Marie-Jo Therio

Marie-Jo Thério was born in Moncton, New Brunswick. Her mother being a singer and her three brothers musicians, her precocious interest for music was only natural. At 10 years old she started to learn the piano and at 13 she was exploring her own personal musical universe and began writing her own songs. At 17 she left Moncton, moved to Montreal and began literature studies at the University of Montreal. Shortly after, she enrolled in the Dramatic Arts Conservatory but was later thrown out. Since her passion for music was still very much alive, she decided to look for gigs in small bars where she played by herself. Well known dramatist Michel Tremblay soon offered her a chance to audition for a role in the romantic opera 'Nelligan'. Director Claude Brassard loved her immediately and cast her as Gertrude, Nelligan's young sister. In 1990, she set up a band with her musician friends and produced a show at the theater La Licorne by herself. During the same year, Marie-Jo was part of the casting for Les Misérables, in which she was Cossette's and Éponine's understudy. She also played in various music festivals: Quebec, Caraquet, St-Malo, Lafayette, Manitoba. She reached the finals of the Granby Music Festival. She soon landed a part in the TV series _"Chambres en ville" (1990)_ as a complex and confused teenager. Although at the beginning her character only appeared periodically, she joined the regular cast of the show quickly. 1995 saw the release of her first album: 'Comme de la musique'. Acclaimed by everyone in the industry, the songs on this recording got new life on a long tour and brought Marie-Jo a few important prizes. Her success carried over to Europe, where she gave a few concerts. In 1999 she met director Rodrigue Jean with whom she shot the movie Full Blast (1999), a film about disenchanted twenty-somethings in which she plays the character of Marie-Lou. Marie-Jo also collaborated on the trash-punk soundtrack by lending her vocals to half the songs and writing one song. Her second album, entitled 'La maline', was released in March of 2000 to unanimous praise from both critics and the artistic community. A new, more conceptual concert was set up and a tour of Quebec soon began, receiving rave reviews.