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About The Theatre Of Illusion
Product Description Pierre Corneille, in his original dedication for The Theatre of Illusion, described the play as a "strange monster." He first called these five acts a comedy; later, a "caprice" and an "extravagant trifle." Written in 1635 and staged in 1636, the play vanished from the stage for the next three hundred years—to be revived in 1937 by Louis Jouvet and the Comédie Française. Since then it has been widely considered, in Virginia Scott’s words, "Corneille’s baroque masterpiece." Today this brilliant piece of wit and drama is available in a new translation from one of America’s finest poets and translators of French, Richard Wilbur. Widely praised for his translations of plays by Molière and Racine, Wilbur now turns his poetic grace to this work, which remains as much a celebration of the comedy of humanity and the magic of life as it was when Corneille wrote it. From Booklist Moliere's best translator now gives us a sparklingly speakable version of one of the only comedies by Moliere's great contemporary Corneille. An aging man who has searched years for his alienated son goes to a magician who promises to show him what the young man has been up to. Father and mage enter the latter's cave, a curtain parts, and before their eyes a romantic comedy unfolds. Posing as an exile, the son is serving as go-between for a vainglorious self-styled warrior-prince and an heiress whose father prefers her other suitor. The lady has fallen for the poseur, who much prefers her pretty maidservant. The prodigal son intends to land both the lady--or, more important, her fortune--and the maid. His schemes fail, seemingly tragically, but then, in the last act, all is revealed to be . . . a play! Shakespeare's Tempest may be the only famous English analogue to this play, and then only in that it and the Corneille are ultimately celebrations of theater itself. Ray Olson Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved Review PRAISE FOR THE TRANSLATIONS OF RICHARD WILBUR "A large part of the reason for what must be termed a Molière revival in North America is the excellence of Richard Wilbur’s translations."— THE NEW YORK TIMES "Wilbur makes Molière into as great an English verse playwright as he was a French one."— NEW YORK MAGAZINE From the Back Cover The Theatre of Illusion opens as a distraught father seeks news of his long-lost son. Through a magician's powers he sees handsome Clindor woo Isabelle from the boastful but cowardly buffoon Adraste. Isabelle s maid, Lyse, engineers the lovers escape. But this delightful mixture of comedy, tragedy, and farce continues to play with its characters and their predicaments: Another time and setting take the lovers into dangerous territory--romantic, tragic, and full of surprises. This baroque masterpiece is now translated by one of America s finest poets and translators of French, Richard Wilbur. Widely praised for his translations of plays by Moliere and Racine, Wilbur turns his poetic grace to this work, a joyful celebration of the comedy of humanity and the magic of life. PRAISE FOR THE TRANSLATIONS OF RICHARD WILBUR "A large part of the reason for what must be termed a Moliere revival in North America is the excellence of Richard Wilbur s translations." The New York Times "Wilbur makes Moliere into as great an English verse playwright as he was a French one." New York Magazine RICHARD WILBUR, one of America s most beloved poets, has served as poet laureate of the United States. He has received the National Book Award, two Pulitzer Prizes, and a number of translation prizes, including two Bollingen Prizes and two PEN Awards. He lives in Cummington, Massachusetts." About the Author RICHARD WILBUR, one of America’s most beloved poets, has served as poet laureate of the United States. He has received the National Book Award, two Pulitzer Prizes, the National Arts Club medal of honor for literature, and a number of translation prizes, including two Bo
