Jean Racine's Phedre on Stage

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Jean Racine's PhÃ¨dre On Stage Racine, Jean.; Mitchell, John D.; Packard, William.; Douwes, Caissa. Fordham University Press 0873590473 9780873590471 9780585116846 English Phaedra (Greek mythology)--Drama. 1987 PQ1898.A37 1987eb 842/.409351 Phaedra (Greek mythology)--Drama.

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Jean Racine's Phèdre on Stage by John D. Mitchell, Ed.D; H.H.D. (H.C.) President Institute for Advanced Studies in the Theatre Arts with English-Verse Translation by William Packard

IASTA's production of PHÈDRE won the Outer Circle Critics Award NORTHWOOD INSTITUTE PRESS Midland, Michigan 48640

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Disclaimer: This book contains characters with diacritics. When the characters can be represented using the ISO 8859-1 character set (http://www.w3.org/TR/images/latin1.gif), netLibrary will represent them as they appear in the original text, and most computers will be able to show the full characters correctly. In order to keep the text searchable and readable on most computers, characters with diacritics that are not part of the ISO 8859-1 list will be represented without their diacritical marks. First Edition © 1987 by Northwood Institute Press All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part, in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Inquiries should be addressed to Northwood Institute Press, Midland, Michigan 48640. LCN 87-61041

ISBN 0-87359-047-3

Printed in the United States of America All rights reserved. These plays may not be acted, read aloud to an audience, broadcast, televised, performed or presented in any way, as a whole or in part without permission. Inquiries should be addressed to IASTA 310 W. 56th St., New York, NY 10019. CAUTION: Professionals and amateurs are hereby warned that "PHÈDRE," being fully protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America, the British Commonwealth countries, including Canada, and the other countries of the Copyright Union, is subject to a royalty. All rights, including professional, amateur, motion picture, recitation, public reading, radio, television and cablevision broadcasting, and the rights of translation into foreign languages, are strictly reserved. Amateurs may produce this play upon payment of a royalty of Thirty-Five Dollars for the first performance and Twenty-Five Dollars for each additional performance, payable one week before the play is to be given, to Samuel French, Inc., at 45 West 25th Street, New York, N.Y. 10010, or at 7623 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood, California 90046, or if in Canada, to Samuel French (Canada) Ltd., at 80 Richmond Street East, Toronto M5C 1P1, Canada.

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DEDICATION To Jacques Charon, Paul-Émile Deiber, and Robert Manuel; actors and directors who enriched American actors with styles of French theatre: for Molière, for Marivaux, for Racine.

"Il n'est par vrai que l'analyse rapetisse; elle donne une dimension de plus à la realité, et je trouve beau que l'homme et ses oeuvres aient ainsi des profondeurs vivantes." Charles Mauron

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Table of Contents Page Illustrations

ix

Foreword

xi

Acknowledgements

xiii

Introduction

xv

Preface

xxv

Act One

1

Act Two

65

Act Three

117

Act Four

159

Act Five

205

Comparative Chronology to Racine

250

Appendix

285

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Illustrations by Caissa Douwes Born in Philadelphia in 1961, Caissa Douwes studied at Temple University and graduated with a BFA in Painting from the Tyler School of Art. Miss Douwes spent a year in Rome and has had exhibits there as well as in Philadelphia. She is currently living in New York City where she is a freelance artist and illustrator. Other books illustrated by Miss Douwes for Dr. John D. Mitchell and the Northwood Institute Press are THE FOX CAT and THE GREEN BIRD.

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Foreword The Institute for Advanced Studies in the Theatre Arts (IASTA), for which accolades, as well as more substantial encouragement, has been due for some time, but never more so, put on PHÈDRE, in William Packard's effective translation, and presented the long absent but always welcome Beatrice Straight in the title role. Every one of the roles was more than adequately performed, which is saying a great deal, alas, for American productions of a classic. To say that this is the first time within memory that New York has had a satisfactory production of a Racine tragedy in English is to say too little. By all but inapproachable French standards, IASTA's PHÈDRE was excellent well spoken, generally well staged, and impressively acted. It provided a lesson which we can ill afford not to absorb and put to use. Racine, in English, has always been considered too formidable for New York audiences. But it has been a blot on our much-blotted scutcheon that this should be the case since our theatre can ill afford to cut itself off from access to dramatic masterpieces by lethargy no less than by directorial ineptness and want of workable translations. So it was no small thing to encounter a PHÈDRE one could receive in dignity rather than derision, and with pleasure rather than pain. In large measure this was due to an unexpected event in our theatre the actors proved themselves capable of speaking verse clearly and naturally. It remains to be seen whether this feat and its attending graces of a sense of style and natural dignity will be bestowed on other works not hitherto accessible to an ostensibly culturehungry public. It is the excellent use of a small stage and the simple dignity of the setting on it. The miracle was achieved, it was achieved; and not noting the means by which this minor miracle was accomplished may actually be put down to the credit of the production: there simply was too little opportunity to watch details because the paramount interest was so well, and so appropriately, focussed on the broad outlines and noble movement of a great play, from which its seventeenth-century author had already pared everything inessential or potentially distracting. JOHN GASSNER STERLING PROFESSOR OF DRAMA YALE UNIVERSITY

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Acknowledgements Paul-Émile Deiber, Sociétaire of the Comédie Française, had been central to the realization of the Institute for Advanced Studies in the Theatre Arts' (IASTA) production of Jean Racine's PHÈDRE with American professional actors. Both Jacques Charon and Robert Manuel of the Comédie Française cited M. Deiber as the authority in France for the style of seventeenth-century tragedy; his stirring and gripping productions for the Comédie Française of Corneille's LE CID and Racine's BÉRÉNICE left no doubt that he is the master director of neoclassic tragedy of French theatre. Paul-Émile has continued to be a mentor for IASTA and a steadfast friend to the author and his wife Miriam. Dr. Mary W. John, as associate director to M. Deiber, painstakingly and devotedly followed, from the first reading of the play, through each succeeding rehearsal of the multiple productions of PHÈDRE. The writer and Aida Alvarez, as production stage manager, scrupulously notated the movement and the rhythms (miseen-scene) of the initial presentation; in that role they painstakingly monitored each performance, keeping them at concert pitch, as the production moved to off-Broadway to London; to Dartington Hall, England; to Denver; to Aspen, Colorado. Out of a real sense of indebtedness goes heartfelt thanks to both Aida Alvarez and Dr. Mary W. John. All concerned with the productions felt an intense commitment to the challenging style of M Deiber's staging of the play. The writer wishes to acknowledge certain friends and colleagues who have contributed richly to this book and to whom the writer is indebted for their encouragement and enthusiasm. Among them are: Robert Epstein; C. George Willard; George Drew; Dr. Harold Michal-Smith, physchologist; Florence and Christian Guillemin; and the writer's wife, Miriam P. Mitchell. The Reverend Theodore Pitcairn saw a performance for an audience of invited professionals at the Institute; out of a conviction that the production was of such stature that it merited being seen by the public, he provided the money that financed the move of PHÈDRE to the Greenwich Mews Theatre. The production was lauded in the press and won the Outer Circle Critics Award. A special word of thanks to those who have seen the book through publication: Gil Forman, Virginia Morrison, Irene Shawtell, Melodie Greer. Thanks are also extended to David E. Fry, Arthur E. Turner, and R. Gary Stauffer for their support and encouragement.

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To the actors who made each of the productions of PHÈDRE so memorable, the author bestows accolades and thanks. As ever with inspired and great artists the actors entered into a subtle and harmonious give-and-take collaboration with the American poet-playwright William Packard, providing him with new insights as to viable verse for acting as well as insights as to Racine's intention. All the actors agreed that the extended rehearsal period of six weeks, uncharacteristic in professional American theatre today, enabled them to come to terms with new approaches to rehearsing and acting. Cheerfully they accepted the pain, as well, of being in many cases stripped by Deiber of ingrained mannerisms and acting habits. A different way of rehearsing was imposed by Deiber, by necessity. Later, a seminar of the actors before an audience of a number of the Institute's members enabled the actors to air their feelings about how they had been rehearsed; they acknowledged that they had made a leap forward in the art of acting. Thus, heartfelt thanks are due to these exceptional and flexible actors from the author who was also artistic director during the run of the production of PHÈDRE on the boards of diverse theatres, here and abroad. The actors who appeared in the various productions of PHÈDRE are (in alphabetical order): Bette Brandenburg, Jeff David, Anne Draper, Mildred Dunnock, Michael Durrell, Lupe Ferrer, Deborah Gordon, Sam Haigler Henry, Maude Higgins, Marguerite Hunt, Graham Jarvis, Dorothy Le Baker Hatch, Miriam Mitchell, James Pritchett, Dorothy Sands, Reid Shelton, Beatrice Straight, Jean Sullivan, Eric Tavares, Valerie von Volz, and Martin Waldron. Under a Rockefeller Foundation grant to IASTA, Armand Coullet served as special assistant to M. Deiber. Costumes were designed by Sylvia Kalegi and sets designed by Geri Davis. For the Denver and Aspen Festival production, sets and lighting were designed by Robin Lacy.

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Jean Racine's Phèdre on Stage

Introduction The plays of Jean Racine mirror the seventeenth century in France when Louis XIV embodied the inspiration, the very source of France's achievements, aspirations, glory and power. The young Louis XIV worked an eight hour day to rebuild his kingdom. Later, he advised his son: "Never forget that it is by work that a king rules." Both at home and overseas, Louis XIV put his kingdom to work and shaped the economy of France's great period. In 1665, he encouraged Frenchmen to make new inventions; he founded the Academy of Science; he made every effort to promote trade; he encouraged shipbuilding. In painting, sculpture, architecture, and above all, literature, the king was the impulse and his ideals were the criteria by which success was judged. Many works of art of this great epoch have remained the glory of France. Descartes wrote that we must make reason our supreme tribunal. A subconscious acceptance of this principle underlay the lives of Louis and his contemporaries. Thus, what satisfied Louis' mind was a central feature: symmetry and unity. Beauty in architecture was held to reside not in the novelty of the elements, but in its arrangement. Proportion was indispensible, for it alone imparted unity. Use of the classical orders, an essential feature of every good building, was the general tendency towards simplicity, unity and the balance of equal parts. Rules laid down for painting were proportion, symmetry and an agreement of the whole with its parts, taught above all by geometry, the source and guide of all the arts. In music, line was preferred to color, proportion to ornament. The leading composers of the time of Louis XIV were Jean-Baptiste Lully and François Couperin. Literature, architecture, painting, interior decoration, engraving, sculpture and music, all, during the reign, reached a high pitch of excellence. At center stage were Racine, Molière, Lully, Mignard, Mansart, Le Nôtre, Vauban, Cassini. The arts in Louis' reign reached a level of excellence seldom equaled before or since. One feels the charm there in its exercise of good sense. The style is majestic, clear and spare.

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Louis XIV's influence on Racine was great. He persuaded Racine to abandon Italian preciosity for the spare, chiseled beauty of the Alexandrine. PHÈDRE is without doubt the most perfect example of the classical style under Louis XIV. Despite the mythological sources of the material and antiquity, its neoclassic characters are not Greek, for the neoclassic tragedy is the antique world as seen through the eyes of the seventeenth century man. (Picking up a Greek text, Racine had been known to have translated impromptu Sophocles' OEDIPUS.) There is not the big feeling, freely expressed, welling up out of the unconscious as is reflected in the tragedies of the antique Greek world so remote from modern man. What may be said to be French classicism? PHÈDRE, as a supreme example of neoclassic French tragedy, avoids excess in all things. Later, when there is in French drama overt expression of big feelings, it's drame in excess: it is melodrame, according to Paul Émile Deiber. Victor Hugo's RUY BLAS and Rostand's CYRANO (which demand a full voice) are the 'open-stop' all the way; they are romantic dramas. PHÈDRE observes all the unities: time, place, action, more scrupulously than the playwrights of ancient Greece. Racine's tragedies have compactness, singleness of purpose and a simplicity of language: words are used in their original, strict sense. Racine utilized a very small vocabulary. In his Preface to BÉRÉNICE, Racine wrote: ''. . . all invention consists in making something out of nothing, and that a great multiplicity of incidents has always been the refuge of poets whose genius lacked either sufficient abundance or sufficient force to hold the attention of their audience throughout five acts by a simple action, sustained by the violence of the passions, the beauty of the sentiments, and the fitness of the expression.'' All facets of his masterpiece, PHÈDRE, are in scale and related to each other harmoniously. Imagery is unusually telling because it is so restrained. Contemporaries said of Racine: "Racine not only launched a revolution in the art of dramaturgy and writing: he also led another revolution in one of the essential aspects of theatre: the art of acting." Racine read aloud admirably; Louis XIV often had him read. There was a reality to his emotion while reading that so enthralled his listeners that they were often observed to have tears welling up in their eyes. Racine had listened attentively to conversations in the street; he notated their inflection and utilized these realistic effects, placing them next to the words uttered by his characters. He aimed for a naturalness in acting. So the very simplicity of his word choices in his verse headed off exaggeration in the delivery of his dramatic verse. In his days with the actors of the Hotel de Bourgogne, Racine provided them each year, in a ten year period, with a new play; one assumes

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that during that decade, he successfully surpassed the troupe's tendency to chant the lines, monotonously. (A style which Molière, playwright and head of the rival theatre, ridiculed in his IMPROMPTU DE VERSAILLES.) Having notated the role of Phèdre musically, Racine, in the Tuilleries gardens, coached the actress Champmeslé (who was first to perform the title role) and taught her to deliver the verses as precisely as if she were a singer. Racine's son, Louis Racine, wrote: "Those who favored Corneille (a peer writer of tragedies) attributed the success of his rival's (Racine's) plays to the acting of the actors to whom Racine, by means of his coaching, imparted his own great talent for the delivery of lines." As William Packard, the translator into English verse of PHÈDRE, has pointed out there is a subtext to the play PHÈDRE. "Behind the surface of clarity of Racine's PHÈDRE there is an immense complication; beyond the crystal lucidity and rationality of the poetic text, there is a very powerful undercurrent or subtext to the irrational passion and hysteria. This is a great paradox to the play, and it accounts for the overwhelming impact it has had on audiences ever since it was first performed in the seventeenth century. For whether one is drawn towards the form of the play or not, those longsweeping Alexandrines, with absolute caesuras, kept in such strict rhyme couplets, one cannot remain indifferent to the terrible suggestion of incest and violence and monstrosity which continually lurked just under the polished, classically formal text. "We can approach this subtext from several different directions. For example, there is the turmoil in the life of Racine, himself. Orphaned at four, brought up at Port-Royal in an uncompromising Jansenist faith, he was a melancholy man who was, on one hand, a consummate poet; and yet, on the other hand, he was a tormented soul who wrote, 'Je trouve deux hommes en moi', who exhibited such a profound ambivalence towards his own career: 'Although I have been much flattered by the applause which I have received, the slightest criticism has always caused me sorrow which far outweighed the pleasure caused by praise.' We know of his vacillation and outbursts; we know of his ungrateful behavior toward Molière; and we know of his misfortunes during the L'Affaire PHÈDRE, when, in 1677, having coached his mistress, La Champmeslé, in the title role, Racine had to witness a rival PHÈDRE by Pradon which opened only two days after his play. The Duchess de Bouillon had bought out the seats of the theatre so as to ruin Racine's opening. And Racine, shocked by this experience, retired at the age of 37, from the theatre. He renounced poetry and returned to Port-Royal where he contracted a marriage which, in the words of

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his biographer son, held neither love nor interest for him, only rationality." One may pursue the latent fantasy beneath the surface of the plot of the drama PHÈDRE. For the drama and dramatic verse of Racine's PHÈDRE provide a special pleasure, as well as a deeply moving experience in the theatre, especially to audiences brought up in French culture and in the French language. The Institute for Advanced Studies in Theatre Arts' production in English verse demonstrated, moreover, that the drama weaves its spell and is, in true translation, accessible to all spectators. It is universal in its appeal. What is requisite is for the actors to come to terms with the verse and its style. In its universality, the play stands with Shakespeare's HAMLET, for its subtext or latent fantasy beneath the plot presents another side of the Oedipal coin as a fantasy,* a waking-dream, if you will, in the theatre. The spectator is drawn into an identification with the heroine Phèdre. Just as in each human breast there is the deeply repressed longing to possess the mother, to return to the Elysium of the womb, likewise does it not follow that the parent, as well, has repressed longings to become at one again with the child? Or, among the multiplicities of repressed feelings, are there not within all of us undifferentiated incestuous strivings? A French woman at the age of seventeen tells of her first experiencing a performance of PHÈDRE in the theatre: she developed an alarming fever and had to leave. Once home, her temperature shortly returned to normal. Through identification, as within a dream, each in the audience feels intensely the emotions of the heroine, Phèdre, captivated by the pulsations of the heart beats of the pounding Alexandrine verse. Thus, by the end of the dramatic poem, the audience achieves catharsis, for as in a dream, the spectator has in fantasy been in touch with feelings and has come to terms with them: awareness, as it were, without having the need to act, in actuality, upon incestuous feelings deep within the unconscious. So, as has the heroine Phèdre, each participant in the theatrical ritual of performance has given 'back the light of day in all its purity.' (Et la mort, à mes yeux dérobant la clarté,/ Rend au jour, qu'il souillaent, toute la purèté.) It is true that Jean Racine had been wounded by the success of the cabal of enemies, led by the Duchess de Buillon, who drove his play * ...L'analyse nous a révélé des traits structurels-image ambivalente de la mère, passivité, jalousie, idée de persecution. L'oeuvre oscille entre des fixatious obsessionelles et l'Oedipe Mauron, Charles, L'INCONSCIENT DANS L'OEUVRE ET LA VIE DE RACINE. Paris-Genéve: ChampionSLATKINE, 1986. Op cit p. 270.

