Ardèle ou la Marguerite
Encyclopedia
Ardèle ou la Marguerite is a 1948 play by French
dramatist Jean Anouilh
. It was the first of his self-styled pièces grinçantes - ie, 'grating' black comedies liable to set an audience's teeth on edge.
Set in 1912 "or thereabouts", it concerns a family conference convened by the ageing General Léon Saint-Pé to discuss a romance entered into by his hunchbacked sister Ardèle. His other sister Liliane, a Countess, is accompanied by her husband Gaston (the Count) and her lover, Hector de Villardieu. All of them, especially the Countess, are scandalised by Ardèle's supposedly inappropriate passion for a fellow hunchback who has been engaged as tutor to the General's small son. Their self-interested entreaties to her are communicated through her bedroom door, behind which she has locked herself and embarked on a three-day hunger-strike. The action culminates in the General's insane and apparently bed-ridden wife, Emilie, erupting from her room at dead of night while Ardèle and her lover (neither of whom is ever seen) take drastic action.
The play was first presented in Paris at the Comédie des Champs-Elysées on 4 November 1948; directed by Roland Piétri and designed by Jean-Denis Malclès, it starred, as the General, Claude Sainval (the theatre's artistic director) with Mary Morgan as the Countess and Jacques Castelot
as the Count. (Because it was a relatively short play by Anouilh's standards, it was staged with a brief 'curtain-raiser' in the form of Anouilh's semi-autobiographical vignette Episode de la vie d'un auteur.) Paris revivals followed in 1958 and 1979.
On Broadway, the play failed utterly in a production at the Mansfield Theatre directed by Martin Ritt
, with set and costumes designed by Cecil Beaton
; translator Cecil Robson changed the title to Cry of the Peacock in reference to Emilie's repeated, bird-like cries of "Léon!" Opening on 11 April 1950, it closed on the 12th. The cast included Raymond Lovell
as the General with Oscar Karlweis and Lili Darvas as the Count and Countess.
It fared far better in Britain, where it premiered (in a version by Anouilh's regular translator, Lucienne Hill) at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre on 24 October 1950. "As a piece of theatre," commented the Birmingham Post, "Ardèle takes the stage with the insistent assurance of high tragedy. Anouilh is a master of his craft." Hailed in the News Chronicle as "this brilliant and terrifying play," it reached the West End a year later in a production at the Vaudeville Theatre directed by Anthony Pelissier
. Among the cast were George Relph
(the General), Isabel Jeans
(the Countess), Ronald Squire
(the Count) and Nicholas Phipps
(Villardieu); Patrick Macnee
also appeared. A short-lived revival at the Queen's Theatre in 1975, directed by Frith Banbury
, starred Charles Gray
as the General, the recently married Vincent Price
and Coral Browne
as the Count and Countess, and Allan Cuthbertson
as Villardieu.
Anouilh later developed the characters of the General and his wife in La Valse des toréadors (The Waltz of the Toreadors
), which opened at the Comédie des Champs-Elysées in January 1952.
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
dramatist Jean Anouilh
Jean Anouilh
Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh 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 1943 play Antigone, an adaptation of Sophocles' Classical drama, that was seen as an attack on Marshal Pétain's...
. It was the first of his self-styled pièces grinçantes - ie, 'grating' black comedies liable to set an audience's teeth on edge.
Set in 1912 "or thereabouts", it concerns a family conference convened by the ageing General Léon Saint-Pé to discuss a romance entered into by his hunchbacked sister Ardèle. His other sister Liliane, a Countess, is accompanied by her husband Gaston (the Count) and her lover, Hector de Villardieu. All of them, especially the Countess, are scandalised by Ardèle's supposedly inappropriate passion for a fellow hunchback who has been engaged as tutor to the General's small son. Their self-interested entreaties to her are communicated through her bedroom door, behind which she has locked herself and embarked on a three-day hunger-strike. The action culminates in the General's insane and apparently bed-ridden wife, Emilie, erupting from her room at dead of night while Ardèle and her lover (neither of whom is ever seen) take drastic action.
The play was first presented in Paris at the Comédie des Champs-Elysées on 4 November 1948; directed by Roland Piétri and designed by Jean-Denis Malclès, it starred, as the General, Claude Sainval (the theatre's artistic director) with Mary Morgan as the Countess and Jacques Castelot
Jacques Castelot
Jacques Castelot was a French film actor. He appeared in 86 films between 1938 and 1982. His brother was the writer André Castelot and their father was the Symbolist painter Maurice Chabas.-Selected filmography:...
as the Count. (Because it was a relatively short play by Anouilh's standards, it was staged with a brief 'curtain-raiser' in the form of Anouilh's semi-autobiographical vignette Episode de la vie d'un auteur.) Paris revivals followed in 1958 and 1979.
