History
For the auditorium of his earlier theatre, the Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux (1773–1780), Victor Louis had combined the ancient semicircle with the ellipse giving a horseshoe plan and devised open balcony boxes, both features which he employed again in the Salle Richelieu (1786–1790), as well as in his later theatre, the Théâtre des Arts (1791–1793).[2] As originally designed, the auditorium of the Salle Richelieu seated around 2,000 spectators.[3] The site for the building was so constricted, he placed the entrance foyer under the auditorium. His design was also innovative for the use of an iron frame (under the roof, the floors and boxes), mainly for the purpose of fireproofing.[4]
Originally called the Théâtre du Palais-Royal, it was first occupied by the Théâtre des Variétés-Amusantes, who gave the inaugural performance on 15 May 1790. It became the theatre of the Comédie-Française by an act of 14 May 1799, which merged the Variétés-Amusantes with the players from the Théâtre de la Nation of the Faubourg Saint-Germain. The new company gave their first performance on 30 May 1799 under the name Théâtre-Français de la République.[1]
The interior of the auditorium was redesigned in 1798 by Jean-Charles-Alexandre Moreau and in 1822 by Pierre Fontaine,[5] who reduced the diameter of the balcony columns, which had previously obstructed the view for many spectators.[6] The ceiling was repainted by Pierre-Luc-Charles Ciceri in 1840. Additional interior restoration work was carried out by Théodore Charpentier [fr] in 1847 and 1850. The capacity in 1857 was 1,350 spectators. In 1858 the ceiling was repainted by Joseph Nolau and Auguste Rubé based on the designs of Félix-Joseph Barrias.[5]
From 1860 to 1864, Pierre Prosper Chabrol [fr] carried out extensive modifications of the interior and exterior, as well as the expansion of the building toward today's Place Colette. The ceiling was repainted in 1864 by Philippe Chaperon with the assistance of Joseph Nolau and Auguste Rubé. It was repainted in 1879 by Alexis-Joseph Mazerolle, and in 1885, by Guillaume Debuffe. The theatre was destroyed by a fire on 8 March 1900. Only the walls of the facade remained standing. The new building, as reconstructed under the supervision of architects Julien Guadet and Henri Prudent, was inaugurated on 26 December 1900.[5]
The "Fauteuil de Molière" (armchair of Molière), in which the actor agonized while performing the role of Argan in his last play, Le Malade imaginaire, is on permanent display in the public foyer of the theatre.
The painter Pierre Roussel created numerous portraits of actors who have appeared at the theatre. These can be found in the corridors and boxes.