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from the stage at the first performance. At the height of his power, Racine abandoned writing for the stage. (It was eleven years before he was persuaded by Marquise de Maintenon to compose dramas ESTHER and ATHALIE for performance by students at Saint-Cyr.) At first glance, it may be puzzling that Racine regained his composure and entered fully into the rounds of pleasure at Versailles in his role as an historian to the Sun-King, Louis XIV. However, pursuing the thesis that plays subtly serve on the unconscious level as surrogate dreams, Racine, as author of PHÈDRE, likely achieved a profound purgation of conflicting repressed feelings. Scholars have often commented on and admired the poet's sensitive identification in his dramas with the workings of the female heart.** One suspects that he struggled with sexual ambivalence. He was a Don Juan in his lifestyle. In 1666, he had broken with the troupe of Molière and had lured away actress La Du Parc, taking her as a mistress. Neither act was viewed as friendly by the older Molière; Racine was but 27 years of age; La Du Parc was older (of an age comparable to Phèdre in relation to Hippolyte). The following year, for the troupe rival to Molière, La Du Parc created the title role in Racine's ANDROMAQUE. Ten years later, the actress La Champmeslé portrayed the first Phèdre. Racine was 37 years of age. Not long after, Racine was accused, up to the very steps of the throne, of having poisoned actress La Du Parc, although evidence against him was extremely slim. Racine, schooled from childhood in a puritanical Christian faith, may well have had need (as does Phèdre) to 'feel the command of virtue' for a life misspent, and through identification with the play's heroine Phèdre, he unconsciously was able to give 'back the light of day and all its purity,' achieving release from feelings of guilt: catharsis. The debacle of the first performance may as it does seem not have meant very much to him, beyond some weeks of pain. It has been recorded that his cool comment respecting the PHÈDRE of Pradon was "The difference between Pradon and me is that I know how to write." Had not Jean Racine achieved wish-fulfillment, deeply, in the writing of his masterpiece PHÈDRE? *** Rehearsals The French master director, Paul-Émile Deiber, Sociétaire of the Comédie Française, came to the Institute for Advanced Studies in Theatre Arts in New York City to direct a cast of American professional actors ** Racine, dit-on sent connue une femme; dès Andromaque, il a conquis les coeurs féminins dont il sait peindre mieux que personne les mouvements contradictoires. Mauron, Charles Op cit p 270. *** Mauron, Charles. Op cit p. 286

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in Racine's Phèdre. Deiber had come to be accepted in France as the master director for the style of the seventeenth century verse tragedies of France of Pierre Corneille and Jean Racine. In Paris M. Paul-Émile Deiber met with the author. He politely but firmly dismissed from consideration existing English translations of PHÈDRE; his conviction was that the Alexandrine verse form of the original must parallel an English verse translation of PHÈDRE. His mandate prompted the Institute to seek out the American poet William Packard and to invite him to fashion a new English translation, recapitulating in English the rhyming couplets and the twelve syllable line. Although Packard blanched at the Herculean task of completing the translation of a five act tragedy in a summer, he did take it on, and the translation met the demands of French director Deiber. Packard, later quipped. "If there had been time, I would have had a nervous breakdown." Hours of rehearsal at the Institute were from 10 o'clock in the morning until 4 o'clock in the afternoon, with a 45 minute or hour lunchbreak, six days a week. (When the actors cast in an Institute production performed at matinees, the rehearsal period stopped at noon. For the first two weeks of rehearsal, the cast sat in a large circle around a table with the director. The time was devoted fully to reading, examining and analyzing the verse, characterization and the action. M. Deiber shared with the cast and his directorial staff the information that at the Comédie Française (where the daily rehearsal period is shorter but is spread over a longer period) he had devoted six weeks 'at the table' with his French actors, studying the verse of Racine's BÉRÉNICE. During these days the French director frequently held up his French text and said, "All is there in the text; Racine has thought of everything; it is not I that is guiding you, but it's Racine." For the American actress and actor, the challenge that first makes itself known immediately to each is the long speech, the tirade, which sometimes covers four pages of the actor's text of PHÈDRE. While rehearsing at the table M. Deiber plotted without hesitation the crescendoes and the diminuendoes of the long speeches; each dictated by him, as director, for M. Deiber is an actor as well as a stage director. He aided and guided each of his actors where to breathe, which proved of singular importance in enabling the actor to sustain the thrust and the momentum of the speeches. Since breathing is of prime importance in negotiating a speech of unusual length (for the American actor) he generously shared with his American actors a technique for breathing that, as an actor, he'd been instructed in at the national theatre's Conservatory in Paris: "The actor must not breathe at the end of a phrase revealing to the audience

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his need for breath and support for his voice, but the actor develops a technique for breathing into the phrase that lies ahead." Since the translation is in English verse of a classical tragedy, it was considered of first importance by the Institute that the English employed should represent the best of cosmopolitan American English. Therefore, accuracy and consistency were sought in pronounciation of words and diction. Since there is no official literary academy, as there is in France, which legislates as to the authoritative pronounciation of English words, the Institute arbitrarily decided on Daniel Jones' ENGLISH PRONOUNCING DICTIONARY, (New York: Dutton Company, 1964.) In almost all cases, its guide to pronounciation proved adequate for the Anglicized pronounciation of Greek and Roman names. Of course, in the person of the French director, M. Deiber, the Institute had an exemplary authority for the pronounciation of the French names. Since Racine, in his youth, read widely and passionately in Greek and Hellenistic literature, it had obviously appealed to Racine to bestrew the text of PHÈDRE, derived as it was from the HIPPOLYTUS of Euripides, with mythological references. For his own seventeenth century audiences, they serve as decorative ornamentation, providing contrast to the austere simplicity of the vocabulary he employed in his verse. Although the majority of the spectators for a production of a classic today would not know the specific identity of the geographical or mythological reference, the actors need know clearly and fully the meaning of all that they utter as the characters in PHÈDRE. All historical, geographical, mythological references, whether of the antique world or of seventeenth century, were sought out in mythological dictionaries and atlases for identification and comprehension. As the first two weeks of examining the verse and understanding, in depth, the text drew to a close, M. Deiber characterized his musical approach to Racine's PHÈDRE. He suggested as a metaphor the symphony saying, "Racine's verse is music." M. Deiber devoted the next two weeks to placing the actors, creating the mise-en-scene in high spirits; he characterized his work for the actors as 'putting them in the iron corset.' Having locked you into it, I demand, then, that you convince us, the audience, the iron corset does not exist.' The challenge is now, to mesh the verbal 'iron corset' with the iron corset of the physical action. All of M. Deiber's blocking had been carefully worked out in advance and was predetermined-down to millimeters. He was sternly authoritarian in dictating the movements as he worked in high spirits and very quickly. In his years as an actor, a Sociétaire of the Comedie Française, Deiber had performed all male roles in Racine's PHÈDRE. He knew by heart the text from top to bottom.

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He reiterated frequently: "All is in the text. Racine has created a ballet, and the physical movements and action arise out of the rhythms of the verse. They are dictated by the verse!" M. Deiber's mandate had been for all the actors to memorize the text of the play, to be free of their scripts, before he put them on their feet onstage to give them the blocking. Since American actors like to learn their lines with the movements, and gestures, and actions of the play, this was both a challenge and a source of distress to the actors. Along the way from the first day, of course, the director had sought with his actors the third goal, the attainment of the interior action. Deiber's aim for the following two weeks was to pack into them two run-through's a day. Unnerving as it may have been for some of the actors, the director beat out with a pencil at the director's table, from time to time, the rhythms, the pulsations of the lines of verse, indicating as would an orchestral conductor, pace and climaxes. By the time the week of technical and dress rehearsals had arrived, Deiber announced that he as a director assumed that his work for the actors had been done. Thus, through a rehearsal period of six weeks, divided into units of two weeks, followed by two weeks, followed by another two weeks, there may be seen a pattern of how Deiber rehearsed, as well as Deiber's point of view as to the 'perfect actor.' The French Alexandrine, as often pointed out by Deiber is made up of twelve syllables: six long beats alternating with six short beats. The verse does not allow for self-indulgent pauses or any non-verbal interjections. Rhyming couplets are characteristic of the Alexandrines. In the whole text of Racine's PHÈDRE, there are only two or three run-on lines. Since M. Deiber's production was not antiquarian, he encouraged some additional running-on (enjambment), but he insisted that actors exercise both restraint and taste in taking this liberty with French classicism. The caesure (or hemistich) always comes after six syllables; said Deiber, "The actors may explore it and use it; the actors' inner metronome should be aware of it. It can lead the actor, often, to Racine's intention for interpretation of line, scene, character. For variety, 'rests' can be made, dictated by interpretation, sometimes after three syllables, or after nine syllables." As for the rhyming couplets, M. Dieber's dictum was: "Use them, do not deny them, but don't be enslaved by them." These were very important guides to acting verse, useful in playing Shakespeare, as well as playing Molière in translation where couplets have been brought over into the English verse.

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Settings In the decor there was the use of the vanishing point, for forced perspective is consonant and appropriate to seventeenth century Frenchmen's preoccupation with focusing on the nature of feelings, analysis and dissection of them. Dieber had requested a single setting consisting of a series of columns, emphasizing forced-perspective. One is reminded of the stage background of the Teatro Olympico of Palladio in Vicenza, Italy. Costumes "For Racine's PHÈDRE the arms and legs of the actors must be covered," said Deiber. Bare limbs would be appropriate for a Greek tragedy, connoting free physical movement, but such costumes for a Racine tragedy would lead the actors to a violation of the style of restraint of actions; his characters are moving 'statues'; demi-gods. The feeling is intense but internalized. Visually for the spectators and tactilely for the actors, the clothes covered extremities of the body, promoting the internalizing of emotion, the holding within of intense feelings. (It raises a question: "Might it not be possible," said Deiber, "even to have the actresses wearing gloves?" The production of PHÈDRE did not go so far.) "The plumes, the use of plumes as ornaments of the court of Louis XIV," said M. Deiber, "no longer seem appropriate for seventeenth century classics, today." For settings and costumes Deiber turned to an Italian painter of the renaissance, Veronese, who provided the silhouette for the costumes; e.g. a painting, depicting Alexander the Great and an entourage. "To recreate on the stage the characters of the plays of Racine as frenetic, or as casual, or as compulsive and middleclass twentieth century denizens is doomed to failure," stated Deiber. "The reality of the court of Louis XIV of seventeenth century France is preserved in a particular form: the Alexandrines. The rediscovery of that special world is through the text, and by means of it the actor and director evoke a moment of human history." The seventeenth century tragedy has a form, a shape. For it to have been meaningful in its own age it had to have an inner humanistic truth; it is deserving of our attention today, both its design (form) and inner reality have validity. The fact that the rediscovery of its extrinsic style may result in conscious, even a mannered style, does not mean that it is hollow or dead. What is theatrical for our times is not to be confused with the reality of an earlier age. M. Deiber had said: "The etiquette of the seventeenth century court of Louis XIV is at the basis

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of such 'motivation' of the characters of PHÈDRE." For spectators sitting in a theatre, brilliant acting, technical skill, are their own reward worthy of attention. Racine, as well as Sophocles, Shakespeare, and Molière have nothing specifically to say to an audience about the anxieties of an atomic age. But, it may very well be that Racine does stimulate in us a sense of history. His characters' conflicts trigger emotional responses when a production of a seventeenth century neoclassic tragedy is true to the style of the author and the period. Then an audience experiences aesthetic pleasure as well as empathic involvement with the characters. The fate of the characters becomes the concern of the audience. Jean Racine's PHÈDRE On Stage set out to demonstrate that it is a viable theatre piece. Andre Gide, in his journals, wrote, regarding the acting of Racine, 'the great mistake of actors, playing Racine today, is to strive to make his naturalness come first at the expense of his art.' The rhythm of the Alexandrines must be rigorously adhered to. Racine was more than a dramatic poet; he was an extraordinary man of the theatre. He endeavored to achieve in his plays, style, a synthesis of elegance, nobility and reality which on the one hand avoided 'singing' and on the other hand prosaic speech. How Dieber directed the production of PHÈDRE serves as the text of this book. Via eight or nine actors of the Comédie Française, Deiber, as a sociétaire, goes all the way back to Racine and Molière. Thus, the French tradition, as well as the style for the staging of Racine's PHÈDRE, has been transmitted by word of mouth. On the left is the French text; and beneath the French text, are diagrams of the staging. The English verse translation is on the right, and below it is the director's notes to the actors. The emphasis throughout is on the action of the play. "I did take one great liberty. I allowed there to be a mixture of French and anglicized Greek pronunciations: this is because I frankly preferred the French proper names Phèdre seems to me to be much more poetic than 'Phaedra.' Thus 'Théramène' and 'Aricie' are French, whereas the more familiar 'Theseus' and 'Icarus' must remain Greek. It was my hope that once one became accustomed to these combinations, they would not seem unnatural," said William Packard.

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Jean Racine's PHÈDRE On Stage The format is to provide the two texts of PHÈDRE: the French original and the English translation. Each has the same number of verse lines: 1,654. Both for the reader, as well as for a director of the play, the placing and the movement of the actors (mise-en-scene) is given, as well as discussion and direction as given by M. Paul-Èmile Deiber.

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Preface Here is another tragedy of which the subject is taken from Euripides. Although I have followed a slightly different path from that author's for the working out of the action, I have not hesitated to enrich my play with all it seemed to me most striking in his. While I owe only to him the single idea of the character Phèdre, I am able to say that I am indebted to him for what I could rightly show on the stage. I am not at all surprised that the character of Phèdre met with such great success in the time of Euripides, and that it has also been so successful in our century, since it has all of the qualifications laid down by Aristotle as to the heroes of a tragedy, all of which are fitting to excite pity and fear. Indeed, Phèdre is neither entirely guilty, nor entirely innocent; she is involved, by her fate and the wrath of the gods, in an unlawful passion, of which she is the first to feel horror; she makes every effort to overcome it; she prefers to let herself die rather than to confess it to anyone; and when she is forced to reveal it, she speaks of it with confusion it makes clear that her crime is more a punishment of the gods rather than a motivation of her will. I've even been careful to make her a little less odious than she is in the tragedies of the ancient, where she alone decides to accuse Hippolytus. I thought that the defamation was too base and evil to put into the mouth of a princess who everywhere else shows such noble and virtuous sentiments. This contemptibleness appeared to me more appropriate to a nurse, who could have more servile tendencies, and who nevertheless undertakes this false accusation only to save the life and the honor of her mistress. Phèdre consents to it only because she is in such disquietude that she is beside herself; a moment after the action she comes forth to justify innocence and to tell the truth. Hippolytus is accused, in Euripides and Seneca, of having actually ravished his step-mother; vim corpus tulit. But he is here accused of only having contemplated it. I wish to spare Theseus a confusion which would have made him less pleasing to the audience. With regard to the character of Hippolytus, I have noticed among the ancients that Euripides is reproached for having represented him as a philosopher free of all imperfection: which made the death of the young prince lead much more to anger than to pity. I thought I should give him some weakness that would make him a little guilty in relation to his father, without, however, taking away from him any of the greatness of soul with which he spares Phèdre's honor and lets himself

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be overpowered without accusing her. I call weakness the passion which he feels, against his will, for Aricie, who is the daughter and the sister of deadly enemies of his father. This Aricie is not a character of my invention. Virgil says that Hippolytus married her, and had a son by her, after Aesculapius had brought him back to life. And I have also read in some authors that Hippolytus had wedded and brought to Italy a young Athenian of high birth, called Aricie, and who had given her name to a small Italian town. I mention these authorities because I have very carefully set myself to follow the legend. I have even followed the story of Theseus as given in Plutarch. It is in Plutarch that I have found what gave me occasion to believe that when Theseus descended into the underworld to rescue Prosperine, it was a journey that the prince had made in Epirus in the direction of the source of the Acheron, at the home (Epirus) of a king who's wife Peirithous wishes to bear off, and who (the king) took Theseus prisoner after his slaying of Peirithous. So I have tried to keep the appearance of truth of the story, without losing anything of the embellishments of the myth, which abounds in poetical imagery; and the rumor of Theseus' death, based on the fabled voyage, gives an opportunity to Phèdre to make a declaration of love which becomes one of the principal causes of her calamity, and which she would never have dared to make so long as she believed that her husband was alive. For the rest, I dare not yet claim that this play is the best of my tragedies. I leave it to readers and to time to decide its true value. What I can maintain is that I have not written one where virtue is put in a more favorable light than in this one; the least faults are severely punished; the very thought of a crime is looked upon with as much horror as the crime itself; the weaknesses of love are shown as true weaknesses; the passions are brought to view only to show all the disorder of which they are the cause; and vice is everywhere depicted in colors which makes itself known and hated for its deformity. That is properly the end which every man who writes for an audience should assign to himself; and it is that which the first tragic poets kept in sight above everything. Their theatre was a school where virtue was not less well taught than in the schools of the philosophers. Thus Aristotle was willing to give rules for the dramatic poem; and Socrates, the wisest of philosophers, did not disdain to take up the tragedies of Euripides. It could be wished that our works were as solid and as full of useful teachings as those of these poets. That would perhaps be a means of bringing into harmony tragedy with numerous people known for their piety and for their opinions, who have condemned it (tragedy) in recent times and who would doubtless judge it more favorably if the

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authors thought as much about instructing their spectators as about entertaining them, and if they followed in this regard the true objective of tragedy. -JEAN RACINETRANSLATED BY -JOHN D. MITCHELL-

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Acte Premier Scène I: Hippolyte, Théramène. Hippolyte Le dessein en est pris: je pars, cher Théramène, Et quitte le séjour de l'aimable Trézène. Dans le doute mortel dont je suis agité, Je commence à rougir de mon oisiveté.

