Though the playwright's initial targets had been young society girls, he had now turned to the clergy and professional classes, which was problematic. Molière founded his own theatre company in his early 20s. His rapid success and persistence against opposition when he finally got back to Paris is inexplicable without these years of training. He aspired to be a tragic actor, but contemporary taste was against him. Molière suffered repeated illness in the final years of his life. Toward the end of his life, Molière arranged for the publication of an attractive edition of his complete works; that edition, however, did not appear until about 10 years after his death. He managed, by harnessing his skills as a satirist, observer and philosopher to write plays … In 1645 Molière was twice sent to prison for debts on the building and properties. That year he joined with nine others to produce and play comedy as a company under the name of the Illustre-Théâtre. The first night of L’École des femmes (The School for Wives), December 26, 1662, caused a scandal, as if people suspected that here was an emergence of a comic genius who regarded nothing as sacrosanct. Molière's Boyhood and Education - A biographical account of Molière's early years. The play was written by the French playwright Jean-Baptiste Moliere and was considered one of the best plays at the time and one of the best by Moliere,... Tartuffe, first performed as a three-act play before King Louis XIV in 1664, and then in its official five-act version in 1669, is perhaps Moliere’s greatest accomplishment. On February 17, 1673, he collapsed onstage during a performance of his play The Imaginary Invalid and was carried home to die. With the help of the Duke of Orleans, his company shared the theatre with the famous commedia dell'arte troupe of Tiberio Fiorillo. Many people in power did not admire his desire to expose fraud and hypocrisy, especially when he leveled those attacks around them. Molière’s first Paris play, Les Précieuses ridicules (The Affected Young Ladies), prefigured what was to come. After he collapsed on stage, the priest refused to administer the last rites, and it was only through the King's intervention that he was allowed to be buried at night in order to avoid further scandal. The Misanthrope is one of the most famous works of Molière, a playwright and one of the greatest authors in French literature. He has written or edited fifteen books, including three on Jean Racine, and has lectured throughout Canada,... Get exclusive access to content from our 1768 First Edition with your subscription. He eventually created another company of his own, for which he also wrote and directed. He drew influence from established comedy traditions as well as harnessing new movements such as that of Italian comedy and commedia dell’ arte that were beginning to filter into France at that time. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. is Stage Milk's core writer. The Petit-Bourbon was demolished (apparently without notice), and the company moved early in 1661 to a hall in the Palais-Royal, built as a theatre by Richelieu. Perhaps due to his reputation, two clergymen refused to administer his last rites. Moliere died on February 17th, 1673, from complications brought on by his performances in Le Malade imaginaire. While Moliere's work may still cause some controversy in certain religious circles, it has remained profoundly impactful for many playwrights and actors, and stands a paragon of classical French theater. Instead, the young Moliere often watched the street comedians trying to sell patent medicines, and frequently attended plays at the Hotel de Bourgogne with his grandfather. Required fields are marked *. The first of Moliere’s plays to bring him tremendous success was the 1662 five-act comedy The School for Wives.