The Théâtre du Marais has been the name of several

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

s and theatrical troupes in

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 ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. The original and most famous theatre of the name operated in the 17th century. The name was briefly revived for a

revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective, to refer to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor. ...

theatre in 1791, and revived again in 1976. The present-day Théâtre du Marais operates at 37, rue Volta in the

3rd arrondissement of Paris The 3rd arrondissement of Paris (''IIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements (districts) of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is colloquially referred to as the ''"troisième"'' meaning "third" in Fr ...

First incarnation (1634–1673)

Théâtre du Marais detail Gomboust map Paris 1652

The Théâtre du Marais was founded in 1634, at which time there had been only one

theatre company Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

in Paris, the '' comédiens du Roi'' ("

comedians A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolish (as in slapstick), or employing prop comedy. A comedian who addresses an audience dir ...

of the King"), at the Hôtel de Bourgogne. The actors Charles Lenoir and

Montdory Montdory, pseudonym of Guillaume des Gilberts (baptized 13 March 1594; died between 17 November 1653 and 14 November 1654), was a French actor manager, recognized as "the most powerful tragedian of his day."Roy 1995. Birth, family, and name Mon ...

decided to create their own troupe, and situated it in the fashionable

Le Marais The Marais (Le Marais ; "the marsh") is a historic district in Paris, France. Having once been an aristocratic district, it is home to many buildings of historic and architectural importance. It spreads across parts of the 3rd and 4th arr ...

district of Paris, where they converted the

Jeu de Paume ''Jeu de paume'' (, ; originally spelled ; ), nowadays known as real tennis, (US) court tennis or (in France) ''courte paume'', is a ball-and-court game that originated in France. It was an indoor precursor of tennis played without racquets, a ...

des "Maretz", an unused tennis court on the Vieille Rue du Temple opposite the

Capuchins Capuchin can refer to: *Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, an order of Roman Catholic friars *Capuchin Poor Clares, an order of Roman Catholic contemplative religious sisters *Capuchin monkey, primates of the genus ''Cebus'' and ''Sapajus'', named af ...

, into a theatre.Scott 2000, p. 40. The new theatre's

repertory A repertory theatre is a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation. United Kingdom Annie Horniman founded the first modern repertory theatre in Manchester after withdrawing ...

was made up mainly of

farce Farce is a comedy that seeks to entertain an audience through situations that are highly exaggerated, extravagant, ridiculous, absurd, and improbable. Farce is also characterized by heavy use of physical humor; the use of deliberate absurdity o ...

s by Jodelet and works by

Pierre Corneille Pierre Corneille (; 6 June 1606 – 1 October 1684) was a French tragedian. He is generally considered one of the three great seventeenth-century French dramatists, along with Molière and Racine. As a young man, he earned the valuable patronag ...

; Corneille debuted ''

Le Cid ''Le Cid'' is a five-act French tragicomedy written by Pierre Corneille, first performed in December 1636 at the Théâtre du Marais in Paris and published the same year. It is based on Guillén de Castro's play ''Las Mocedades del Cid''. Castro' ...

'' there in 1637. The actor

Floridor Josias de Soûlas, known as "Floridor", Sieur de Prinefosse (c.1608-14 August 1671) was a French actor.J. Fransen, Les Comédiens français en Hollande au XVII* et au XVIII «siècle. Paris, librairie Honoré Champion, 4925. JSTOR "Mais ce que l'on ...

entered the troupe in 1640, and quickly became a major star. In 1643, the theatre was heavily damaged by a fire, and closed until its restoration was completed in October 1644. Upon its reopening, due to its technical innovations as a new theatre and being the first theatre to add a proscenium arch, it increasingly developed spectacular sets, with machinery helping to depict shipwrecks and cataclysms.

Marie Champmeslé Marie Champmeslé ('' née'' Desmares; 18 February 1642 – 15 May 1698) was a French stage actress. Biography She was born in Rouen of a wealthy family; her father's name was Desmares. She made her first appearance on the stage at Rouen with ...

and her husband entered the troupe in 1669. Competition with the ''comédiens du Roi'' lasted until 1673, when the Théâtre du Marais was dissolved to join with

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (, ; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, , ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and world ...

's troupe, forming the ''

troupe du Roi Troupe may refer to: General *Comedy troupe, a group of comedians * Dance troupe, a group of dancers **Fire troupe, a group of fire dancers *Troupe system, a method of playing role-playing games *Theatrical troupe, a group of theatrical performers ...

'' at the

Théâtre Guénégaud The Salle de la Bouteille or Salle du Jeu de Paume de la Bouteille, later known as the Hôtel eGuénégaud or Guénégaud Theatre, was a 1671 theatre located in Paris, France, between the rue de Seine and the rue des Fossés de Nesle (now 42 ...

, and eventually part of the

Comédie-Française The Comédie-Française () or Théâtre-Français () is one of the few state theatres in France. Founded in 1680, it is the oldest active theatre company in the world. Established as a French state-controlled entity in 1995, it is the only state ...

Second incarnation (1791–1807)

A new Théâtre du Marais was founded in 1791. It was built using materials recovered from the

storming of the Bastille The Storming of the Bastille (french: Prise de la Bastille ) occurred in Paris, France, on 14 July 1789, when revolutionary insurgents stormed and seized control of the medieval armoury, fortress, and political prison known as the Bastille. At t ...

, and presented revolutionary spectacles. The house playwright was

Pierre Beaumarchais Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais (; 24 January 1732 – 18 May 1799) was a French polymath. At various times in his life, he was a watchmaker, inventor, playwright, musician, diplomat, spy, publisher, horticulturist, arms dealer, satirist ...

. This theatre was forced to close in 1807 by

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

, and it was destroyed in 1812 to make room for the construction of

public baths Public baths originated when most people in population centers did not have access to private bathing facilities. Though termed "public", they have often been restricted according to gender, religious affiliation, personal membership, and other cr ...

Third incarnation (1976–present)

The current Théâtre du Marais was founded by

Jacques Mauclair Jacques Mauclair (12 January 1919 – 21 December 2001) was a French film actor. He appeared in 30 films between 1950 and 2000. He was born in Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,00 ...

in 1976. It temporarily closed in 1999, but was reopened as part of the

Cours Florent The Cours Florent is a private French drama school in Paris established in 1967 by François Florent. The school is located on three nearby sites in the XIXe arrondissement, 19th Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissement of Paris, France: rue Arc ...

in May 2000.

References

;Notes ;Sources * Scott, Virginia (2000). ''Molière: A Theatrical Life''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. .

{{DEFAULTSORT:Theatre du Marais Marais, Theatre du 1634 establishments in France 1673 disestablishments 1791 establishments in France 1807 disestablishments 1976 establishments in France Le Marais Buildings and structures in the 3rd arrondissement of Paris Molière 17th-century French literature Marais, Theatre du Marais, Theatre du Marais, Theatre du

First incarnation (1634–1673)

Second incarnation (1791–1807)

Third incarnation (1976–present)

See also

References

External links