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Phèdre Act One Scene One: Hippolyte, Théramène (Both entering left, center.) Jean-Baptiste Lully's music (composed for Racine) starts with the dimming of the house lights and continues until total darkness. As plotted by M. Deiber, Act One is early morning, with the stage light suggesting dawn, predominantly striking across the columns from down stage left. Hippolyte enters running, in an aureole of back-lighting. Théramène follows. Hippolyte does not start to speak until complete silence in the house. Hippolyte: (Runs on; Théramène follows, he stops down-left- center. Crossing to right-center.) I have made up my mind: I go, dear Théramène, (Right foot forward.) (Crossing one step left forward.) And leave the loveliness of staying in x Trézène. Each day I have new doubts, they drive me to distress, And I must blush with shame to see my idleness./ / For the first presentation on January 1, 1677, Baron, an actor shaped by Molière at the age of 23, created the role of Hippolyte Racine, who was responsible for a revolution in acting, combatting organ-grinding chanting, said to Baron at rehearsal, ''I had you come to receive direction, not to give it'' Hippolyte is handsome, virile, an athlete. A youth committed to the hunt. Phèdre's lines in Act II, Scene V, are accurately descriptive when she describes Hippolyte's father, Theseus, as a youth;" . . . faithful, proud, the haughtiest of heads, / A portrait of God or as I see you now." Houteroche, who created the role of Théramène, was aged 60. [/ and / / markings in verse indicate the beats of pause, before continuing the verse line(s). indicates actor 'runs on' to next line of verse/] [x super- or sub-scripted x indicates where cross starts on line.]

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Hippolyte (Cont.) 5

Depuis plus de six mois éloigné de mon père, J'ignore le destin d'une tête si chère; J'ignore jusqu'aux lieux qui le peuvent cacher. Théramène

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15

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Et dans quels lieux, seigneur, l'allez-vous donc cherDéjà, pour satisfaire à votre juste crainte, [cher? J'ai couru les deux mers que sépare Corinthe; J'ai demandé Thésèe aux peuples de ces bords Où l'on voit l'Achéron se perdre chez les morts; J'ai visité l'Elide, et, laissant le Ténare, Passé jusqu'à la mer qui vit tomber Icare. Sur quel espoir nouveau, dans quels heureux climats Croyez-vous découvrir la trace de ses pas? Qui sait même, qui sait si le roi votre père Veut que de son absence on sache le mystère? Et si, lorsque avec vous nous tremblons pour ses jours, Tranquille, et nous cachant de nouvelles amours, Ce héros n'attend point qu'une amante abusée . . .

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Hippolyte: (Continued) (Turns head front; crosses down center one step.) 5

For more than six long months I've missed my father's face, I do not know his fate, I do not know the place (Crosses down right three steps.) That could be capable of keeping such a man. Théramène:

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In what new place, my lord, will you try what new plan? (Hippolyte turns to face him; moves center one step.) So far, to satisfy your great uncertainty, I've sailed the seas each side of Corinth endlessly; / I've asked about Theseus of those who, it is said, / Saw Acheron descend forever to the dead; I've visited Elis, and Tenaros, and I Sailed by where Icarus fell screaming from the sky. / / And now with what new hope, in what new place will you Listen for his footsteps or look for what new clue? Now who knows truly if Theseus your father be Hidden somewhere that must remain a mystery? (Hippolyte recoils; faces left.) Perhaps we fear for what we both know nothing of, (Hippolyte crosses up right to column #2.) Perhaps this hero has discovered some new love, Some beautiful young girl he's dying to abuse. . . (Hippolyte cuts him off.) No actor moves at the same time as another actor, therefore, no actor generally moves as another speaks. All gestures and movements are weighted and significant; therefore, there is an economy of both. Hippolyte desires to leave to search for his father, but in reality he wishes to escape, to run away from himself. He is in love (with Aricie), caught up in a love that deeply troubles him As for the rhyming couplet: Use it; do not deny it; don't be enslaved by it.

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Hippolyte

25

Cher Théramène, arrête, et respecte Thésée. De ses jeunes erreurs désormais revenu, Par un indigne obstacle il n'est point retenu; Et, fixant de ses voeux l'inconstance fatale, Phèdre depuis longtemps ne craint plus de rivale. Enfin, en le cherchant, je suivrai mon devoir, Et je fuirai ces lieux, que je n'ose plus voir. Théramène

30

Hé! depuis, quand, seigneur, craignez-vous la préDe ces paisibles lieux si chers à votre enfance, [sence Et dont je vous ai vu préférer le séjour Au tumulte pompeux d'Athène et de la cour? Quel péril, ou plutôt quel chagrin vous en chasse?

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Hippolyte: (Turning down stage.)

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Stop now, dear Théramène, you've no right to accuse. (Crossing in one step.) He's given up that vice, he's long ago outgrown Such bubblings of the blood, he's happier alone; For Phèdre / has made him shed his old inconstancy, So she no longer fears an unknown rivalry. (Crossing down right center three steps, slowly, guiltily.) No,/ no, I only go because I know I must, And also to escape this place/ which I distrust. Théramène: (Puzzled.)

30

Ah, when did you, my lord, begin to hate and fear (Crossing down level with Hippolyte.) This pleasant peaceful place? for you grew up right here, And surely you preferred this quiet rest and sport To all the pomp and noise of Athens and the court. What danger made you change,/ what dread drives you away? In Line 29, Théramène seems not to get the veiled meaning of Hippolyte's Line 28. The gaze of the actors is at all times high, but never much above the plane of eye level The thrust of the actors is "out front," playing out and down on the apron. Sage simplicity characterizes Théramène. Although aged, he is firm in body, with sonorous voice, with sparkling eyes bespeaking his vitality. He is an older counterpart to Hippolyte, for with Hippolyte he has savored the hunt: 'The woods resound to our cries.'

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Hippolyte 35

Cet heureux temps n'est plus. Tout a changé de face, Depuis que sur ces bords les dieux ont envoyé La fille de Minos et de Pasiphaé. Théramène

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45

J'entends: de vos douleurs la cause m'est connue. Phèdre ici vous chagrine, et blesse votre vue. Dangereuse marâtre, à peine elle vous vit, Que votre exil d'abord signala son crédit. Mais sa haine, sur vous autrefois attachée, Ou s'est évanouie, ou s'est bien relâchée. Et d'ailleurs quels périls vous peut faire courir Une femme mourante, et qui cherche à mourir? Phèdre, atteinte d'un mal qu'elle s'obstine à taire, Lasse enfin d'elle-même et du jour qui l'éclaire, Peut-elle contre vous former quelques desseins?

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Hippolyte: (Turns left.)

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(To Théramène.)

It's not the same,/ I face a different place today, (Crossing, looking down left.) Since this Phèdre, the daughter of Minos and his wife (Front.) Pasiphaé, came here./ She has upset my life. Théramène:

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45

I guess at your distress, and I know what is true, (Turning right, crossing up-left, two steps.) For Phèdre weighs on your mind, and she depresses you. (Turning left to Hippolyte.) The first time she met you, she hardly let you smile Before she ordered your immediate exile. And yet her raging hate, which had you in its hold, Has either disappeared, or grown much more controlled./ / (Hippolyte crosses down-right, one step.) Besides, what can she do, or bring down on your head, This dying woman who desires to be dead? This Phèdre, who wastes away from what she will not say, Grown weary of herself and of the light of day, (Crossing in a step.) Can she do anything against you any more? Lines 35 and 36 are not to be delivered with force Hippolyte's real thoughts are on Aricie. Lines 38 to 40 are delivered by Théramène without pause Lines 43 to 45, Hippolyte does not understand why Phèdre wishes to die. The actors play preponderantly front and out; Deiber designated specifically the placement of the gaze of the actors at the different vertical levels of the auditorium of the theatre. For baroque style, presentational acting, inter- character relating is never at the expense or loss of relatedness to the audience out front.

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Hippolyte

50

Sa vaine inimitié n'est pas ce que je crains. Hippolyte en partant fuit une autre ennemie; Je fuis, je l'avouerai, cette jeune Aricie, Reste d'un sang fatal conjuré contre nous. Théramène

55

Quoi! vous-même, seigneur, la persécutez-vous? Jamais l'aimable soeur des cruels Pallantides Trempa-t-elle aux complots de ses frères perfides? Et devez-vous hair ses innocents appas? Hippolyte Si je la haëssais, je ne la fuirais pas.

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Hippolyte:

50

I do not fear her hate the way I did before. (Turn front.) (Théramène crosses down on level with Hippolyte.) No, Hippolyte must flee another enemy:x And that is why I fly from this young Aricie, Last blood of that bad line which worked against us so. Théramène: (Crosses down a step.)

55

What? even you, my lord, you think she is your foe? She is related to the Pallantides, it's true, (Not in anger.) But should she share the blame of that malicious crew? And should you hate her face, which lights the brightest day? Hippolyte: (Crosses down right two steps slowly.) If I could hate her face,/x I would not go away. Hippolyte's Line 51 is a 'falling' line. . Line 56 Evidence that Hippolyte, as is true for each principal character, is conflicted. One part of Hippolyte is vying with a different Hippolyte.

The Pallantides were the fifty sons of Pallas, brother to Egeus. They disputed with their cousin Theseus the throne of Athens. They set upon Theseus, who defeated them, having killed them.

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Théramène

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Seigneur, m'est-il permis d'expliquer votre fuite? Pourriez-vous n'être plus ce superbe Hippolyte Implacable ennemi des amoureuses lois, Et d'un joug que Thésée a subi tant de fois? Vénus, par votre orgueil si longtemps méprisèe, Voudrait-elle à la fin justifier Thésée, Et, vous mettant au rang du reste des mortels, Vous a-t-elle forcé d'encenser ses autels? Aimeriez-vous, seigneur? Hippolyte Ami, qu'oses-tu dire?

70

Toi, qui connais mon cur depuis que je respire, Des sentiments d'un cur si fier, si dédaigneux, Peux-tu me demander le désaveu honteux? C'est peu qu'avec son lait une mère amazone M'ait fait sucer encor cet orgueil qui t'étonne; Dans un âge plus mûr moi-même parvenu, Je me suis applaudi quand je me suis connu.

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Théramène:

60

65

My lord, let me say this before you go too far You are no longer proud of being what you are: (Turns right, crosses up center two steps.) Hippolyte, the sworn foe of love itself and all The slavish laws of love that made your father fall. (Hippolyte slowly turns front.) Yet though you may remain cool and aloof in pride, Venus may still win out, and take your father's side (Crosses center two steps.) And,x placing you among those men who sigh and pine, She may force you to kneel before her sacred shrine. (Slowly.) / /My lord:/are you in love? Hippolyte: (Turns right abruptly, crosses up right center.)

70

How can you use that word? (Turns to Théramène) You, who have known my heart since first my spirit stirred A heart that only knows such distance and disdain, A heart that hardly can return to earth again./ / (Crosses center one step.) Son of an Amazon, I drank her milk and drew That strong and stubborn pride which seems to baffle you; Considering myself, the way a young man does, I gave myself great praise when I knew who I was. On Lines 57-58, Théramène cautions Hippolyte to have a care: moderation. He delivers a kind of reproach. Lines 69 to 72, Hippolyte is subjective. The character Hippolyte was born of the Amazon Queen Antiope. (Euripides depicted him as immoderately chaste, a devotee of Artemis [Diana], Goddess of the Hunt, scornful of the Goddess of Love, Venus [Aphrodite].) For the youthful Hippolyte, the actor needs to be not alone accomplished and handsome, but muscular

MARRIAGES OF THESEUS

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Hippolyte (Cont.)

75

80

Attaché près de moi par un zèle sincère, Tu me contais alors l'histoire de mon père. Tu sais combien mon âme, attentive à ta voix, S'échauffait aux récits de ses nobles exploits, Quand tu me dépeignais ce héros intrépide Consolant les mortels de l'absence d'Alcide, Les monstres étouffés, et les brigands punis, Procuste, Cercyon, et Scirron, et Sinis, Et les os dispersés du géant d'Epidaure, Et la Crète fumant du sang du Minotaure,

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Hippolyte: (Continued)

75

80

You who were close to me, who saw to all my needs, (Crosses one step down to Théramène.) You made me learn by heart my famous father's deeds. You told me of his life, and once you had begun, I was on fire to hear whatever he had done: (Building in intensity and pace.) So you described the way this hero had consoled Mankind for its great loss of Hercules, and told Me how he slew Sinnis, told how he killed Scirron, And destroyed Procrustes, and slaughtered Cercyon, Took Epidaurus' bones and spilled them in the mud, Then covered over Crete with Minotaur's life blood,/x (Crossing in one step.) Sinnis was a pirate near Corinth; he would attach the limbs of his prisoners to branches of two trees, which he had pulled to the ground; his letting go of the trees dismembered the victims; Theseus did the same to him. Scirron waylaid travelers, throwing them in the sea; Theseus dashed him on the rocks by the sea Procrustes, a brigand of Attica, stretched wayfarers on an iron bed, cutting their limbs if they were too long or stretching them with rope if they were too short. Theseus subjected Procrustes and Cercyon, the wrestler, to their same fatal treatment. Theseus killed Periphetes, the giant of the town of Epidaurus. Theseus is best remembered for his slaying of the Minotaur in Crete, putting an end to the annual tribute required of Athens to send seven youths and seven maidens for the Minotaur to devour.

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Hippolyte (Cont.)

85

90

Mais quand tu récitais des faits moins glorieux, Sa foi partout offerte, et reçue en cent lieux; Hélène à ses parents, dans Sparte dérobée; Salamine témoin des pleurs de Péribée; Tant d'autres, dont les noms lui sont même échappés, Trop crédules esprits que sa flamme a trompés! Ariane aux rochers contant ses injustices; Phèdre enlevée enfin sous de meilleurs auspices; Tu sais comme, à regret écoutant ce discours, Je te pressais souvent d'en abréger le cours. Heureux si j'avais pu ravir à la mémoire Cette indigne moitié d'une si belle histoire!

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Hippolyte: (Continued)

85

90

But when you told of deeds that sounded more like crimes, (Speaking with shame.) How Theseus used to break his word a hundred times Helen is raped away from Sparta by his lies: Poor Salamis must sit as Periboëa cries And there were many more whose names escape me now, Who loved him, and believed that he would keep his vow: (Turns front.) Ariadne, / / weeping in silence by the sea, (Pause.) Phèdre, too, / whom he seduced, although more happily; (Crossing in to Théramène a step.) xAh, you remember how I begged you to be brief, Such stories made me grave, they stayed and gave me grief;/ If it were in my will to wrench them from my brain So only the brave deeds and glories would remain:/x (Crossing down right two steps.) Before Helen had been abducted by Paris, causing the Trojan War, she had been kidnapped by Theseus. Periboëa was one of many seduced and abandoned by Theseus. She married Telemos, King of Salamis and became mother of Ajax. Ariadne, sister to Phèdre, was in love with Theseus; she provided the thread and enabled Theseus to find his way out of the labyrinth He fled with her and Phèdre as far as Naxos and then, preferring Phèdre, abandoned Ariadne there. The Paris theatre of Racine's day was not large by comparison with today's stage. It extended well forward to the long, narrow auditorium which contained few seats. Most spectators stood during the performance. The few seats that were near the stage were for the nobility. There were two narrow galleries along the walls. The ceiling of the auditorium was low. Candles, in frequent need of snuffing, were placed in the footlights to illuminate the downstage area. Thus, actors to establish contact with the audience, played as much as possible on the forestage. Above the stage was a great four-branched chandelier with huge tallow or waxed candles which gave a steady light and brightened the upper stage. Performances began at two o'clock in the afternoon.

