Marivaux: Three Plays [Illustrated] [Paperback]

Marivaux (Author), Stephen Wadsworth (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1575251485 | ISBN-13: 978-1575251486 | Publication Date: November 1999 | Edition: 1st

Marivaux was the 4th most-performed playwright at the Comedie-Francais. Time Magazine speculated that the 17th century French writer may be "the hottest playwright all over America." This volume will contain an extensive introduction by the author; an essay on the historical context by Christine Pevitt; a Question and Answer section between Janice Paran and the author discussing the process of adapting Marivaux's plays; and production photos of the three plays.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This collection by renowned French playwright Marivaux includes three comedies written between 1723 and 1732: Changes of Heart (The Double Constancy), The Game of Love and Chance, and The Triumph of Love. Marivaux, a follower of Comedie Italienne, used stock characters, often in false identity and impersonation. His theme in all three plays, which reflect his stand for class and gender equality, is the search for love in the game of courtship. These translations and adaptations by Wadsworth, a longtime opera director, are distinguished from earlier efforts by the fluid style and acting instructions. Background materials include an introduction by Wadsworth; "The France of Marivaux," by Christian Pevitt; "Marivaux on Stage and Page," a conversation between Wadsworth and Janice Paran, the director of three premiers at McCarter Theatre, Princeton, NJ; and 40 plates of photos from these productions. Recommended for all public and academic libraries.
-Ming-ming Shen Kuo, Ball State Univ. Lib., Muncie, IN
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

The seventeenth-century comic playwright Marivaux's Triumph of Love was an off-Broadway hit in the early '90s, and more recently there was an attempt to transform that sweet story of a woman's attempts to teach a cloistered, emotionally distant scholar the mysteries of love into a musical. Director-translator Wadsworth deserves much of the credit for Marivaux's revival. His graceful, witty adaptations revealed Marivaux's charm and realized Wadsworth's goal of creating entertaining, produceable plays in American English. Wadsworth doesn't claim to literally transcribe French to English, and he even added a scene to his version of The Game of Love and Chance. What may annoy scholars, however, will delight theatergoers. What Marivaux mastered the French call marivaudage in his honor--highly stylish dialogue that manages to communicate subtle changes in the heart. Each of the three plays presented here is packed with marivaudage. They play well, as the number of productions they have enjoyed attests, and their delightful, stylish stories of love lost and found are immensely entertaining on the page. Jack Helbig

Product Details

• Paperback: 198 pages
• Publisher: Smith & Kraus Pub Inc; 1st edition (November 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1575251485
• ISBN-13: 978-1575251486
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #153,413 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.