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    The Magnificent Lovers: Les Amants Magnifiques
    The Magnificent Lovers: Les Amants Magnifiques
    The Magnificent Lovers: Les Amants Magnifiques
    Ebook74 pages53 minutes

    The Magnificent Lovers: Les Amants Magnifiques

    By Molière and Charles Heron Wall

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    About this ebook

    Jean-Baptiste Poquelin is better known to us by his stage name of Molière. He was born in Paris, to a prosperous well-to-do family on 15th January 1622.

    In 1631, his father purchased from the court of Louis XIII the posts of "valet of the King's chamber and keeper of carpets and upholstery" which Molière assumed in 1641. The benefits included only three months' work per annum for which he was paid 300 livres and also provided a number of lucrative contracts.

    However in June 1643, at 21, Molière abandoned this for his first love; a career on the stage. He partnered with the actress Madeleine Béjart, to found the Illustre Théâtre at a cost of 630 livres.

    Unfortunately despite their enthusiasm, effort and ambition the troupe went bankrupt in 1645.

    Molière and Madeleine now began again and spent the next dozen years touring the provincial circuit. His journey back to the sacred land of Parisian theatres was slow but by 1658 he performed in front of the King at the Louvre.

    From this point Molière both wrote and acted in a large number of productions that caused both outrage and applause. His many attacks on social conventions, the church, hypocrisy and other areas whilst also writing a large number of comedies, farces, tragicomedies, comédie-ballets are the stuff of legend.

    ‘Tartuffe’, ‘The Misanthrope’, ‘The Miser’ and ‘The School for Wives’ are but some of his classics.

    His death was as dramatic as his life. Molière suffered from pulmonary tuberculosis. One evening he collapsed on stage in a fit of coughing and haemorrhaging while performing in the last play he'd written, in which, ironically, he was playing the hypochondriac Argan, in ‘The Imaginary Invalid’.

    Molière insisted on completing his performance.

    Afterwards he collapsed again with another, larger haemorrhage and was taken home. Priests were sent for to administer the last rites. Two priests refused to visit. A third arrived too late. On 17th February 1673, Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, forever to be known as Molière, was pronounced dead in Paris. He was 51.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherStage Door
    Release dateJul 21, 2018
    ISBN9781787800946
    The Magnificent Lovers: Les Amants Magnifiques
    Author

    Molière

    Molière was a French playwright, actor, and poet. Widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and universal literature, his extant works include comedies, farces, tragicomedies, comédie-ballets, and more.

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      Book preview

      The Magnificent Lovers - Molière

      The Magnificent Lovers by Molière

      Les Amants Magnifiques

      Translated by Charles Heron Wall

      Jean-Baptiste Poquelin is better known to us by his stage name of Molière. He was born in Paris, to a prosperous well-to-do family on 15th January 1622.

      In 1631, his father purchased from the court of Louis XIII the posts of valet of the King's chamber and keeper of carpets and upholstery which Molière assumed in 1641. The benefits included only three months' work per annum for which he was paid 300 livres and also provided a number of lucrative contracts.

      However in June 1643, at 21, Molière abandoned this for his first love; a career on the stage.  He partnered with the actress Madeleine Béjart, to found the Illustre Théâtre at a cost of 630 livres.

      Unfortunately despite their enthusiasm, effort and ambition the troupe went bankrupt in 1645.

      Molière and Madeleine now began again and spent the next dozen years touring the provincial circuit.  His journey back to the sacred land of Parisian theatres was slow but by 1658 he performed in front of the King at the Louvre.

      From this point Molière both wrote and acted in a large number of productions that caused both outrage and applause.  His many attacks on social conventions, the church, hypocrisy and other areas whilst also writing a large number of comedies, farces, tragicomedies, comédie-ballets are the stuff of legend.

      ‘Tartuffe’, ‘The Misanthrope’, ‘The Miser’ and ‘The School for Wives’ are but some of his classics.

      His death was as dramatic as his life.  Molière suffered from pulmonary tuberculosis. One evening he collapsed on stage in a fit of coughing and haemorrhaging while performing in the last play he'd written, in which, ironically, he was playing the hypochondriac Argan, in ‘The Imaginary Invalid’.

      Molière insisted on completing his performance.

      Afterwards he collapsed again with another, larger haemorrhage and was taken home. Priests were sent for to administer the last rites. Two priests refused to visit. A third arrived too late.  On 17th February 1673, Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, forever to be known as Molière, was pronounced dead in Paris. He was 51.

      Index of Contents

      NOTES

      PREFACE BY THE AUTHOR

      DRAMATIS PERSONAE

      THE MAGNIFICENT LOVERS

      FIRST INTERLUDE

      ACT I

      SCENE I

      SCENE II

      SCENE III

      SCENE IV

      SCENE V

      SCENE VI

      SECOND INTERLUDE

      ACT II

      SCENE I

      SCENE II

      SCENE III

      SCENE IV

      SCENE V

      SCENE VI

      THIRD INTERLUDE

      ACT III

      FOURTH INTERLUDE

      BALLET

      ACT IV

      SCENE I

      SCENE II

      SCENE III

      SCENE IV

      SCENE V

      SCENE VI

      SCENE VII

      SCENE VIII

      FIFTH INTERLUDE

      ACT V

      SCENE I

      SCENE II

      SCENE III

      SCENE IV

      SIXTH INTERLUDE

      BALLET AND DIVERTISSEMENT

      MOLIÈRE – A SHORT BIOGRAPHY

      MOLIÈRE – A CONCISE BIBLIOGRAPHY

      NOTES

      The subject of this play was given by Louis XIV. It was acted before him at Saint-Germain-en-Laye, on February 4, 1670, but was never represented in Paris, and was only printed after Molière's death. It is one of the weakest plays of Molière, upon whom unfortunately now rested the whole responsibility of the court entertainments. His attack upon astrology is the most interesting part.

      PREFACE BY THE AUTHOR

      The King, who will have nothing but what is magnificent in all he undertakes, wished to give his court an entertainment which should comprise all that the stage can furnish. To facilitate the execution of so vast an idea, and to link together so many different things, his Majesty chose for the subject two rival princes, who, in the lovely vale of Tempe, where the Pythian Games were to be celebrated, vie with each other in fêting a young princess and her mother with all imaginable gallantries.

      DRAMATIS PERSONAE

      IPHICRATES & TIMOCLES, princes in love with ERIPHYLE

      SOSTRATUS, a general, also in love with ERIPHYLE

      ANAXARCHUS, an astrologer

      CLEON, his son

      CHOROEBUS, in the suit of ARISTIONE

      CLITIDAS, a court jester, one of the attendants of ERIPHYLE*

      ARISTIONE, a princess, mother to ERIPHYLE

      ERIPHYLE, a princess, daughter to ARISTIONE

      CLEONICE, confidante to ERIPHYLE

      A sham VENUS, acting in concert with ANAXARCHUS

      *Acted by Molière.

      THE MAGNIFICENT LOVERS

      FIRST INTERLUDE

      The scene opens with the pleasant sound of a great many instruments, and represents a vast sea, bordered on each side by four large rocks. On the summit of each is a RIVER GOD, leaning on the insignia

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