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Hippolyte (Cont.) 95

100

105

110

Et moi-même, à mon tour, je me verrais lidé! Et les dieux jusque-là m'auraient humilié! Dans roes lâches soupirs d'autant plus méprisable, Qu'un long areas d'honneurs rend Thésée excusable, Qu'aucuns monstres par moi domptés jusqu'aujourNe m'ont acquis le droit de faillir comme lui! [d'hui Quand même ma fierté pourrait s'être adoucie, Aurais-je pour vainqueur dû choisir Aricie? Ne souviendrait-il plus à mes sens égarés De l'obstacle éternel qui nous a séparés? Mon père la réprouve, et, par des lois sévères, Il défend de donner des neveux à ses frères: D'une tige coupable il craint un rejeton; Ilveut avec leur sur ensevelir leur nom; Et que, jusqu'au tombeau soumise à sa tutelle, Jamais les feux d'hymen ne s'allument pour elle. Dois-je épouser ses droits contre un père irritè? Donnerai-je l'exemple à la témérité? Et dans un fol amour ma jeunesse embarquée . . .

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Hippolyte: (Continued) 95

100

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110

Could I be so enslaved and waste my life away? Could some god make me cheat, dissemble and betray? Loose and lascivious, I would have twice the shame Of Theseus I have none of his great claim to fame, No name, and no strange beasts defeated, and no right (Looking out down right.) xTo fail as he has failed, or fall from his steep height. (Crossing down right a step.) xAnd yet suppose my pride should mellow and grow mild, Why should it all be for this Aricie, this child? (Looking front.) Surely I sense, deep in the darkness of my heart, There is a law that says we two must stay apart? (Crosses down stage one step.) My father disapproves, and by a stern decree, Forbids that she enlarge her brother's family: He fears some bright new life from that guilt-ridden line, Therefore each leaf must wilt, and so die on the vine. This sister must stay chaste forever to the tomb, And bury their bad name in her own barren womb. (Turning up left to Théramène.) Should I stand by her side against my father's laws? Show off my arrogance by taking up her cause? (Crossing two steps to Théramène.) xShould I let love set sail the madness of my youth . . . / Lines 98 to 100, Hippolyte finds excuses for his father. At the close of his speech he disciplines himself as to what his conduct should be. For the actor to enrich his characterization, he must constantly simplify. Less is more: for three gestures, he uses one. For three changes in volume, he uses one. The simpler the acting, the more it has weight and strength

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Théramène 115

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Ah! seigneur! si votre heure est une fois marquée, Le ciel de nos raisons ne sait point s'informer. Thésée ouvre vos yeux en voulant les fermer; Et sa haine, irritant une flamme rebelle, Prête à son ennemie une grâce nouvelle. Enfin d'un chaste amour pourquoi vous effrayer? S'il a quelque douceur, n'osez-vous l'essayer? En croirez-vous toujours un farouche scrupule? Craint-on de s'égarer sur les traces d'Hercule? Quels courages Vénus n'a-t-elle pas domptés? Vous-même, où seriez-vous, vous qui la combattez, Si toujours Antiope à ses lois opposée D'une pudique ardeur n'eût brûlé pour Thésée? Mais que sert d'affecter un superbe discours? Avouez-le, tout change; et, depuis quelques jours, On vous voit moins souvent, orgueilleux et sauvage, Tantôt faire voler un char sur le rivage, Tantôt, savant dans l'art par Neptune inventé, Rendre docile au frein un coursier indompté;

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Théramène: (Cutting in.)

115

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130

My lord, once fate takes place' and makes men face the truth, Not even gods can find what goes on in the mind. Theseus had made you see, who tried to keep you blind; His hate has fanned a love, has nurtured a fine fire, Has lent this enemy a grace which you admire. Why are you so afraid of being so in love? (Hippolyte turns, looking down left.) Perhaps there are strange joys which you know nothing of: Or will cruel scruples rule your conscientious days? (Hippolyte crosses down right one step, slowly.) Must you scorn Hercules for his few playful ways? What brave courageous soul has Venus never won? (Théramène crosses two steps toward Hippolyte.) And you, where would you be if you were not the son Of Antiope, whose breast encouraged a shy fire For Theseus your father, the thirst of her desire?x (Hippolyte crosses one step.) What does it matter now, this high pride when you speak? Things have already changed, and over this past week You were not wild, not free, not as you were before, Now racing chariots with loud shouts by the shore, And now perfecting skills with Neptune as your guide, Taking an untamed horse and breaking it to ride. Line 119 is almost an attack on Hippolyte Line 125 and 126 is an effort by Théramène to console Hippolyte Gratuitous movement distracts an audience from hearing the verse, savoring the verse, grasping the twistings and turnings (convolutions) of the characters' feelings being explored and being given exposition by the actors. These are 'Stand up and talk plays.'

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Théramène (Cont.)

135

Les forêts de nos cris moins souvent retentissent; Chargés d'un feu secret, vos yeux s'appesantissent; Il n'en faut point douter: vous aimez, vous brûlez; Vous périssez d'un mal que vous dissimulez. La charmante Aricie a-t-elle su vous plaire? Hippolyte Théramène, je pars, et vais chercher mon père. Théramène

140

Ne verrez-vous point Phèdre avant que de partïr, Seigneur? Hippolyte C'est mon dessein: tu peux l'en avertir. Voyons-la, puisque ainsi mon devoir me l'ordonne. Mais quel nouveau malheur trouble sa chère none?

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Théramène: (continued)

135

The woods do not return the echo of your cries; Weary with some great weight, you die before my eyes. Now there can be no doubt: you are in love, you burn, You hide a fatal pain which no man can discern./ Is it Aricie has made your spirit bow? Hippolyte: (Turning left as if to cut in.) (Crossing down stage of Théramène to left center.) I go, dear Théramène,x to find my father now. Théramène: (Crossing up right center.)

140

But will you not tell Phèdre why you refuse to stay, My lord? Hippolyte: (Decisively.) You can explain, once I have gone away. (Turning right to Théramène.) xI know I should see her; I shall, before I go.x (Crosses up left one step.) xBut now, why does Oenone seem to be troubled so? (Théramène crosses up right one step.) At the end of line 134, Hippolyte drops his eyes? Racine is music Racine's PHÈDRE, as a metaphor, is the symphony: in the first act Hippolyte introduces the musical preparation. (Oenone is in place by end of Hippolyte's speech.)

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Scène II: Hippolyte, Théramène, none. none

145

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Hélas! seigneur, quel trouble au mien peut être égal? La reine touche presque à son terme fatal. En vain à l'observer jour et nuit je m'attache; Elle meurt dans mes bras d'un mal qu'elle me cache. Un désordre éternel règne dans son esprit; Son chagrin inquiet l'arrache de son lit: Elle veut voir le jour; et sa douleur profonde M'ordonne toutefois d'écarter tout le monde . . . Elle vient. Hippolyte Il suffit: je la laisse en ces lieux, Et ne lui montre point un visage odieux.

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Scene Two: Hippolyte, Oenone, Thèraméne (Slow entrance.) Oenone: (Crossing down ramp to number 4 column)

145

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xAlas my lord alas, whose troubles are like mine? The Queen almost begins to end her thin life line. (Hippolyte and Théramène look at each other) Vainly each night and day I stay close by her side: She dies of some great pain which she still tries to hide. Some fatal disarray goes raging through her head, It keeps her wide awake and takes her from her bed. This illness makes her long to see the light of day, (Crossing up ramp to upstage center, her right foot on platform.) Yet she insists that I turn everyone away . . . (Turning to Hippolyte.) She comes. (Turning to wait for Phèdre.) Hippolyte: (Crossing up center two steps to Oenone.) x Enough, I go: I would not want to wait (Turning left to Théramène.) And let her see a face which she has grown to hate. (Hippolyte exits left center, looking off left center.) (Théramène follows, watching Phèdre.) On Oenone's Lines 143-145, Théramène looks at Hippolyte as if to say: ''What shall we do?'' Hippolyte decides to speak to Oenone. Hippolyte delivers line 151 with very great dignity.

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Scène III: Phèdre, one. Phèdre

155

N'allons point plus avant, demeurons, chèe none. Je ne me soutiens plus; ma force m'abandonne: Mes yeux sont éblouis du jour que je revoi; Et mes genoux tremblants se dérobent sous moi. Hélas! Elle s'assied. none Dieux tout-puissants, que nos pleurs vous apaisent!

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Scene Three: Phèdre, Oenone, Panope (Phèdre enters upstage right on the ramp. Supported by Panope's right hand she reaches for Oenone with her left hand. Oenone helps her cross down stage center of the ramp, then continuing to move downstage three steps off the ramp.) Phèdre: (Weakly.)

155

(Falling back.) (Crossing down center two steps.) No more, Oenone, no more.x Let me stay here and wait./ (Crossing down right fast.) (Oenone signals to Panope.) xMy strength is so meager,x my weakness is so great. (Panope crosses left, bringing the chair down center to left center.) My eyes are dazzled / by the bright light of the day, / / (Oenone takes Phèdre right hand, crossing in back.) xMy knees / are trembling / as I feel myself / give way. /x (Phèdre sinks into the chair.) (Sighing.) Alas! (Phèdre's head sinks to left, as Oenone crosses in back of her, taking up a position to the left of the chair.) Oenone: (Facing downstage left, profile.) See how we weep, o Gods, and set us free! This is the first entrance of the title character of the tragedy At Phèdre's first entrance, if one did not know the story of Phèdre upon seeing her first entrance, the spectator should be able to say, "Aha, I know what is happening to her; she is dying of love.' Phèdre enters in profile, her body rigid, her eyes focused straight ahead Oenone supports her with her body, for Phèdre is experiencing a general weakness. Her legs seem to give way from weakness on 'trembling.' Phèdre's entrance is motivated by her wish to seek the sun, to feel it on her body, and for the sunlight to purify her before she dies

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PHÈDRE: All-these vain ornaments. These veils weigh down on me.

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Phèdre

160

Que ces vains ornements, que ces voiles me pèsent! Quelle importune main, en formant tous ces neuds, A pris soin sur mon front d'assembler mes cheveux? Tout m'afflige et me nuit, et conspire à me nuire.

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Phèdre: (Center.)

160

All these vain ornaments, these veils weight down on me! (Panope crosses to right of chair, somewhat downstage to take the vell) What meddling dreadful hands have tried to tie my hair In such fine tiny knots with such annoying care? All things on every side conspire to do me harm. The speech is illustrative of the compactness, singleness of purpose and simplicity of Racine's language words are used in their original and strict sense Imagery, is unusually telling because so restrained. Her tightly coiffed hair suggests unbearable mental anguish. Le corselet de fer (the iron corset of Alexandrines) of couplets and rhythms must be put on by the actor: he must wear it but create the illusion it does not exist nor trouble nor restrain him, the actor What the perfect actor is becomes clearer Actress Mildred Dunnock. as Oenone, had this to say. "The French point of view about language is not an American point of view. We haven't the heritage that the French have We don't have an extraordinary feeling for language that must come after many, years, the importance of language The role of Oenone has been difficult for me, as an American actress. The American actor works primarily in terms of the interior of the character first. and then ultimately, if at all, arrives at some sort of style. In France the company of actors sits for six weeks around a table and works on a classical text and then rises to be given positions and movement This is quite different from the way the American actor rehearses So it has been very, difficult American actors think that we must make the role organically or inwardly ours Then come the words and last of all comes the style So it's been difficult"

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165

Comme on voit tous ses vux l'un l'autre se détruire! Vous-même, condamnant vos injustes desseins, Tantôt à vous parer vous excitiez nos mains; Vous-même, rappelant votre force première, Vous vouliez vous montrer et revoir la lumière. Vous la voyez, madame; et, prête à vous cacher, Vous haissez le jour que vous veniez chercher! Phèdre

170

Noble et brillant auteur d'une triste famille, Toi, dont ma mère osait se vanter d'être fille. Qui peut-être rougis du trouble où tu me vois, Soleil, je te viens voir pour la dernière fois!

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Oenone: (To Phèdre as Phèdre looks at Panope.)

165

The way you say these things, you cause me great alarm!x (Raises right hand to Panope to exit.) (Panope crosses up center, exiting up left.) When you yourself saw that you were not at your best, You made me use my hands to get you so well dressed; And you yourself, because you felt a bit more bright, (Oenone looks up at sun.) Wanted to show yourself and feel the full daylight. (Oenone crosses to Phèdre up left of chair.) xSo here you are, Madame; yet now you try to hide, (Phèdre starts to rise with difficulty.) You say you hate the day, so you must go inside. Phèdre: (Phèdre stands.)

170

Creator of the day, and of my family, (Phèdre lifts her head slightly, looking front, but slightly down left.) My mother claimed she came from your fierce clarity; O now perhaps you burn with shame to see my pain: / / Sun, / I shall never gaze on your great face again! As Demi-goddess, Phèdre refers to her mother Pasiphäe, who was descended from Apollo the Sun God. The first premise is the music of the text. It is the text that is being presented to the public. In acting PHÈDRE, the actors are involved in presentational theatre, not representational or realistic theatre.

From the genealogy of both mother and father to Phèdre, it is possible to see that she is a demi-goddess.

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175

Quoi! vous ne perdrez point cette cruelle envie? Vous verrai-je toujours, renonçant à la vie, Faire de votre mort les funestes apprêts? Phèdre Dieux! que ne suis-je assise à l'ombre des forêts! Quand pourrai-je, au travers d'une noble poussière, Suivre de l'il un char fuyant dans la carrière? none Quoi! madame? Phèdre

180

Insensée! où suis-je? et qu'ai-je dit? Où laissé-je égarer mes vux et mon esprit? Je l'ai perdu: les dieux m'en ont ravi l'usage. none, la rougeur me couvre le visage: Je te laisse trop voir roes honteuses douleurs; Et mes yeux, malgré moi, se remplissent de pleurs.


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Oenone:

175

You choose cruel suicide, is that your last desire? How often must I hear you curse life's famous fire, (Phèdre turns front and crosses down a step.) xStand here as you rehearse the farewells to be made? Phèdre: Why shouldn't I be there, there in the forest shade? Why shouldn't I look out and follow with my eye A cloud of dust,x and see a chariot race by? (Stepping back.) Oenone; (Crossing in a step.) What, Madame? Phèdre:

180

Where am I? and what did I just say? (Sinks into chair.) Have I gone mad, and have my wits begun to stray? / (Oenone puts her right arm around Phèdre.) O I have lost my mind, the great gods are to blame. Oenone,x see how my face must blush with such great shame: (Leaning on Oenone.) I let you see too much, / my sorrow was too plain; (Her head falls to the right.) My eyes, in spite of me, are filled with tears again. Oenone dominates this scene (Lines 173 to 175), but at the same time reins in her feelings. Line 175 of Oenone's speech is lost to Phèdre. Her gaze is lost in the distance. Moving slightly away from Oenone, she faces front. Her delivery, full of reverie and fantasy (unconsciously she is conjuring up the athlete Hippolyte) is rapturous; it is also like that of a sleep-walker. Oenone dominates this scene (Lines 173 to 175), but at the same time reins in her feelings. On Lines 176 to 178 Phèdre's mood is quite different here Oenone's response (Line 179) is very strong. On the same Line Phèdre's delivery must not go too fast. Lines 182 to 184, Phèdre speaks as she once did as a child to her nurse Oenone. Phèdre is pure The actress must not lose time on this

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none 185

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Ah! s'il vous faut rougir, rougissez d'un silence Qui de vos maux encore aigrit la violence. Rebelle à tous nos soins, sourde à tous nos discours, Voulez-vous, sans pitiè, laisser finir vos jours? Quelle fureur les borne au milieu de leur course? Quel charme ou quel poison en a taxi la source? Les ombres par trois fois ont obscurci les cieux Depuis que le sommeil n'est entré dans vos yeux; Et le jour a trois fois chassé la nuit obscure Depuis que votre corps languit sans nourriture. A quel affreux dessein vous laissez-vous tenter? De quel droit sur vous-même osez-vous attenter? Vous offensez les dieux auteurs de votre vie; Vous trahissez l'époux à qui la foi vous lie; Vous trahissez enfin vos enfants malheureux, Que vous précipitez sous un joug rigoureux. Songez qu'un même jour leur ravira leur mère Et rendra l'espérance au fils de l'étrangère, A ce fier ennemi de vous, de votre sang, Ce fils qu'une Amazone a porté dans son flanc, Cet Hippolyte . . .