On Broadway, the play failed utterly in a production at the Mansfield Theatre directed by Martin Ritt
Martin Ritt
Martin Ritt was an American director, actor, and playwright who worked in both film and theater. He was born in New York City.-Early career and influences:...
, with set and costumes designed by Cecil Beaton
Cecil Beaton
Sir Cecil Walter Hardy Beaton, CBE was an English fashion and portrait photographer, diarist, painter, interior designer and an Academy Award-winning stage and costume designer for films and the theatre...
; translator Cecil Robson changed the title to Cry of the Peacock in reference to Emilie's repeated, bird-like cries of "Léon!" Opening on 11 April 1950, it closed on the 12th. The cast included Raymond Lovell
Raymond Lovell
Raymond Lovell was a Canadian-born film actor who performed in British produced films. He mainly played supporting roles, and was often seen as slightly pompous characters...
as the General with Oscar Karlweis and Lili Darvas as the Count and Countess.
It fared far better in Britain, where it premiered (in a version by Anouilh's regular translator, Lucienne Hill) at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre on 24 October 1950. "As a piece of theatre," commented the Birmingham Post, "Ardèle takes the stage with the insistent assurance of high tragedy. Anouilh is a master of his craft." Hailed in the News Chronicle as "this brilliant and terrifying play," it reached the West End a year later in a production at the Vaudeville Theatre directed by Anthony Pelissier
Anthony Pelissier
Harry Anthony Compton Pelissier was an English actor, screenwriter, producer and director.-Biography:Pelissier was born in Barnet and came from a theatrical family. His parents were the theatre producer H. G. Pelissier and the distinguished actress Fay Compton...
. Among the cast were George Relph
George Relph
George Relph was an English actor. He acted in more than a dozen movies, and also many plays. He served in the British Armed Forces in World War I, and was shot in the leg, hindering his return to acting. But Relph eventually got back on stage, and his career continued...
(the General), Isabel Jeans
Isabel Jeans
Isabel Jeans was an English stage and film actress known for her roles in several Alfred Hitchcock films, among others.-Career:...
(the Countess), Ronald Squire
Ronald Squire
Ronald Squire was an English character actor.Born in Tiverton, Devon, England, he spent his early acting career in Liverpool repertory theatre in light comedy roles, before moving on to films...
(the Count) and Nicholas Phipps
Nicholas Phipps
Nicholas Phipps was a British actor and screenwriter who appeared in more than thirty films during a career that lasted between 1938 and 1970. He was born in London in 1913. He made his screen debut in the 1938 television film Hands Across the Sea. He appeared mainly in British comedy films, often...
(Villardieu); Patrick Macnee
Patrick Macnee
Patrick Macnee is an English actor, best known for his role as the secret agent John Steed in the series The Avengers.-Early life:...
also appeared. A short-lived revival at the Queen's Theatre in 1975, directed by Frith Banbury
Frith Banbury
Frith Banbury, MBE was a British theatre actor and stage director.- Biography :Frith Banbury was born in Plymouth, Devon, on 4 May 1912. He was the son of Rear Admiral Frederick Arthur Frith Banbury and his wife Winifred...
, starred Charles Gray
Charles Gray
Charles Gray may refer to:* Charles Gray , representing Colchester, England*Charles Gray , Royal Marines captain and songwriter* Charles Gray , in the mid-19th century...
as the General, the recently married Vincent Price
Vincent Price
Vincent Leonard Price, Jr. was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:Price was born in St...
and Coral Browne
Coral Browne
Coral Browne was an Australian-American stage and screen actress.-Career:Coral Edith Brown was the only daughter of a restaurant-owner. She and her two brothers were raised in Footscray, a suburb of Melbourne, where she studied at the National Gallery Art School...
as the Count and Countess, and Allan Cuthbertson
Allan Cuthbertson
Allan Cuthbertson was a naturalised Anglo-Australian actor.-Early life:Born Allan Darling Cuthbertson in Perth, Western Australia, son of Ernest and Isobel Ferguson Cuthbertson, he performed on stage and radio from an early age.During World War II, he served as a Flight Lieutenant with the RAAF...
as Villardieu.
Anouilh later developed the characters of the General and his wife in La Valse des toréadors (The Waltz of the Toreadors
The Waltz of the Toreadors
The Waltz of the Toreadors [La Valse des toréadors] is a play by Jean Anouilh.Written in 1951, this farce is set in 1910 France and focuses on General Léon Saint-Pé and his infatuation with Ghislaine, a woman with whom he danced at a garrison ball some 17 years earlier. Because of the General's...
), which opened at the Comédie des Champs-Elysées in January 1952.