''Cléopâtre captive'' () is a five-act

tragedy A tragedy is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a tragic hero, main character or cast of characters. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy is to invoke an accompanying catharsi ...

Étienne Jodelle Étienne Jodelle, seigneur de Limodin (; 1532July 1573), French dramatist and poet, was born and died in Paris of a noble family. Member of La Pléiade, he will strive to revitalize the principles of ancient Greek and Roman theater during the R ...

, presented on 9 February 1553, first before the King

Henri II of France Henry II (; 31 March 1519 – 10 July 1559) was King of France from 1547 until his death in 1559. The second son of Francis I and Claude, Duchess of Brittany, he became Dauphin of France upon the death of his elder brother Francis in 1536. As ...

in the Hôtel de Reims, then at the Collège de Boncourt. The

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...

is part of the posthumous collection ' (1574). Remy Belleau played the role of

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator (; The name Cleopatra is pronounced , or sometimes in both British and American English, see and respectively. Her name was pronounced in the Greek dialect of Egypt (see Koine Greek phonology). She was ...

, Jean Bastier de La Péruse, that of

Octavian Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in ...

. It was the first "", and Jodelle composed it in parallel with the first "

humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential, and agency of human beings, whom it considers the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humanism" ha ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

", '. The performance was a success, and was followed by a celebration in the antique manner in

Arcueil Arcueil () is a Communes of France, commune in the Val-de-Marne Departments of France, department in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero#France, center of Paris. Name The name Arcueil was recorded f ...

, bringing together all participants and friends for a party known as the .

Summary

* Act 1 : Antony's shadow announces to

that she must die. * Act 2 :

fears that Cleopatra will commit suicide. * Act 3 : Cleopatra seeks to commiserate Octavian, offering him riches. Seleucus the servant reveals that she hides part. * Act 4 : Cleopatra decides to die. * Act 5 : Proculus narrates to Octavian the death of the Queen.

Cast

Style

Jodelle was the first to use

alexandrine Alexandrine is a name used for several distinct types of verse line with related metrical structures, most of which are ultimately derived from the classical French alexandrine. The line's name derives from its use in the Medieval French '' Ro ...

s in a tragedy (acts I and IV), but he also resorted to

decasyllable Decasyllable (Italian: ''decasillabo'', French: ''décasyllabe'', Serbian: ''десетерац'', ''deseterac'') is a poetic meter of ten syllables used in poetic traditions of syllabic verse. In languages with a stress accent ( accentual ...

s (acts II, III, V). In the choirs, he resorted to various meters: some verse have only three syllables. The subject is taken from

Plutarch Plutarch (; , ''Ploútarchos'', ; – 120s) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''Parallel Lives'', ...

(''Life of Antony''). The action is reduced: the play tells the decision to die taken by Cleopatra and its implementation.

Bibliography

Cléopâtre captive
on wikisource * F. Charpentier, « Invention d'une dramaturgie : Jodelle, La Péruse », ''Littératures'', speing 1990, (p. 7-22). * Fr. Cornilliat, "'Mais que dirai-je à César?' Eloge et tragédie dans la poétique d'E. Jodelle", ''L'éloge du Prince de l'Antiquité aux Lumières'', I. Cogitore, Fr. Goyet, Grenoble, PU, 2003, (p. 223-250) * Chr. Reidenbach, "Arbeit am Stein. Verfahren sprachlicher Monumentalisierung in Étienne Jodelles ''Cléopâtre captive'' (1553)", in: ''Zeitsprünge. Forschungen zur Frühen Neuzeit'' 27 (2023), p. 455–493, doi.org/10.3196/2751515x23273491. 1553 plays French plays Tragedy Tragedy plays Depictions of Cleopatra in plays {{16thC-play-stub