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Oenone: (Right arm on chair.) 185

190

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205

Alas, if you must cry, then cry for keeping still, Which only aggravates this illness of your will. So deaf to what we've said, as if you had not heard, Will you be pitiless and die without a word? (Recoils, taking her hand away.) What fury must obscure the brilliance of the sun? What poison has dried up your life before it's done? / / (Crossing up right center, she looks right) xThe darkness of three nights has crept across the skies Since you have slept, and sleep has rested your sore eyes; / / (To herself.) The blazing of three days has chased those nights along / Since you took food, and ate to make your body strong. / (Oenone turns left to Phèdre.) xHave you dreamed up some scheme, some plot to stop your breath? What pride gave you the right to bring about your death? // (Crossing down right center two steps.) O you dismay the gods who gave you your own life, And you betray the man who took you as his wife; And finally, you cheat your children by this deed, They will be left to lead a life of endless need. / / (Turning left to Phèdre.) Suppose on that same day they find their mother dead, / Their whole inheritance goes somewhere else instead, (On two and one half lines crossing slowly to Phèdre.) xTo someone else's son, some enemy of yours, / Son of that Amazon from far-off distant shores, / This Hippolyte . . . With Lines 185 to 190 Oenone continues to try to understand Phèdre Lines 191 to 195 are delivered by the actress more directly to the character Phèdre. It is a catalog of events Lines 196 to 204, the actress needs to deliver each line one after the other.

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Phèdre Ah dieux! none Ce reproche vous touche? Phèdre Malheureuse! quel nom est sorti de ta bouche! none

210

Hé bien! votre colère eclate avec raison: J'aime à vous voir frémir à ce funeste nom. Vivez donc: que l'amour, le devoir vous excite; Vivez, ne souffrez pas que le fils d'une Scythe, Accablant vos enfants d'un empire odieux, [dieux. Commande au plus beau sang de la Grèce et des

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Phèdre: (Cutting in.) O god! Oenone: (Cutting in.) That moves you a good deal. Phèdre: (Turning her head away.) Wretched worthless woman, whose name did you reveal? Oenone: (Encouraged.)

210

Now your great hate is not so hard for me to gauge; It is that fatal name that makes you shake with rage. / (Crossing up right of chair to Phèdre) Live, lady, live, let love and duty rule in you. (Bending over Phèdre.) Live, do not leave it to your children to undo This Scythian's one son; / you must keep his caprice From bleeding the best blood that can be found in Greece. (Phèdre turns her head, looking up.) Line 206 is to be delivered very forcefully. On Oenone's Lines 207 and 208, she still thinks Phèdre's reaction is due to hate for Hippolyte. With Lines 209, 210, Oenone orders Phèdre. She reverts to her role as Phèdre's surrogate mother, her nurse. Lines 209 and 210 show Oenone's great love for Phèdre If the actress playing Oenone speaks too loudly throughout this scene, 'Phèdre will die.' Avoid the error of striving to express feelings, strong and big feelings, through prolongation (hanging on to) the vowels. It disrupts the rhythm. The actor must learn to express the feeling without distortion of the word, and on the word. As a corrective, focus the attention to moving quickly from the vowel to the consonant. Carriage and posture, leading to physical action in rhythm with the verbal music of the text makes of the physical action a ballet. Articulation must be optimum at all times; breathing must be plotted, calculated, exact.

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none (Cont.)

215

Mais ne différez point; chaque moment vous tue: Réparez promptement votre force abattue, Tandis que de vos jours, prêts à se consumer, Le flambeau dure encore, et peut se rallumer. Phèdre J'en ai trop prolongé la coupable durée. none

220

Quoi! de quelques remords êtes-vous déchirée? Quel crime a pu produire un trouble si pressant? Vos mains n'ont point trempé dans le sang innocent. Phèdre Grâces au ciel, mes mains ne sont point criminelles. Plût aux dieux que mon cur fût innocent comme [elles!

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Oenone: (Continued)

215

Only do not delay, you may die if you wait, Quickly, get back your strength before it's too late, Now, while you still have time, the flame of all your days May be brought back again to a substantial blaze. Phèdre: (Facing full front, speaking softly.) / / / This has gone on too long, this guile, this guilty heart. Oenone: (Low voice, whispered.) (Stepping back.)

220

What? / / tell me what remorse is tearing you apart? What crime obsesses you, that no one understands? / Is there some guilty blood remaining on your hands? Phèdre: (Lowering her gaze.) Thank god these hands are clean, they've nothing to repent. (Looking down left; speaking softly.) I only wish my heart were just as innocent. Line 217 is delivered coldly by Phèdre. Line 220, Oenone's fear returns and the line is delivered softly. Line 221 is given directly to Oenone, but Line 222 is spoken by Phèdre much to herself.

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none Et quel affreux projet avez-vous enfanté Dont votre cur encor doive être épouvanté? Phèdre 225

Je t'en ai dit assez: épargne-moi le reste. Je meurs, pour ne point faire un aveu si funeste. none

230

235

Mourez donc, et gardez un silence inhumain; Mais pour fermer vos yeux cherchez une autre main. Quoiqu'il vous reste à peine une faible lumière, Mon âme chez les morts descendra la première; Mille chemins ouverts y conduisent toujours, Et ma juste douleur choisira les plus courts. Cruelle! quand ma foi vous a-t-elle déçue? Songez-vous qu'en naissant mes bras vous ont reçue? Mon pays, mes enfants, pour vous j'ai tout quitté. Réserviez-vous ce prix à ma fidélité?

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Oenone: (Crossing up left.) Then what appalling thing is still to happen here And why does your poor heart still tremble in its fear? Phèdre: 225

No, no I've told enough. The rest is best unsaid. I die in silence, so my secret shall be / dead. Oenone: (Crossing down one step.)

230

235

xDie then, and try to take your secret to the skies; (Crosing up to left center column #5.) Just to find some other hands to close your sightless eyes. / / (Turning left to Phèdre.) Because although your life has almost run its course, My soul shall be the first to seek its holy source. (Crossing downstage on a level with Phèdre.) So many hopeless roads go headlong to the dead, And my own sorrow now shall choose the best deathbed. / / (Turn right to Phèdre.) Was I untrue to you about some vow I'd sworn? (Crossing in a step.) Remember that these arms held you when you were born. I gave up everything, / my home, / my family / / Is this the way you pay me for my loyalty? On Lines 229 to 230 Oenone speaks more intensely. On the following line she almost sings of her own death.

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Phèdre Quel fruit espères-tu de tant de violence? Tu frémiras d'horreur si je romps le silence. none 240

Et que me direz-vous qui ne cède, grands dieux, A l'horreur de vous voir expirer à mes yeux? Phèdre Quand tu sauras mon crime et le sort qui m'accable, Je n'en mourrai pas moins: j'en mourrai plus coupable. none

245

Madame, au nom des pleurs que j'ai pour vous versés, Par vos faibles genoux que je tiens embrassés, Délivrez mon esprit de ce funeste doute. Phèdre Tu le veux: lève-toi.


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Phèdre: (Looking at Oenone.) What can you hope to gain by using so much force? / / (Turning, looking front.) If I spoke now, you would be frozen with remorse. Oenone: (Crossing, turning to Phèdre, with hands together.) 240

What evil could exceed what I already see? / That you should try to die / right here in front of me. Phèdre: If you knew my great guilt, what fate makes me ashamed, (Turning head, looking down right.) I would still have to die, but I would die more blamed. Oenone:

245

Madame, by all these tears that I've already shed, (Crossing down right of chair, kneeling to right of Phèdre) xBy these knees I embrace, release me from this dread, (Embracing Phèdre's knees, resting her head on them.) Tell me what deadly doubts have siezed you with such fear. Phèdre: (Placing her right hand on Oenone's head.) It is your wish, / / Get up. / / (Oenone raises her head; Phèdre looks at her.) On Line 237 Phèdre is very much the Queen. Line 246. Oenone's eyes say, ''Yes.' On Line 237 Phèdre is very much the Queen. Don't breathe at the end of a phrase; breathe into the phrase that follows. Do not move after a phrase or between a phrase; move into the phrase ahead (physical action). Avoid loudness, shouting, cries. Such add syllables to the twelve syllables of the Alexandrine line. No gasping or clutching, for such exceeds the economy and taut restraint of classicism When there is overt expression of big feelings, its ''drame." in excess: it is "melodrame."

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none Parlez: je vous écoute. Phèdre Ciel! que lui vais-je dire? et par où commencer? none Par de vaines frayeurs cessez de m'offenser. Phèdre 250

O haine de Vénus! ô fatale colère! Dans quels égarements l'amour jeta ma mère! none Oublions-les, madame; et qu'à tout l'avenir Un silence éternel cache ce souvenir. Phèdre Ariane, ma sur, de quel amour blessée Vous mourûtes aux bords où vous fûtes laissée!


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Oenone: (Rising, stepping back two steps.) / / All right. / / Speak, I can hear. Phèdre: (Facing front.) God! what am I to say, or where can I begin? Oenone: I do not want to hear your fears that are within. Phèdre: (To herself and to the gods.)

250

O Venus! Violence! O fatal rage and hate! (Moan.) My mother's love cast her in a distracted state! Oenone: Forget such things, Madame, let all such memory Keep in the secret peace of the enternities. Phèdre: Ariadne, sister, O I remember you Were left by those cold stones to die in silence too! On Line 249 Phèdre is struggling with her conflicting emotions Line 250. Almost smiling, like a young girl, Phèdre alludes to the unnatural love her mother had for a bull. Ariadne, who had aided Thesues, was abandoned on the Island of Naxos. Lines 253 and 254, Phèdre is almost nauseated by her recall of the event. Racine is the supreme example of neoclassic tragedy. PHÈDRE is a pure seventeenth century style. What French Classicism is may be characterized as: (1) Moving "statues"; (2) demigods; (3) intense feeling but internalized.

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none 255

Que faites-vous, madame? et quel mortel ennui Contre tout votre sang vous anime aujourd'hui? Phèdre Puisque Vénus le veut, de ce sang déplorable Je péris la dernière et la plus misérable. none Aimez-vous? Phèdre De l'amour j'ai toutes les fureurs. none

260

Pour qui? Phèdre Tu vas ouïr le comble des horreurs . . . J'aime . . . A ce nom fatal, je tremble, je frisonne. J'aime . . . none Qui?


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Oenone: 255

Madame, why must you choose such hateful things to say About the blood that moves within your veins today? Phèdre: (Lifting her gaze.) Since it pleases Venus, this blood which is so base / / Shall see the last of me and my unhappy race. (Phèdre drops her gaze.) Oenone: (In awe.) Are you in love.? Phèdre: (Swaying forward slightly.) I feel that madness in my heart. Oenone: (Slowly.)

260

Who / is / it? Phèdre: Who it is, is the most shocking part. / / / I love / / / (his fatal name makes me become undone) (Phèdre takes a deep breath.) I love . . . / / / Oenone: / / / Who? Phèdre delivers the line 257 fiercely and with fatality With Oenone's line 'Are you in love?' the climatic question is raised Phèdre stops, as if frozen

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PHÈDRE: It's you who's said his name.

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Phèdre Tu connais ce Ills de l'Amazone, Ce prince si longtemps par moi-même opprimé . . . none Hippolyte! grands dieux! Phèdre C'est toi qui l'as nommé! none 265

Juste ciel! tout mon sang dans mes veines se glace! O désespoir! ô crime! ô déplorable race! Voyage infortuné! rivage malheureux, Fallait-il approcher de res bords dangereux! Phèdre

270

Mon mal vient de plus loin. A peine au fils d'Egée Sous les lois de l'hymen je m'étais engagée, Mon repos, mon bonheur semblait être affermi; Athènes me montra mon superbe ennemi:


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Phèdre: (Uttering the words, as if 'drop by drop.') / / / Do you know the Amazon's one son, That Prince / whom I myself oppressed with hate and shame? Oenone: (Covering her face with her hands.) Hippolyte?x O god, god! Phèdre: (With a curious smile, Phèdre cuts in, almost choking out the line) It's you who said the name. Oenone: (Crossing left, arriving up left of chair.) 265

O god, how all my blood runs cold and turns to ice. (Her face profile left.) O guilt! O great disgrace! O race of hidden vice! O joyless voyages, through such great storms and wars, (She lowers her head) What fortunes made us land on these tormented shores! Phèdre: (Her arms on the chair.)

270

My illness goes far back. / / For I had hardly wed The son of Aegeus, and lain down on his bed, And tasted the sweet peace of our long reverie (Slowly.) When Athens made me see my matchless enemy. The long, major tirade is paced, with the pulsations of the verse, orchestrated to achieve retards, then is moved on to an even high climax. In a long tirade. don't rush starting the long speech, take plenty of time, make the audience feel that what is coming is of greatest importance. Dominate the long speech (tirade) Do not be dominated by it.

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Phèdre (Cont.)

275

280

285

290

295

Je le vis, je rougis, je pâlis à sa vue; Un trouble s'éleva dans mon âme éperdue; Mes yeux ne voyaient plus, je ne pouvais parler; Je sentis tout mon corps et transir et brûler: Je reconnus Vénus et ses feux redoutables, D'un sang qu'elle poursuit tourments inévitables! Par des vux assidus je crus les détourner: Je lui bâtis un temple, et pris soin de l'orner; De victimes moi-même à toute heure entourée, Je cherchais dans leurs flancs ma raison égarée: D'un incurable amour remèdes impuissants! En vain sur les autels ma main brûlait l'encens: Quand ma bouche implorait le nom de la déesse, J'adorais Hippolyte; et, le voyant sans cesse, Même au pied des autels que je faisais fumer, J'offrais tout à ce dieu que je n'osais nommer. Je l'évitais partout. O comble de misère! Mes yeux le retrouvaient dans les traits de son père. Contre moi-même enfin j'osai me révolter: J'excitai mon courage à le persécuter. Pour bannir l'ennemi dont j'étais idolâtre, J'affectai les chagrins d'une injuste marâtre; Je pressai son exil; et mes cris éternels L'arrachèrent du sein et des bras paternels.


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Phèdre: (Continued)

275

280

285

290

295

(Softly.) I saw him, I was lost I turned red, I turned pale; Disturbances occurred; I felt my feelings fail; I could no longer see, I could no longer speak; (Faster.) My body boiled and froze, then everything grew weak. Great Venus can be seen in these few futile fires With which she plagues my race with passionate desires. / / (Faster.) With reverent strict vows I tried to turn aside: I built a shrine for her, and tended it with pride; My knife made sacrifice on beasts of every kind; I searched through their insides to find my own lost mind. This was weak treatment for my woeful hopeless love! In vain I burned incense and watched it curl above: When I prayed to the god, and said her sacred name, (Slowly.) I still loved Hippolyte; I saw him in the flame, And at the altar where my prayers rose to the sky, I worshipped someone I dared not identify. (Faster.) I fled him everywhere O sickness of despair; Seeing his father's face, I even found him there! At last I went to war against this lovely lord; (Fiercely.) I persecuted him whom I was so drawn toward. I banished this bad foe whom I admired so, Pretending some deep grief, insisting he should go, (More fiercely.) I pressed for his exile, and my persistent cries Removed him from his home and from his father's eyes. For a French audience, this is a very familiar speech. (As a set speech it is a challenge for the French actress. Not so for an audience whose language is English.) However, as demanded of the French actress, so too for the American actress, the speech must burst out spontaneously. It must move and take the audience along with it.

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Phèdre (Cont.)

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305

310

Je respirais, none; et, depuis son absence, Mes jours moins agités coulaient dans l'innocence: Soumise à mon époux, et cachant mes ennuis, De son fatal hymen je cultivais les fruits. Vaines précautions I Cruelle destinée! Par mon époux lui-même à Trézène amenée, J'ai revu l'ennemi que j'avais éloigné: Ma blessure trop vive aussitôt a saigné. Ce n'est plus une ardeur dans mes veines cachée: C'est Vénus tout entière à sa proie attachée. J'ai conçu pour mon crime une juste terreur: J'ai pris la vie en haine, et ma flamme en horreur; Je voulais en mourant prendre soin de ma gloire, Et dérober au jour une flamme si noire: Je n'ai pu soutenir tes larmes, tes combats; Je t'ai tout avoué; je ne m'en repens pas, Pourvu que, de ma mort respectant les approches, Tu ne m'affliges plus par d'injustes reproches,

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300

305

310

(Leaning back in chair.) (Oenone takes her arm.) Then I could breathe, Oenone; once he had gone away I felt freedom and peace with each new passing day. Beside my husband now, and hiding my past pain, I could confine myself to my own home again. (Frustrated.) (Oenone takes her hand away.) O useless cruel outcome! O destiny of men! My husband brought me here to settle in Trézène Once more I face this foe so fatal to my flesh; My old wound opened wide, and my breast bled afresh. This is no secret heat concealed within my veins; (Oenone places her right hand on Phèdre's right arm) This is great Venus now, who plagues me with these pains. This guilt has made me ill, I loathe my waste of days, It makes me hate my life and all its idle ways. In dying now, at least I leave a noble name, And I do not expose the full scope of my shame. I could not bear to see your tears or hear your pleas, So I told everything, with no apologies. (Oenone steps back.) No leave me to myself,x because I choose to die, And do not lecture me about my reasons why; Line 306 expresses the essence of Phèdre's dilemma. Of the three usual parts of the tirade, Phèdre has responded to what Oenone had pried from her; secondly she explores the situation its history; third and last, she arrives at a decision as to what she will do,'' . find my final peace'' The tirade must move and sweep the audience along with the speech, caught up in each of the three parts Awareness and deep involvement m its exposition, re-living each part, enables the actress to achieve a holding and a moving of the audience, from line to line, to the climatic close. The intensity and the unrelenting thrust of the tirade makes each gesture, (though slight) and each movement of the head highly dramatic Big random movements and crosses militate against the audience's following empathically a complex speech.

