Publisher's Synopsis
This book examines the historical, religious and literary forces which helped to create French melodrama, a dramatic genre which developed into the most popular entertainment of the nineteenth century in Europe as well as in America. Emphasizing the work of Guilbert de Pixerecourt (1773-1884), the book includes a biography of this tireless playwright/director whose life was often as colorful as the plays he was producing. It also contains charming new translations of two of his most popular melodramas: Coelina ou l'enfant du mystere and Le chien de Montargis ou la foret de Bondy.
