''Léocadia'' (''Time Remembered'') is a play by

Jean Anouilh Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh (; 23 June 1910 – 3 October 1987) was a French dramatist whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1944 play ''Antigone'', an a ...

that premiered at the Théâtre de la Michodière in Paris on 2 December 1940. It is one of Anouilh's ''Pièces roses'', together with '' Humulus le muet'' (1932), '' Le Bal des voleurs'' (1938), and ' (1941). For the occasion,

Francis Poulenc Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc (; 7 January 189930 January 1963) was a French composer and pianist. His compositions include mélodie, songs, solo piano works, chamber music, choral pieces, operas, ballets, and orchestral concert music. Among th ...

composed one of his most celebrated songs, " Les Chemins de l'amour", sung by

Yvonne Printemps Yvonne Printemps (; born Yvonne Wigniolle; 25 July 1894 – 19 January 1977) was a French singer and actress who achieved stardom on stage and screen in France and internationally. Printemps went on the stage in Paris at the age of 12, and ...

Plot

''Léocadia'' tells the story of a young prince madly in love with a Romanian opera singer, Léocadia Gardi. The young man only knew her for three days: like

Isadora Duncan Angela Isadora Duncan (May 26, 1877 or May 27, 1878 – September 14, 1927) was an American dancer and choreographer, who was a pioneer of modern contemporary dance, who performed to great acclaim throughout Europe and the US. Born and raised in ...

, she died strangled by her shawl. Inconsolable, he lives in his memory of the young woman. His aunt—the Duchesse d'Andinet d'Andaine—reconstructs the setting and places of those three days like a theater director. Actors play the parts of the butler and servants during those days of happiness. Amanda, a poor milliner and look-alike of the singer, is called upon to seduce the prince, in the hope that life will prevail over memory. At first, the young man clings desperately to his dream, but eventually comes to realize through Amanda that his memory of Léocadia corresponds to his fear of life being so ephemeral. His anguish at leaving an illusory memory yields soon to the call of real life. The rigid, theatrical world imagined by the duchess falls apart, becoming a false comedy. The prince leaves his illusions and discovers that Léocadia was only an ideal, devoid of substance. His love of Amanda helps him return to real life.

Premiere cast

: Amanda *

Pierre Fresnay Pierre Fresnay (4 April 1897 – 9 January 1975) was a French stage and film actor. Biography Born Pierre Jules Louis Laudenbach, he was encouraged by his uncle, actor Claude Garry, to pursue a career in theater and film. He joined the company a ...

: The Prince *

Marguerite Deval Marguerite Deval (19 September 1866 – 18 December 1955) was a French singer and actress. Born Marguerite Hippolyte Juliette Brulfer, she was a comedian, opera chanteuse, and actress of stage and film. She was born in Strasbourg and died in Par ...

: The Duchess *

Victor Boucher Victor Louis Armand Boucher (24 August 1877 – 21 February 1942) was a French actor. Biography Victor Boucher was born, on 24 August 1877, in Rouen, in a house on the rue Saint-Étienne-des-Tonneliers. His parents had a café-restaurant in ...

: The Butler * in minor roles: Paul Demange,

Léon Larive Léon François Larive (28 June 1886 – 20 July 1961) was a French film actor. He appeared in more than 90 films between 1923 and 1961. Selected filmography * ''Two Timid Souls'' (1928) * ''The Great Passion'' (1928) * ''La Passion de Jea ...

, Mercédès Brare, Henri-Richard, Jacques Januar and Henry Gaultier * Director:

André Barsacq André Barsacq (24 January 1909 – 8 July 1973) was a French theatre director, producer, scenic designer, and playwright. From 1940 to 1973 he was the director of the Théâtre de l'Atelier. He was the brother of Russian production designer Léo ...

* Music:

* Premiere: 2 December 1940 * Closed after 173 performances on 27 April 1941

Translation and adaption

Patricia Moyes Patricia Pakenham-Walsh, also known as Patricia Moyes (19 January 1923 – 2 August 2000) was a British mystery writer. Her mystery novels feature C.I.D. Inspector Henry Tibbett. One of them, ''Who Saw Her Die'' (''Many Deadly Returns'' in the US ...

translated the play to English, using the title ''Time Remembered''. It was staged both in London and on Broadway in 1957, with

Richard Burton Richard Burton (; born Richard Walter Jenkins Jr.; 10 November 1925 – 5 August 1984) was a Welsh actor. Noted for his baritone voice, Burton established himself as a formidable Shakespearean actor in the 1950s, and he gave a memorable pe ...

and

Helen Hayes Helen Hayes MacArthur ( Brown; October 10, 1900 – March 17, 1993) was an American actress whose career spanned 80 years. She eventually received the nickname "First Lady of American Theatre" and was the second person and first woman to have w ...

in the leading parts. In 2000,

Jeffrey Hatcher Jeffrey Hatcher is an American playwright and screenwriter. He wrote the stage play ''Compleat Female Stage Beauty'', which he later adapted into a screenplay, shortened to just ''Stage Beauty'' (2004). He also co-wrote the stage adaptation of ' ...

wrote an adaption of the play in English, calling it ''To Fool the Eye''.

Reprise

Comédie des Champs-Élysées in 1984 *

Sabine Haudepin Sabine Haudepin (born 19 October 1955) is a French actress. She has appeared in more than 50 films since 1962. She was born in Montreuil, Seine-Saint-Denis, France. Filmography References External links * * 1955 births Living people ...

: Amanda *

Lambert Wilson Lambert Wilson (born 3 August 1958) is a French actor, singer and activist. He is best known internationally for his portrayal of The Merovingian in ''The Matrix Reloaded'', ''The Matrix Revolutions'' and ''The Matrix Resurrections''. Biograph ...

: The Prince *

Edwige Feuillère Edwige Feuillère (born Edwige Louise Caroline Cunatti; October 29, 1907 – November 13, 1998) was a French stage and film actress. Biography She was born Edwige Louise Caroline Cunatti to an Italian architect father and an Alsace-born mo ...

: The Duchess *

Philippe Khorsand Philippe Khorsand (February 17, 1948 – January 29, 2008) was a French actor. His father was Iranian and his mother was French. He first appeared in a number of small roles in the 1970s. One of his most memorable roles as husband and father in ' ...

: The Butler * in minor roles: Jacques Marchand, Jacques Plee, Robert Deslandes,

Jacques Castelot Jacques Castelot (born Jacques Marie Paul Éloi Storms) (11 July 1914 – 25 August 1989) was a French film actor. He appeared in more than 80 films between 1938 and 1982. His brother was the writer André Castelot and their father was the S ...

, Francis Rossello and * Director: Pierre Boutron * Stage design: * Costumes: * Lighting: Boutron * Music: Poulenc * First performance on 11 September 1984

References

External links

''Léocadia : un conte de fées nostalgique''
on ''Le Figaro'' (12 October 2012)
''Léocadia''
on gallica
Lectures à une voix – Léocadia de Jean Anouilh
(in French) ina.fr
Programme 1940
regietheatrale.com
Léocadia, FP 106 (Poulenc, Francis)
on IMSLP {{DEFAULTSORT:Leocadia 1940 plays Plays by Jean Anouilh