Jules Arsène Arnaud Claretie


Jules Arsène Arnaud Claretie was a French literary figure and director of the Théâtre Français.

Biography

He was born at Limoges. After studying at the lycée Bonaparte in Paris, he became a journalist, achieving great success as dramatic critic to Le Figaro and to the Opinion nationale. He was a newspaper correspondent during the Franco-Prussian War, and during the Paris Commune acted as staff-officer in the National Guard. In 1885 he became director of the Théâtre Français, and from that time devoted his time chiefly to its administration until his death. During the battle for Octave Mirbeau's comedy Les affaires sont les affaires, the Comité de Lecture was abolished, in October 1901, and Jules Claretie obtained sole responsibility for choosing the modern plays to be performed. Claretie retired from the administration of the Théâtre Français in 1913.
He was elected a member of the Académie française in 1888, and took his seat in February 1889, being received by Ernest Renan.

Works

The long list of his works includes:
  • Histoire de la révolution de 1870-1871
  • Cinq ans après: l'Alsace et la Lorraine depuis l'annexion
  • some annual volumes of reprints of his articles in the weekly press, entitled La Vie à Paris; La Vie moderne au théâtre
  • Molière, sa vie et son œuvre
  • Les Prussiens chez eux
  • Histoire de la littérature française
  • Candidat, a novel of contemporary life
  • Brichanteau, comédien français
La Vie à Paris was completed in 1913, and published after his death in 21 volumes in 1914.
Several plays, some of which are based on novels of his own:
  • Les muscadins
  • Le régiment de Champagne
  • Les Mirabeau
  • Monsieur le ministre, and others
Claretie also wrote three operas for the music of Jules Massenet; La Navarraise, based on his novel La cigarette and written with Henri Cain, Thérèse, and Amadis, a work begun by Massenet in 1895, but shelved and finished in the last years of his life and premiered posthumously.

Works in English translation