''The Little Cafe'' (French:''Le petit café'') is a French

comedy play Comedy is a genre of dramatic performance having a light or humorous tone that depicts amusing incidents and in which the characters ultimately triumph over adversity. For ancient Greeks and Romans, a comedy was a stage-play with a happy endin ...

written by

Tristan Bernard Tristan Bernard (7 September 1866 – 7 December 1947) was a French playwright, novelist, journalist and lawyer. Life He studied law, and after his military service, he started his career as the manager of an aluminium smelter. In the 1890s, ...

which was first performed in 1911. An English-language

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

version '' The Little Cafe'' was successfully staged in the United States in 1913.Bordman p.339

Synopsis

Albert Loriflan, a waiter in a

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

cafe A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-caf ...

, unexpectedly inherits a large sum of money from a wealthy relative. His unscrupulous boss, Philibert, refuses to release him from his long-term

contract A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tran ...

in the hope that Albert will buy him off with a large payment. But Albert refuses, and continues to work at the cafe even though he is now very rich. Before long he falls in love with Philibert's daughter Yvonne.

Film adaptations

In 1919 the play was turned into a French silent film '' The Little Cafe'' directed by Tristan Bernard's son Raymond Bernard. In 1930

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

made an American adaptation ''

Playboy of Paris ''Playboy of Paris'' is a 1930 American pre-Code musical comedy film directed by Ludwig Berger and starring Maurice Chevalier, Frances Dee (in her film debut), and O.P. Heggie. It was based on a 1911 play '' The Little Cafe'' by Tristan Bernard ...

'' directed by Ludwig Berger and starring Maurice Chevalier. Paramount also produced a French-language version, '' Le Petit Café'' (1931), again starring Chevalier. In the 1960s, the play was turned into an Italian television film (1963) and a later Yugoslavian version (1967).

References

Bibliography

* Bordman, Gerald. ''American Musical Theatre: A Chronicle''. Oxford University Press, 2010. * Bradley, Edwin M. ''The First Hollywood Musicals: A Critical Filmography Of 171 Features, 1927 Through 1932''. McFarland, 2004. 1911 plays French plays adapted into films Plays set in France Plays by Tristan Bernard {{1910s-play-stub