La Thorillière

François Le Noir, sieur de La Thorillière (c. 1626 – 27 July 1680) was a French comic actor, who was born and died in Paris.

[1] La Thorillière was the son of Charles Le Noir, founder of the Théâtre du Marais in 1634, and the actor Isabelle Mestivier.

[5] On 17 January 1671 he played the King in the premiere of the comédie-ballet Psyché, with text and lyrics by Molière, Philippe Quinault and Pierre Corneille and music by Jean-Baptiste Lully.

[6] After Molière's death in 1673, La Thorillière (along with Michel Baron and Beauval and his wife) left that troupe and joined the Comédiens du Roi at the Hôtel de Bourgogne.

[7] It was La Thorillière's death in 1680 that, among other reasons, precipitated the merger of the players from the Bourgogne with those at the Guénégaud Theatre, leading to the creation of the Comédie-Française.