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Phèdre (Cont.) 315

Et que tes vains secours cessent de rappeler Un reste de chaleur tout prêt à s'exhaler. Scéne IV: Phèdre, none, Panope. Panope

320

Je voudrais vous cacher une triste nouvelle, Madame: mais il faut que je vous la révèle. La mort vous a ravi votre invincible époux; Et ce malheur n'est plus ignoré que de vous. none Panope, que dis-tu? Panope Que la reine abusée En vain demande au ciel le retour de Thésée;

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Phèdre: (Continued) 315

Now all your foolish pleas to make me live must cease; Let me seek my release, and find my final peace. (Oenone, looking off left center, crosses left two steps.) Scene Four: Phèdre, Oenone, Panope Panope: (Enters left center, crossing down left, kneeling left of Phèdre, profile is right.)

320

How I would like to hide the sad news which I bring. Madame, / and yet I know I must say everything. Death has been cruel to you, your husband has been killed; (Phèdre raises her head, looking full front.) You are the last to know his greatness has been stilled. Oenone: (Crossing left to up left of chair.) Panope, what did you say? Panope: (To Oenone.) That the poor Queen must learn She cannot pray to god for Theseus to return;x (Phèdre starts to rise) Panope enters, both breathless and in shock; all internalized, creating tension Panope is young, strong, sympathetic, very sensitive and devoted to Phèdre, the Queen. She is delicate and of a generous nature.

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Panope (Cont.) Et que, par des vaisseaux arrivés dans le port, Hippolyte son fils vient d'apprendre sa mort. Phèdre 325

Ciel! Panope

330

Pour le choix d'un maître Athènes se partage: Au prince votre fils l'un donne son suffrage, Madame; et de l'état l'autre oubliant les lois Au fils de l'étrangère ose donner sa voix. On dit même qu'au trône une brigue insolente Veut placer Aricie et le sang de Pallante. J'ai cru de ce péril vous devoir avertir. Déjà même Hippolyte est tout prêt à partir; Et l'on craint, s'il paraît dans ce nouvel orage, Qu'il n'entraîne après lui tout un peuple volage. none

335

Panope, c'est assez: la reine qui t'entend Ne négligera point cet avis important.


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Panope: (Continued) Because the sailing ships that brought this dreadful word Have just told Hippolyte the news of what occurred. Phèdre: (Standing, facing full front.) 325

God! Panope:

330

Athens splits itself, in choosing who shall rule, Some choose the Prince your son; but others play the fool, Forgetting all the law and what the state has done' They reach beyond their rights and choose a foreign son. (Rising.) xIt's even rumored that a ruthless anarchy Is working to restore the race of Aricie. This may be dangerous, I thought you ought to know. Already Hippolyte has made his plans to go. If he should appear there, there where the storm is loud, Then he may be able to sway that coward crowd. / / / Oenone: (Phèdre sinks painfully slowly into the chair; Oenone watches, waits until Phèdre is seated. Then speaks.)

335

Panope, that's quite enough. / / The Queen, having heard you, Will not neglect this news, and your own point of view. /// (Panope courtsies deeply, and exits left center; Oenone crosses left center, looking off to Panope exiting) At word of Theseus' death Phèdre stiffens She moves slowly, as if in a trance. The implications of the news floods her mind with myriad thoughts She no longer attends to what Panope is saying.

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Scène V: Phèdre, none. none

340

345

350

Madame, je cessais de vous presser de vivre; Déjà même au tombeau je songeais à vous suivre; Pour vous en détourner je n'avais plus de voix; Mais ce nouveau malheur vous prescrit d'autres lois. Votre fortune change et prend une autre face: Le roi n'est plus, madame, il faut prendre sa place. Sa mort vous laisse un fils à qui vous vous devez; Esclave s'il vous perd, et roi si vous vivez. Sur qui, dans son malheur, voulez-vous qu'il s'appuie? Ses larmes n'auront plus de main qui les essuie; Et ses cris innocents, portés jusques aux dieux, Iront contre sa mère irriter ses aïeux. Vivez; vous n'avez plus de reproche à vous faire: Votre flamme devient une flamme ordinaire; Thésée en expirant vient de rompre les nuds Qui faisaient tout le crime et l'horreur de vos feux. Hippolyte pour vous devient moins redoutable; Et vous pouvez le voir sans vous rendre coupable.

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Scene Five: Phèdre, Oenone Oenone: (Turning to Phèdre.)

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345

350

Madame, I ceased to plead that you should live this through; I even could agree that I should die with you; I knew you would ignore all tears or talk of force; But now this dreadful news dictates a different course. Your fortune seems to change and wear a strange new face: / / (Oenone crosses to Phèdre.) The King is dead, Madame, so you must take his place. His death leaves you one son, you owe him everything A slave if you should die; if you should live, a king. (Crossing up of Phèdre.) To what discerning friends could he turn with his fears? There would no one there to wipe away his tears. His ancestors would hear his inocent outcries, And they would shake with rage across the distant skies. (Turn, crossing down to Phèdre.) O live!x you still possess the honor of your name. / / / Your sordid flame becomes an ordinary flame. (Her left hand on the back of chair.) This passion is no crime, now Theseus has died, Your guilt has gone away, the knots are all untied. Now Hippolyte is free and you can see him now, And you can let him come as close as you allow. Oenone reacts, but intellectually and with little emotion A plan rapidly forms in her mind's eye; she has taken the initiative to dismiss Panope In her tirade Oenone is a mistress of persuasion. Exerting her influence, she is bent on overcoming any counter thoughts or actions of Phèdre.

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none (Cont.) 355

360

Peut-être, convaincu de votre aversion, Il va donner un chef à la sédition: Détrompez son erreur, fléchissez son courage. Roi de ces bords heureux, Trézène est son partage; Mais il sait que les lois donnent á votre fils Les superbes remparts que Minerve a bâtis. Vous avez l'un et l'autre une juste ennemie: Unissez-vous tous deux pour combattre Aricie. Phèdre

365

Eh bien! á tes conseils je me laisse entrainer *. Vivons, si vers la vie on peut me ramener, Et si l'amour d'un fils, en ce moment funeste, De mes faibles esprits peut ranimer le reste.

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Oenone: (Continued) 355

360

Perhaps, because he thinks you are still filled with hate, He leads a faction now to overthrow the state. Make him see his mistake, help him to understand. He thinks he should be King, Trézène is his homeland. But he knows that the law gives your son all the forts, All Athens' wordly force, her ramparts and her ports. / / (Phèdre rises slowly.) Now you both know you have a x common enemy, (Oenone crosses down to Phèdre one step) And so you should unite to fight this Aricie. Phèdre: (Crossing down one step, starting on right foot.)

365

Your words appeal to me: they please me, I agree. (Her gaze front, she give Oenone her right hand) xYes, I will live: / if life will flow back into me, And if my feelings for my son can lift my soul (Starts to turn up right.) And fill me with new hope, I will / x again / be / whole. (Slowly Phèdre turns right; Oenone supports her, together they move upstage center, three steps Phèdre falters, swaying slightly Oenone supports her more fully. As they reach the edge of the center ramp, the lights have begun to dim. Both exit up center, exiting right.) Racine was by no means ignorant nor unappreciative of seventeenth century politics Close to the king and the court at Versailes, he was aware of the struggles to rule that could ensure at the death of a monarch Louis XIV had become king at a tender age of four His mother Queen Anne had even feared one of the Princes might kidnap the heir to the throne The Prince de Conde, Princes of the blood and a collateral branch of the Bourbons, as well as Francois de Beaufort, a son of a bastard of Henri IV (Louis' grandfather), each, might vie with Louis' mother, as Regent, hoping to rule End of Act I Oenone must keep 'two balls' in the air, rebuking Phèdre for her thoughts of dying and persuading her to live out of concern for the politics of the situation Variety is of the essence, the actress must avoid monotony or sticking (despite the regularity of the Alexandrines) to one tempo. Neither speaking too quickly, nor too slowly, the actress must think quickly

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Acte Deuxieme Scène I: Aricie, Ismène. Aricie Hippolyte demande à me voir en ce lieu? Hippolyte me cherche, et veut me dire adieu? Ismène, dis-tu vrai? n'es-tu point abusée? Ismène 370

C'est le premier effet de la mort de Thésée. Préparez-vous, madame, à voir de tous côtés Voler vers vous les c Thésée écartés. Aricie, à la fin, de son sort est maitresse *, Et bientôt à ses pieds verra toute la Grèce. Aricie

375

Ce n'est donc point, Ismène, un bruit mal affermi? Je cesse d'être esclave, et n'ai plus d'ennemi? Ismène Non, madame, les dieux ne vous sont plus contraires; Et Thésée a rejoint les mânes de vos frères. Aricie Dit-on quelle aventure a terminé ses jours?


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Act Two Scene One: ARICIE, Ismène Aricie: (Enters right center, followed by Ismène, who crosses upstage of Aricie right center.) xHippolyte has told you that this is where he'll be? (Crossing down center.) (Quickly.) Hippolyte will come here to say goodbye to me? (Unbelieving.) Imène, can this be true? no one is fooling you? Ismène: (Crosses three quarters towards center.) 370

Now that Theseus has died, you will see much that's new. Prepare yourself, Madam, to find on every side. So many friends of yours who Theseus tried to hide. (Crossing upstage to be on a level with Aricie.) Now Aricie is strong, her freedom is complete, And soon all Greece will be kept captive at her feet. Aricie: (Turning her head right to Ismène.)

375

Ismène, then these are not mere idle fantasies I cease to be a slave and have no enemies? Ismène: From now on, all the fates are tame and will behave; And brave Theseus has joined your brothers in the grave. Aricie (Facing front; crosses downstage two steps.) Have they said how he died, what led him to the dead? Lines 373-374 are to be spoken with more certainty. Line 373, Arcie may have been unaware of the plot of her brothers who had sought to defeat Theseus. Reflecting politics of the court of Louis XIV, Aricie, as a Princess, is pure but ambitious Line 375 is to be delivered with profundity. The actor never looks at the stage floor No actor moves to the same time as another actor; therefore, no actor generally moves as another speaks. All gestures and movements are weighted and significant: therefore, there is an economy of both.


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Ismène 380

385

On sème de sa mort d'incroyables discours. On dit que; ravisseur d'une amante nouvelle, Les flots ont englouti cet époux infidèle. On dit même, et ce bruit est partout répandu, Qu'avec Pirithoüs aux enfers descendu, Il a vu le Cocyte et les rivages sombres, Et s'est montré vivant aux infernales ombres; Mais qu'il n'a pu sortir de ce triste séjour, Et repasser les bords qu'on passe sans retour, Aricie

390

Croirai-je qu'un mortel, avant sa dernière heure, Peut pénétrer des morts la profonde demeure? Quel charme l'attirait sur ces bords redoutés? Ismène

395

Thésée est mort, madame, et vous seule en doutez: Athènes en gémit; Trézène en est instruite, Et déjà pour son roi reconnait * Hippolyte; Phèdre, dans ce palais, tremblante pour son fils, De ses amis troublés demande les avis.


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Ismène: 380

385

Incredible accounts of it are being spread. Some say that while defiled with infidelity, This fine philanderer was swallowed by the sea. And others also say, and you will hear them tell, That with Pirithoüs, decending into hell, He went to see Cocyte, and through that mood of doom, (Theseus was an enemy of Aricie's family.) He showed his own live soul to dead men in the gloom; But he could not come back from that disgraceful place, For those were fatal steps which he could not retrace. Aricie: (To herself.)

390

(Crossing down left two steps.)

Now how could any man, still filled with his life breath, Be willing to set forth on the deep sleep of death? (Turning right to Ismène.) What led him explore that final finding out? Ismène: (Speaking directly to Aricie.)

395

Theseus is dead, Madame, there can be no more doubt. Athens is in a storm, Trézène is an uproar, And all hail Hippolyte as King from shore to shore. (Crossing down right a step.) Phèdre is in this palace, and trembling for her son, Seeks counsel from her friends and pleads with everyone. Line 380, Ismène expresses fear of the Underworld To be spoken softly Lines 380-383, Ismène is speaking of another world and of destiny Lines 384-385, she is not expressing grief, but is stating facts In verse 957-970 Theseus explains his descent into hell and his encounter with Pirithoüs. Cocytus is one of the rivers in Hades Lines 389, Aricie is speaking to herself; it's subjective. Theseus was in life, lord and master. Ismène risks endulging in double meaning, ambiguity. Irony has been said to be, for the actor, half-way between thought and feeling.

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Aricie Et tu crois que, pour moi plus humain que son père, Hippolyte rendra ma chaine * plus légère; Qu'il plaindra mes malheurs? Ismène Madame, je le croi. Aricie 400

L'insensible Hippolyte est-il connu de toi? Sur quel frivole espoir penses-tu qu'il me plaigne, Et respecte en moi seule un sexe qu'il dédaigne? Tu vois depuis quel temps il évite nos pas, Et cherche tous les lieux où nous ne sommes pas. Ismène

405

410

Je sais de ses froideurs tout ce que l'on récite; Mais j'ai vu pros de vous ce superbe Hippolyte; Et même, en le voyant, le bruit de sa fierté A redoubleé pour lui ma curiosité. Sa présence à ce bruit n'a point paru répondre; Dès vos premiers regards je l'ai vu se confondre; Ses yeux, qui vainement voulaient vous éviter, Déjà pleins de langueur, ne pouvaient vous quitter. Le nom d'amant peut-être offense son courage; Mais il en ales yeux, s'il n'en ale langage.


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Aricie: Do you think Hippolyte will have more love for me Than his own father had, who gave me slavery? (Stepping right.) xWill he ease my distress? Ismène: (Stepping down.) Madame, I know he will. Aricie: 400

This listless Hippolyte may turn against me still. (Crossing up to left.) How can you dare to say he pities and adores In me, and me alone, a sex which he ignores? You know that for some time he has avoided me; He always finds a place where we will never be. Ismène:

405

410

I know the things they say, that Hippolyte is cold But coming close to you, he was a bit more bold; I watched him all the while, I tried to find his pride, And it occurred to me that everyone had lied. No, he is not so cold as he has been accused: When you first looked at him, he seemed to be confused. (Moving away a step downstage.) He turned his eyes aside to leave your lovely glance, But they still gazed at you and he was in a trance. That he should be in love may seem to him absurd; Yet it is in his eyes, if not in his own word. Lines 397-399, Aricie is already in love. Line 399, Ismène delivers this with certainty. Ismène is at once outside and inside the situation: Racine has set down words, lines of verse, for which the actress needs to find two meanings for them. Lines 400-404, Aricie is now a bit more sad. Lines 410-412, Ismène dares to express her feelings for Hippolyte She speaks up with certainty, wishing for a liaison for Aricie with Hippolyte. Lines 413-414, Ismène utters these softly and with a lowered voice. Aricie and Hippolyte are opposite sides of the same coin: each has, for different reasons, forsworn love. Aricie, also, would have vowed never to love. Ismène is younger, more sincere than the other confidantes, and thus she proves successful at stirring up the feelings of her mistress.

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Aricie 415

420

425

430

Que mon cur, chore Ismène, écoute avidement Un discours qui peut-être a peu de fondement! O toi qui me connais, te semblait-il croyable Que le triste jouet d'un sort impitoyable, Un cur toujours nourri d'amertume et de pleurs, Dût connaitre * l'amour et ses folles douleurs? Reste du sang d'un roi, noble fils de la Terre, Je suis seule échappée aux fureurs de la guerre: J'ai perdu, dans la fleur de leur jeune saison, Six frères . . . Quel espoir d'une illustre maison! Le fer moissonna tout; et la terre humectée But à regret le sang des neveux d'Erechthée. Tu sais, depuis leur mort, quelle sévère loi Défend à tousles Grecs de soupirer pour moi: On craint que de la sur les flammes téméraires Ne raniment un jour la cendre de ses frères.

