in classic plays by Moliere and Shakespeare and in contemporary plays by Quebec writers.
Sutto appeared in the original 1968 production of Michel Tremblay’s iconic play Les Belles sœurs, which was adapted in 2010 into a stage musical in which she also appeared.
Tributes to Sutto on Tuesday were led by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who tweeted: “Your work has inspired generations and will live on forever.”
Added Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre from his Twitter account: “All Quebec mourns,”
