YEREVAN/VALENCE, France – Mickaël Taboyan (born 1982) is a French actor with considerable experience in film, television, and theatre. He trained at the Conservatoire de Montpellier and has completed additional professional workshops and masterclasses in acting and casting. He also holds a master’s degree in sociology from Montpellier. Earlier in his career, he worked with the Cie Gazoline ensemble on classical and contemporary theatre productions. Taboyan has appeared in several contemporary films, including “Anges & Cie” (2024),” “Jamais sans mon psy” (2023), “10 jours sans maman” (2022), and “La nuit du 12” (2021). On television, he has been seen in the series “Extra” (2023) and “Un si grand soleil” (2022). On stage, Taboyan has been active in productions such as “Le sexe à la une” (2023-2026) and “La reine des emmerdeuses” (2024–2026), and he toured with his solo show: “Je suis Alceste” (2023–2024), among other works. From 2020 to 2025, he co-authored and performed in the dance-theatre piece #ELP, about school bullying.
Mickaël, French humor has a very distinctive tradition. Do you see yourself as following in the footsteps of any particular predecessor? If no, what factors most strongly shaped your identity and style as a humorist?
When I was younger, I spent time at the library reading books of texts written by French comedians. That’s how I developed a culture of comedic writing. There is one who particularly marked me, and that is Pierre Desproges. His literary style, as much oriented towards the absurd as towards dark humor, allowed me to understand that one could make people laugh while being elegant and intelligent. His level of writing paralyzed me for a long time because I often wondered if I was up to his standard, but it seems to me that today I manage to detach myself from the comparison and find my own style.
Dance seems to be an important part of your art and life. (Before the Artsakh war of 2020 it was also an inseparable part of my life). I understand it has played a significant role in your artistic journey — could you tell us more about that?
More than dance, it is especially the relationship with the body that I have tried to work on in my profession as an actor (and comedian today) because I realized that emotion or laughter often passes through body language, and when I was an apprentice actor, I felt a bit “locked” on that side. So, I took a few dance (contemporary) workshops to open myself up a bit more and gain agility. I am not a dancer in the proper sense, and I used this exercise in my journey to progress and enrich myself professionally.
You are a third-generation Armenian, and your surname, Taboyan, sounds Eastern Armenian to me. Could you tell us about your family origins and your ancestors?
The first thing I have to say about this is that my parents absolutely did not tell me anything about their ancestors! They themselves knew little about their family history. I had to conduct my own investigations to learn more, because I noticed that I “suffered” from the impossibility of situating myself in relation to my genealogy and the history of Armenia. What resulted from my research: the Taboyan family comes from Kharberd (today in eastern Turkey), and emigrated quickly to France after the 1915 genocide. They first settled in Aubenas because there was work in this town in Ardèche and a religious connection with the Protestant faith of my family.
My grandfather Armenag later enlisted in the French army during the Second World War and died for France. My father Gabriel, born in France, barely knew him, and gave me Armenag as my middle name.
My mother bears the name Apelian and I think that the family comes from the same place as the Taboyans.
Do you feel that there is anything distinctly Armenian in your humor or in your acting style?
I think it is very connected. My little particularity is that I tend to reuse the dramas and difficulties I experience, and to want to transcend them artistically. I have an irresistible need to express my emotions, to verbalize them, sometimes to turn them into comedy, by practicing self-mockery or irony… and this tendency is reflected in both aspects of my work: acting and humor. And in my life!
Yes, that was going to be my next question. Which aspects of Armenian heritage interest you most? The language, the culture?
I have a big insecurity: I don’t speak Armenian. My father taught me a few words but never really wanted to teach me the language, even though he mastered it. I went to Armenian school several times but I quit because there was too much religious proselytism, and I wasn’t a fan… I also tried to learn by myself when I was a student, but it was too difficult. What interests me most in Armenian culture is its millennia-old history, the music (the duduk), the cuisine, and its ability to transcend pain.
What connections do you have with the French-Armenian community, and have you ever visited Armenia?
I was born in Valence, and there is a very large Armenian community there. I started getting involved in the Armenian environment by playing in a football club in my city: USJOA, created by Armenians from the diaspora. I also participated in a lot of “tashtahantés” (picnic), and I also attended the Homenetmen association, which regularly organizes events around Armenian culture. On the other hand, I have never been to Armenia, but I plan to go there soon!
