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Rechtmäßiger Name: de Beaumarchais, Pierre-Augustin Caron
Geburtstag: 1732-01-24
Todestag: 1799-05-18
Begräbnisort: Cimetière du Père-Lachaise, Paris, France
Geschlecht: male
Nationalität: France
Land (für Karte): France
Geburtsort: Paris, France
Sterbeort: Paris, France
Todesursache: Apoplexie
Wohnorte: Paris, France
Ausbildung: Autodidacte
Ecole d'Alfort (1742|1745)
Berufe: musician
composer
revolutionary
playwright
watchmaker
politician
Beziehungen: Louis XV (Protecteur)
Organisationen: Papeterie de Plombières (Propriétaire, 17 80 | 17 88)
Bureau de législation dramatique = Société des Auteurs et Compositeurs (Fondateur, 17 77)
Louis XV (Professeur de harpe des filles du roi, 17 59)
Kurzbiographie: Pierre-Augustin Caron earned a post as King Louis XV's personal watchmaker at age 24. He married a wealthy widow and bought a position at court, enlarging his surname to fit his new rank by adding "de Beaumarchais." He played more roles in any given year than most people manage in a lifetime: inventor, merchant, ambassador to Spain, spy, gunrunner, prisoner, reformer, outcast, music teacher, composer, and of course, playwright. His fortunes rose and fell but he always shook off his failures and started over. More than any other playwright of his time, Beaumarchais was the inheritor of a rich tradition and the herald of major changes to come. The Barber of Seville, which premiered in 1775, was a smash hit. The Marriage of Figaro (1778), though widely read, was banned by Louis XVI and not performed in Paris until 1784.

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The Figaro Trilogy: The Barber of Seville / The… von Beaumarchais

Before they became the well known operas by Rossini and Mozart, the two Figaro stories were plays (and had a third companion to close the story line). As Arizona Opera was staging "The Barber of Seville" this season, I figured it is time to look at the original stories.

The first two plays were exactly what I expected, having seen the operas before - they are funny (they are actually even funnier in places than the later operas) and they lean hard into the comical. The third one, despite continuing the same storyline, is anything but comic - it is a rework of the Tartuffe story and is a drama with almost no comical elements and without the sparkle of the first two. Taken together they chronicle the story of the French citizens of the time - both the aristocracy and their servants in the later years of the ancien régime.

In the edition I read (the Oxford World's Classics one), David Coward provides not only the translation (which I cannot judge as I do not read French) but also an Introduction (which is very good and full of spoilers so better to be read after the plays although there are parts in it which make the reading of the plays better and easier) and Notes (both on the translation and on certain elements of the times and common knowledge at the time which are now obscure). The plays do not sounds too dated - their subject is of course but they still work.

I did not expect the sad tone of the last play - even if the first 2 contain some not so comical elements, they follow the proper pattern for a comedy and you know they will end well. Not so much for the third - it is not designed or created as a comedy piece so there is no assurance of a happy ending.

If you like the operas, these plays add another layer to their stories. If you do not like opera, read them as what they are - part of the history of French (and world) drama.… (mehr)

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AnnieMod | 5 weitere Rezensionen | Apr 24, 2024 |

Wesele Figara von Pierre-Augustin Beaumarchais

The Count was a horrible person in this story, cheating on his wife, betraying his faithful servant, trying to seduce an unwilling girl and I hated reading about it, because he was a positive hero in the previous play. Figaro and his girl were fine, but still I couldn't enjoy the book. Three and a half stars.

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Donderowicz | Mar 12, 2024 |

SEVİL BERBERİ von Beaumarchais Pierre-Augustin

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AnkaraLibrary | Mar 6, 2024 |

The Figaro Trilogy: The Barber of Seville/the… von Pierre Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais

Figaro is a well-known and beloved figure from the operas of Rossini and Mozart. The origin of the stories for these operas were the three plays from Beaumarchais. This translation of the plays from David Coward for the Oxford World Classic series reveals how witty and clever the original plays were. This edition also has an appropriate level of annotations to explain the more obscure references.

The first two plays follow the story of the operas closely. The third play, however, is not a comedy. It is, instead, a drama with an Iago-style villain who Figaro needs to outwit. This book is strongly recommended especially for fans of the Figaro operas.… (mehr)

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M_Clark | 5 weitere Rezensionen | Aug 5, 2023 |

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