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Aricie: 415

420

425

430

I listen, dear Ismène, my heart in all its youth Devours what you say, although there's not much truth! (Extending her hand.) (Ismène crosses taking her hand.) xYou who are dear to me, xyou know my great distress: My heart has only known my own soul's loneliness, I who have been the toy of accident and chance, How can I know the joy, the folly of romance? / (Crossing to Ismène.) xThe daughter of a King from this great ancient shore, I only have survived the tragedies of war. I lost six brothers who were strong and brave and free, The hope and flower of a famous family! The sword tore all of them, the earth was wet with red, Erectheus was dead when all these sons had bled. You know that since their death, there was a stern decree Forbidding any Greek to fall in love with me: The flame of my desire might kindle in my womb, And one day light a fire within my brother's tomb. Lines 415- 416, Aricie takes time to breathe: fills up her lungs with as much air as possible, but in the long tirade ahead, doesn't use up all. She does not move The couplet is spoken subjectively. Line 417, now turning her full attention to Ismène Line 421, marks a transition. Aricie is lamenting the conflicting feelings of her love-life She admits her passion for Hippolyte, but loyalties stand in its way. The actress needs to make the conflict clear.

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Aricie (Cont.)

435

440

Mais tu sais bien aussi de quel il dédaigneux Je regardais ce soin d'un vainqueur soupçonneux: Tu sais que, de tout temps à l'amour opposée, Je rendais souvent grâce à l'injuste Thésée, Dont l'heureuse rigueur secondait mes mépris. Mes yeux alors, mes yeux n'avaient pas vu son fils. Non que, par les yeux seuls lâchement enchantée, J'aime en lui sa beauté, sa grâce tant vantée, Présents dont la nature a voulu l'honorer, Qu'il méprise lui-même et qu'il semble ignorer. J'aime, je prise en lui de plus nobles richesses, Les vertus de son père, et non point les faiblesses; J'aime, je l'avouerai, cet orgueil généreux Qui jamais n'a fléchi sous le joug amoureux.

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Aricie: (Continued.)

435

440

Besides, you ought to know with what a haughty frown I viewed this conqueror and what he had set down. For I had hated love through my disdainful days, And so I thanked Theseus, and even gave him praise For making me obey the vows I had begun. But then I had not seen this fearless hero's son. / Not that my eyes alone were held by his fair face, And made to dwell upon his celebrated grace Those gifts which nature gives, which anyone would prize, He seems to set aside, as something to despise. I love and value him for what makes him unique: His father's deeds, and not the ways that he was weak: I love, and I admire the scope of his high pride, Which never yet was tamed, has never yet been tied. Lines 436, Aricie may take her time on this line. Line 437, marks a transition. Lines 441-442, to be delivered slowly. In threading one's way through the long set speech, the actress needs to get both the forward thrust of the tirade, but also the anatomizing of the human emotions within it The mounting pulsation of the verse must not take over at the risk of making the long speech sound unreal.

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Aricie (Cont.) 445

450

455

460

Phèdre en vain s'honorait des soupirs de Thésée: Pour moi, je suis plus fière, et fuis la gloire aisée D'arracher un hommage à mille autres offert, Et d'entrer dans un cur de toutes parts ouvert. Mais de faire fléchir un courage inflexible, De porter la douleur dans une âme insensible, D'enchaîner un captif de ses fers étonné, Contre un joug qui lui plaît vainement mutiné; C'est 1à ce que je veux, c'est 1à ce qui m'irrite. Hercule à désarmer coûtait moins qu'Hippolyte; Et vaincu plus souvent, et plus tôt surmonté, Préparait moins de gloire aux yeux qui l'ont dompté. Mais, chère Ismène, hélas! quelle est mon imprudence! On ne m'opposera que trop de résistance: Tu m'entendras peut-être, humble dans mon ennui, Gémir du même orgueil que j'admire aujourd'hui. Hippolyte aimerait! Par quel bonheur extrême Aurais-je pu fléchir . . . Ismène Vous l'entendrez lui-même: Il vient à vous.


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Aricie: (Continued.) 445

450

455

460

How Phèdre was taken in by Theseus and his sighs! I have more self-respect, and my affection flies From all these easy vows passed out to everyone: Such offers leave me cold, they're something that I shun. To teach humility to the inflexible. To speak of suffering to the insensible, To chain a prisoner with claims that I would make, Which he could strain against, but never really break That is what I desire, that will make me complete; (Crossing right center.) And yet strong Hercules fought less than Hippolyte;x Subdued more often, and seduced more easily, He gave less glory to each lover he would see. / (Crossing up right center.) But dear Ismène, alas! what awful things I dare!x I will come up against more force than I can bear. Perhaps you may hear me, humble in my despair, Groan under that high pride which now I think so fair. (Crossing down right.) Hippolyte fall in love?x how could my hope or fear Affect him in the least . . . Ismène: Now you yourself shall hear: For here he comes. (Hippolyte enters left center.) Line 449, Aricie takes pleasure in saying these things. Line 456, marks a transition. Lines 461-462, Aricie begins to doubt again. Aricie's speech, as is common in set speeches, has been in three parts Aricie reacted to Ismène's news; she has explored its implications for her, rather than coming to a conclusion she resists, as yet, her feelings.

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Scène II: Hippolyte, Aricie, Ismène. Hippolyte

465

470

475

480

Madame, avant que de partir, J'ai cru de votre sort vous devoir avertir. Mon père ne vit plus. Ma juste défiance Présageait les raisons de sa trop longue absence: La mort seule, bornant ses travaux éclatants, Pouvait à l'univers le cacher si longtemps. Les dieux livrent enfin à la Parque homicide L'ami, le compagnon, le successeur d'Alcide. Je crois que votre haine, épargnant ses vertus, Ecoute sans regret ces noms qui lui sont dus. Un espoir adoucit ma tristesse mortelle: Je puis vous affranchir d'une austere tutelle; Je révoque des lois dont j'ai plaint la rigueur. Vous pouvez disposer de vous, de votre cur, Et, dans cette Trézène, aujourd'hui mon partage, De mon aieul Pitthée autrefois l'héritage, Qui m'a, sans balancer, reconnu pour son roi, Je vous laisse aussi libre, et plus libre que moi.

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Scene Two: Hippolyte, Aricie, Ismène Hippolyte:

465

470

475

480

Madame, before I go away, I have some things to say about your fate today. My father has just died. My fears which were so strong Told me the reason why he had been gone so long. For death, and death alone, could end his spendid deeds And hide from all the world the life a hero leads. The Fates in their great greed have taken from our side This friend of Hercules who shared the same high pride. I think your hatred may ignore his few defects And grant his memory these fitting last respects. One hope has opened up and pleased me in my grief: (Aricie starts as if to speak.) I can release your soul and give you some relief. I can revoke the laws that made you suffer so. Now you can start to live, your heart is yours to know. And here in this Trézène, which I come to control Just as old Pittheus, ancestor of my soul, Which calls for a new King, and recognizes me I now proclaim you free and give you liberty. The etiquette of the seventeenth century Court of Louis XIV is at the basis of such 'motivation' of the characters of PHÈDRE. For example, at the first meeting between Aricie and Hippolyte she bows; his madame is of the etiquette of seventeenth century France, thereon he relates physically to Aricie, expresses sentiments as a future 'bon roi.' Hippolyte is a king potentially.

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Aricie Modérez des bontés dont l'excès m'embarrasse. D'un soin si généreux honorer ma disgrâce, Seigneur, c'est me ranger, plus que vous ne pensez, Sous ces austères lois dont vous me dispensez. Hippolyte 485

Du choix d'un successeur Athènes incertaine Parle de vous, me nomme, et le fils de la reine. Aricie De moi, seigneur? Hippolyte

490

Je sais, sans vouloir me flatter, Qu'une superbe loi semble me rejeter: La Grèce me reproche une mère étrangère. Mais, si pour concurrent je n'avais que mon frère, Madame, j'ai sur lui de véritables droits Que je saurais sauver du caprice des lois.


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Aricie: (Making a step down stage.) xThis is immoderate, your Highness is too kind, Such generosity is madness to my mind; My Lord, it binds me more to all the stern decrees Which you would cast away in an attempt to please. Hippolyte: 485

In choosing who shall rule, Athens becomes undone, (Aricie crosses to left of Hippolyte.) Speak first of you, xthen me, and then the Queen's one son. Aricie: Of me, my Lord? Hippolyte:

490

I know, no honor to my name, An ancient famous law seems to reject my claim. Greece is displeased with me for my strange foreign birth. / / But if I could compete against my brother's worth, Madame, I know so well that my rights would win out, That I would be made Greek and King without a doubt. Line 490, marks a pointed transition for Hippolyte in this speech Interior action is in harmony at all times with the music of the text. The most intensive feelings must never be pushed to the limits of feelings, which would result in depletion of the potential of feelings.

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Hippolyte (Cont.)

495

500

505

Un frein plus légitime arrête mon audace: Je vous cède ou plutôt je vous rends une place, Un sceptre que jadis vos aïeux ont reçu De ce fameux mortel que la Terre a conçu. L'adoption le mit entre les mains d'Egée. Athènes, par mon père accrue et protégée, Reconnut avec joie un roi si généreux, Et laissa dans l'oubli vos frères malheureux. Athènes dans ses murs maintenant vous rappelle: Assez elle a gémi d'une longue querelle; Assez dans ses sillons votre sang englouti A fait fumer le champ dont il était sorti. Trézène m'obéit. Les campagnes de Crète Offrent au fils de Phèdre une riche retraite. L'Attique est votre bien. Je pars, et vais, pour vous, Réunir tousles vux partagés entre nous. Aricie

510

De tout ce que j'entends, étonnée et confuse, Je crains presque, je crains qu'un songe ne m'abuse.


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Hippolyte: (Continued.)

495

500

505

But there are strong restraints which make me rest my case. I therefore say to you: this is your proper place, Your sceptre is the one your ancestors received From that first son of earth so secretly conceived. They say that Aegeus once held it in his hands. Athens was satisfied in all of its demands By my own father, who was hailed as its own King, And your six brothers were deprived of everything. But Athens calls you now to come within her walls. There have been groans enough from all these hopeless brawls; There has been blood enough to soak the open fields And drown the fertile earth with all the life it yields. Trézène will obey me. The countryside of Crete Will give the son of Phèdre a sumptuous retreat. You will take Attica. Now I must go at last (Starting, as if to leave left stage center.) xAnd try to reunite the votes which will be cast. Aricie: (Stepping to left, to Hippolyte.)

510

Astonished and confused by all that I have heard, I have a secret fear that this is all absurd. Line 497, makes reference to Aricie's having descended directly from Erechtheus, the legendary king of Athens Theseus, on the other hand, was only indirectly descended; his father, Aegeus, was only an adopted son of the descendants of Erectheus Rightfully, royal rule was due Aricie Line 501, Hippolyte speaks with greater force. The first part of the scene between Aricie and Hippolyte has ended Hippolyte, having seemingly said all that he has to say, makes as if to leave. With line 509, Aricie seizes upon the moment to stay his leaving

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HIPPOLYTE: Madame, could I hate you?

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Aricie (Cont.)

515

Veillé-je? puis-je croire un semblable dessein? Quel dieu, seigneur, quel dieu l'a mis dans votre sein? Qu'à bon droit votre gloire en tous lieux est semée, Et que la vérité passe la renommée! Vous-même, en ma faveur, vous voulez vous trahir! N'etait-ce pas assez de ne me point hair, Et d'avoir si longtemps pu défendre votre âme De cette inimitié . . . Hippolyte

520

Moi vous hair, madame! Avec quelques couleurs qu'on ait peint ma fierté, Croit-on que dans ses flancs un monstre m'ait porté? Quelles sauvages murs, quelle haine endurcié Pourrait, en vous voyant, n'être point adoucie? Ai-je pu résister au charme décevant . . . Aricie Quoi, seigneur!


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Aricie: (Continued.)

515

Now am I wide awake, or should I trust this dream? What gracious god, my Lord, made you adopt this scheme? How wonderful it is all places know your name! And how the truth itself exceeds all praise and fame! (Crossing right.) xWould you betray yourself, like this, all for my sake? (Crossing down center right.) xNot hating me may be the greatest gift you make, And having kept yourself in everything you do From this hostility . . . Hippolyte: (Crossing to Aricie.)

520

Madame, could I hate you? No matter what they say or how they paint my pride, Do they suppose some beast once carried me inside? / What mind that is unkind, what heart that may be hard, In viewing you, would not grow soft in its regard? (Taking two steps toward Aricie.) Could any man resist the charm of what you are?. . Aricie: What? My Lord. Line 521, marks a transition. Line 523, Hippolyte advances toward Aricie Aricie has been deeply stirred by all that she has heard from Hippolyte All that Ismène has been saying, coupled with what she senses is behind the generous words of the son of her family's enemy, takes her breath away. Her mind is flooded with expectations.

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Hippolyte 525

530

535

540

Je me suis engagé trop avant. Je vois que la raison cède à la violence. Puisque j'ai commencé de rompre le silence, Madame, il faut poursuivre; il faut vous informer D'un secret que mon cur ne peut plus renfermer. Vous voyez derant vous un prince déplorable, D'un téméraire orgueil exemple mémorable. Moi qui, contre l'amour fièrement réolté, Aux fers de ses captifs ai longtemps insulté; Qui, des faibles mortels déplorant les naufrages, Pensais toujours du bord contempler les orages; Asservi maintenant sous la commune loi, Par quel trouble me vois-je emporté loin de moi! Un moment a vaincu mon audace imprudente: Cette âme si superbe est enfin dépendante. Depuis pros de six mois, honteux, désespéré, Portant partout le trait dont je suis déchiré, Contre vous, contre moi, vainement je m'éprouve: Présente, je vous fuis; absente, je vous trouve; Dans le fond des forêts votre image me suit;

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Hippolyte: 525

530

535

540

But I know, now I have gone too far. Reason, I see, gives way to feelings that are real. I have already said more than I should reveal, Madame, so I go on: I must inform you of Something which my own heart keeps secret in its love. / You see before you here a wretched restless Prince, Epitome of pride too headstrong to convince. I who fought love and thought my attitude was right; Who laughed at its captives and ridiculed their plight; (Ismèe crosses upstage.) Who scorned the worst shipwrecks, the first one to deplore The storms of mortals which I witnessed from the shore; / (Aricie takes a step down stage.) xNow I have been bowed down to know the common lot, How I have been estranged and changed to what I'm not! One instant has destroyed my childish arrogance: (Aricie crosses right.) xThis soul which was so bold now yields to circumstance. For almost six long months, so hopeless and alone, And bearing everywhere this torture I have known; Divided in desires, I don't know what to do: With you, I try to fly; alone, I long for you; Far off in the forest, your image follows me; Once again it may be seen in lines 524-525, that classical hero though he may be, Hippolyte reacts to the passions much as a seventeenth century Frenchman and Racine, himself. Reason is the measure of all things Line 528, Hippolyte pauses for a deep breath. Lines 529-530, are spoken less forcefully. Line 535, marks a transition Aricie's frankness and her unabashed praise of him have gone straight to Hippolyte's heart. As in music, Hippolyte, the son of Theseus presents the first theme of the symphony; he confesses his love for Aricie.

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550

555

560

La lumière du jour, les ombres de la nuit, Tout retrace à mes yeux les charmes que j'évite; Tout vous livre à l'envi le rebelle Hippolyte. Moi-même, pour tout fruit de mes soins superflus, Maintenant je me cherche, et ne me trouve plus; Mon arc, mes javelots, mon char, tout m'importune; Je ne me souviens plus des leçons de Neptune; Mes seuls gémissements font retentir les bois, Et mes coursiers oisifs ont oublié ma voix. Peut-être le récit d'un amour si sauvage Vous fait, en m'écoutant, rougir de votre ouvrage? D'un cur qui s'offre à vous quel farouche entretien! Quel étrange captif pour un si beau lien! Mais l'offrande à vos yeux en doit être plus chère; Songez que je vous parle une langue étrangère; Et ne rejetez pas des vux mal exprimés, Qu'Hippolyte sans vous n'aurait jamais formés. Scène III: Hippolyte, Aricie, Théramène, Ismène. Théramène Seigneur, la reine vient, et je l'ai devancée: Elle vous cherche. Hippolyte Moi?


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Hippolyte: (Continued.) 545

550

555

560

The brilliance of the day, the night's obscurity, All show me the sly charm which my high pride ignores; All render Hippolyte a prisoner of yours. / Now through this mad pursuit, I've lost my self-control, So I no longer know the scope of my own soul. I've lost my javelins, my chariot, my bow; I've lost Neptune's lessons which I learned long ago; The woods no longer hear loud shouts as I rejoice, And my horses ignore the sound of my own voice. / Perhaps the telling of a love so wild and free Might make you blush to see what you have done to me. What foolish things to say from such a captive heart! And what a sick victim of all your lovely art! But you should see in me that which is very dear. Imagine that I speak another language here; Do not reject my love for its vague awkward vow, For I have never tried to say this until now. Scene Three: Hippolyte, Aricie, Théramène, Ismène Théramène: (Enters up right.) My Lord, the Queen comes here, and I have come before. (Aricie crosses to Ismene.) She looks for you. Hippolyte: For me? Line 547, marks a transition Line 553, marks a transition, and Hippolyte's heart beats faster. The calculated use of gestures is an art, which the actor would need to have plotted carefully. Used sparingly, they must be carefully orchestrated with the words and phrases. Gestures are essential to prevent the rhythms of the verse hypnotising the audience.

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Théramène J'ignore sa pensée; Mais on vous est venu demander de sa part: Phèdre veut vous parler avant votre départ. Hippolyte 565

Phèdre! que lui dirai-je? et que peut-elle attendre . . . Aricie Seigneur, vous ne pouvez refuser de l'entendre: Quoique trop convaincu de son inimitié, Vous devez à ses pleurs quelque ombre de pitié. Hippolyte

570

Cependant vous sortez. Et je pars. Et j'ignore Si je n'offense point les charmes que j'adore! J'ignore si ce cur que je laisse en vos mains . . . Aricie

575

Partez, prince, et suivez vos généjreux desseins: Rendez de mon pouvoir Athènes tributaire. J'accepte tousles dons que vous me voulez faire. Mais cet empire enfin si grand, si glorieux, N'est pas de vos présents le plus cher à mes yeux.


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Théramène My Lord, I know no more. But I have just been sent to make sure that you stay. (Stepping down to Hippolyte.) Phèdre wants to speak to you before you go away. Hippolyte: 565

Phèdre? But what can I say? And what can she expect. . . . . Aricie: My Lord, you can't refuse, you owe her this respect. Although you know too well her old hostility, Her tears require you to show some sympathy. Hippolyte:

570

And so you go away. And now I do not know If I've offended you whom I admire so! I wonder if this heart which I leave in your hands . . . Aricie: (Turning to Hippolyte.)

575

Go, Prince, and carry out your generous demands. Arrange that Athens be subject to my decree. For I accept these things which you bestow on me. But this impressive state, although it is so great, Is not the gift you give which I praise with most weight. (Aricie exits right, followed by Ismène.) The first run-through rehearsals concentrated on corrdinating the gesture and movement with the verbal rhythms. All the actors had memorized the text of the play, free of their scripts, before putting their feet on stage for the mise-en-scène

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Scène IV: Hippolyte, Théramène. Hippolyte

580

Ami, tout est-il prêt? Mais la reine s'avance. Va, que pour le départ tout s'arme en diligence. Fais donner le signal, cours, ordonne; et revien Me délivrer bientôt d'un fâcheux entretien. Scène V: Phèdre, Hippolyte, none. Hippolyte PHÈDRE, à none dans le fond du théâtre. Le voici. Vers mon cur tout mon sang se retire. J'oublie, en le voyant, ce que je viens lui dire. none Souvenez-vous d'un ills qui n'espère qu'en vous. Phèdre

585

On dit qu'un prompt départ vous éloigne de nous, Seigneur. A vos douleurs je viens joindre mes larmes. Je vous viens pour un fils expliquer mes alarmes. Mon fils n'a plus de père; et le jour n'est pas loin


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Scene Four: Hippolyte, Théramène Hippolyte: (Phèdre, supported on her left by Oenone, enter up right.)

580

Are we all ready now? xBut see, the Queen draws near. Go now, pepare the way, and gather all our gear. (Phèdre stops up center on platform.) Set down the plans, the course, the orders, xand then come To free me from this talk which will be tedium.x (Theramene bows and exits left.) (Hippolyte turns upstage, kneels slowly, as Phèdre and Oenone cross down ramp slowly.) Scene Five: Phèdre, Hippolyte, Oenone Phèdre: There he is. My bad blood refuses to obey. Seeing him, I forget what I have come to say. Oenone: Remember that your son depends on you today. Phèdre:

585

They say your plans are made, and you are on your way. To all your miseries I offer you my tears. And I have come to you to speak about my fears. My son is fatherless; and I can prophesy Lines 581-582, Phèdre is not saying this to anyone; it is from the heart Subjective. Line 582, Phèdre is almost poised to retreat, but Oenone, whispering in her ear, drives her on to the confrontation with Hippolyte. Lines 584-585, Phèdre says this casually, easily Lines 587, Phèdre looks into Hippolyte's eyes to see if he has pity. Hippolyte does not as yet have eye contact with Phèdre.

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Phèdre (Cont.)

590

Qui de ma mort encor doit le rendre témoin. Déjà mille ennemis attaquent son enfance. Vous seul pouvez contre eux embrasser sa défense. Mais un secret remords agite mes esprits: Je crains d'avoir fermé votre oreille à ses cris. Je tremble que sur lui votre juste colère Ne poursuive bientôt une odieuse mère. Hippolyte

595

Madame, je n'ai point de sentiments si bas. Phèdre

600

605

Quand vous me haïriez, je ne m'en plaindrais pas, Seigneur: vous m'avez rue attachée à vous nuire; Dans le fond de mon cur vous ne pouviez pas lire. A votre inimitié j'ai pris soin de m'offrir. Aux bords que j'habitais je n'ai pu vous souffrir. En public, en secret, contre vous déclarée, J'ai voulu par des mers en être séparée. J'ai même défendu, par une expresse loi, Qu'on osât prononcer votre nom devant moi. Si pourtant à l'offense on mesure la peine, Si la haine peut seule attirer votre haine, Jamais femme ne rut plus digne de pitié, Et moins digne, seigneur, de votre inimitié.


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Phèdre (Continued.)

590

That he shall see the day when I myself must die. A thousand enemies attack this child of mine. Now you and you alone can keep them all in line. And yet a new remorse has come before my eyes: I fear I may have closed your ears against his cries. I tremble when I think he may receive your hate, Because I am the one you choose to desecrate. Hippolyte:

595

Madame, I am not base, I could not cause such pain. Phèdre:

600

605

If you detested me, then I would not complain, My Lord. I know you know I tried to injure you; But what was in my heart, my Lord, you never knew. I took enormous care to make your hatred great I could not let you live so close to my estate. Aloud and secretly, I was so proud I swore That I would have you sent to some far distant shore. I went on to forbid, by an express decree, That anyone should speak your name in front of me. Yet weigh my crime against the pain that is my fate, And say that my own hate has only caused your hate; No woman in this world deserves your pity more, No woman whom you have less reason to abhor. Line 595. Hippolyte's reading of the line is neutral In the second act Phèdre burns with love, but she may not cry, The shedding of tears is for the third act Phèdre is wracked with conflicting feelings and anxieties. Almost unsteady on her feet, she depends on Oenone for support, both physical and psychological Line 596, Phèdre picks up the cue at once Line 598, Phèdre is not smiling Never at these moments does she smile Lines 599-604, At this point Phèdre is to begin revealing what is near to her heart Lines 605-608, Phèdre is to keep these lines as one thought Hippolyte thinks Phèdre pleads with him to protect her child (line 590 above), with the line 598, Phèdre's overwhelming passion, previously repressed at the expense of her health, begins to surface.

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Hippolyte 610

Des droits de ses enfants une mère jalouse Pardonne rarement au ills d'une autre épouse, Madame, je le sais: les soupçons importuns Sont d'un second hymen les fruits les plus communs. Tout autre aurait pour moi pris les mêmes ombrages, Et j'en aurais peut-être essuyé plus d'outrages. Phèdre

615

Ah! seigneur! que le ciel, j'ose ici l'attester, De cette loi commune a voulu m'excepter! Qu'un soin bien différent me trouble et me dévore! Hippolyte

620

Madame, il n'est pas temps de vous troubler encore. Peut-être votre époux voit encore le jour; Le ciel peut à nos pleurs accorder son retour. Neptune le protège, et ce dieu tutélaire Ne sera pas en vain imploré par mon père. Phèdre

625

On ne voit point deux fois le rivage des morts, Seigneur. Puisque Thésêe a vu les sombres bords, En vain vous espérez qu'un dieu vous le renvoie; Et l'avare Achéron ne lâche point sa proie. [vous; Que dis-je? il n'est point mort, puisqu'il respire en Toujours devant mes yeux je crois voir mon époux:


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Hippolyte: 610

A mother's jealousy may make her rarely fair To some adopted son who comes into her care. Madame, I know this well. Curses which disparage Are the common outcome of a second marriage. All mothers would scorn me, and find things to deplore; Perhaps they would have tried to make me suffer more. Phèdre:

615

Ah! My Lord, believe me, that this is not the case! I do not fit that law which rules the human race! A very different care consumes me through and through! Hippolyte:

620

Madame, I see no need for this to trouble you. Perhaps your husband still bathes in the light of day; We weep for his return, and heaven may obey. My father has a god who guards him everywhere; Neptune will not ignore my father's fervent prayer. Phèdre:

625

One only journeys once to that land of the dead, My Lord. Since Theseus has been already led To see those dismal shores, no god restores him now No freedom or release will Acheron allow. (Taking one step toward Hippolyte.) But still, he is not dead, because he breathes in you. (Oenone crosses down to Phèdre, watching Hippolyte.) Always before my eyes, xmy husband lives anew. Lines 611-614, Hippolyte must avoid picking up the same tone as Phèdre Line 615, Phèdre picks up the cue sharply. Lines 618-622, Hippolyte is reassuring Phèdre Lines 623-626, Phèdre does not hate Theseus, but she rejects this reassurance from Hippolyte Line 627, Phèdre turns, speaking directly and fully to Hippolyte Verse helps the actress here to shape and clarify the thoughts. Phèdre's speeches are fraught with sub-text, while speaking on the surface of one thing, she is feeling and thinking deeply of another. Once again, at times it may almost surface 'a very different care consumes me.'

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Phèdre (Cont.) 630

Je le vois, je lui parle; et mon cur . . . Je m'égare, Seigneur, ma folle ardeur malgré moi se déclare. Hippolyte Je vois de votre amour l'effet prodigieux: Tout mort qu'il est, Thésée est présent à vos yeux; Toujours de son amour votre âme est embrasée. Phèdre

635

640

645

Oui, prince, je languis, je brûle pour Thésée: Je l'aime, non point tel que l'ont vu les enfers, Volage adorateur de mille objets divers, Qui va du dieu des morts déshonorer la couche; Mais fidèle, mais tier, et même un peu farouche, Charmant, jeune, traînant tousles curs après soi, Tel qu'on dépeint nos dieux, ou tel que je vous voi. Il avait votre port, vos yeux, votre langage; Cette noble pudeur colorait son visage Lorsque de notre Crète il traversa les flots, Digne sujet des vux des filles de Minos. Que faisiez-vous alors? pourquoi, sans Hippolyte,


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Phèdre: (Continued.)

630

(Crossing to Hippolyte.) (Oenone takes Phèdre's left arm.) I see him, speak to him; and my heart . . . xO my Lord, I'm mad, my tortured mind shows its perverse discord. (Phèdre takes Oenone's right hand with her left hand.) Hippolyte: I see the power now of love that never dies. (Phèdre pushes Oenone back.) Theseus may be dead, xyet he lives in your eyes; I seem to see his face irradiating you. Phèdre:

635

640

645

I long for Theseus, yes, Prince, that much is true. I love him, not the way the shades of Hades must,x (Oenone recoils; slowly she crosses up left to column #4. She turns away.) The driven libertine who lives for his own lust, Who may be making love right now in dead men's beds; (Phèdre advances toward Hippolyte; he recoils) xBut rather faithful, proud, the haughtiest of heads, (She advances; he retreats.) So charming and so young, xwho won all hearts somehow, (She maintains a distance, he ceases to move) A portrait by a god xor as I see you now. / He had your poise, your gaze, your manner and your grace, A gentle tender smile that lighted his whole face, When he first sailed the sea, without the least conceit, Receiving the sweet vows of the fair maids of Crete. What were you doing then? Where were you, Hippolyte? Line 641, markes a transition. Line 645, here is a crescendo Now begins one of the most memorable tirades of the tragedy Since the first performance of PHÈDRE, all the great French actresses have greeted its challenge. There is strict adherence to the rhythms, the music of the verse. The French Alexandrine is made up of twelve syllables: six long beats alternating with six short beats Rhyming couplets are characteristic of the Alexandrines

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Phèdre (Cont.)

650

655

660

Des héros de la Grèce assembla-t-il l'élite? Pourquoi, trop jeune encor, ne pûtes-vous alors Entrer dans le vaisseau qui le mit sur nos bords? Par vous aurait péri le monstre de la Crète, Malgré tousle détours de sa vaste retraite: Pour en développer l'embarras incertain, Ma sur du fil fatal eût armé votre main. Mais non: dans ce dessein je l'aurais devancée; L'amour m'en eût d'abord inspiré la pensée: C'est moi, prince, c'est moi dont l'utile secours Vous eût du labyrinthe enseigné les détours. Que de soins m'eût coûtés cette tête charmante! Un fil n'eût point assez rassuré votre amante: Compagne du péril qu'il vous fallait chercher, Moi-même devant vous j'aurais voulu marcher; Et Phèdre au labyrinthe avec vous descendue Se serait avec vous retrouvée ou perdue. Hippolyte Dieux! qu'est-ce que j'entends? Madame, oubliez-vous Que Thésée est mon père, et qu'il est votre époux? Phèdre

665

Et sur quoi jugez-vous que j'en perds la mémoire, Prince? Aurais-je perdu tout le soin de ma gloire?

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650

655

660

Why were you not among the famous Greek elite? Why were you still too young to join these conquerors Who came on their swift ships to land on our far shores? Seeing the Cretan beast, you could have gained great praise, By slaying him within his labyrinthine maze. And so that you would know which way you should be led, My sister would have come and made you take the thread. No, wait I would be there, and well ahead of her, The love inside of me would be the first to stir. Prince, I would be the one to help you learn the ways Of staying safe and so escaping from the maze. I would have taken pains to hasten your return! A thread is not enough to show you my concern. I'm sure that it would be a peril I could share, And I myself could walk ahead of you through there; So Phèdre would go with you through that great vacant void, Would have emerged with you, or with you been destroyed. Hippolyte: Gods! what words have I heard? Madam, recall your vow: Theseus, my father, is your lord and husband now. Phèdre:

665

My Lord, what makes you say I've placed this out of mind? Or do I need to have my dignity defined.? Line 652 refers agin to her sister, Ariadne. Lines 665-666, Phèdre recalls she is a monarch. As if both were mesmerized, Hippolyte is in something of a state of shock as it dawns on him as to what he is hearing from Phèdre. Subtly, Phèdre's movements and spare gestures are in harmony with the pounding of the ever more intense delivery of the Alexandrines; Phèdre moves ever closer to Hippolyte. He recoils, with measured steps to maintain some distance between himself and Phèdre. In the whole text of Racine's PHÈDRE, there are only two or three run-on lines.

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Hippolyte Madame, pardonnez. J'avoue en rougissant Que j'accusais à tort un discours innocent. Ma honte ne peut plus soutenir votre vue; Et je vais . . . Phèdre 670

675

680

Ah, cruel! tu m'as trop entendue! Je t'en ai dit assez pour te tirer d'erreur. Eh bien! connais donc Phèdre et toute sa fureur: J'aime! Ne pense pas qu'au moment que je t'aime, Innocente à mes yeux, je m'approuve moi-même; Ni que du fol amour qui trouble ma raison Ma lâche complaisance ait nourri le poison; Objet infortuné des vengeances célestes, Je m'abhorre encor plus que tune me détestes. Les dieux m'en sont témoins, ces dieux qui dans mon Ont allumé le feu fatal à tout mon sang; [flanc Ces dieux qui se sont fait une gloire cruelle De séduire le cur d'une faible mortelle.

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Hippolyte:

670

Madame, please forgive me. See how my face turns red, For I misunderstood exactly what you said. My shame cannot stand here and let you look at me; I go . . . (He makes a move, as if to escape.) Phèdre: (She bars his passage.)

675

680

You understood to well. O cruelty! I must have said enough to make it all quite clear. Well than, prepare to see Phèdre in her fury here. (Hippolyte turns his head away, down stage.) I am in love. xAnd yet, seeing this sentiment, Do not believe I think that I am innocent, Or that the passion which is poisoning my mind Has been encouraged by complacence of some kind. I am the sick victim of the spite of the skies; I mightily despise myself in my own eyes. The gods are my witness, the same great gods who lit A fire in my blood and then kept fanning it; These gods who take delight in their deceit and seek To seduce and undo a woman who is weak. Lines 670-673, Phèdre experiences the greatest of difficulty, in confessing her passion The voice is always fully supported: never pushed to its limit; always creating the illusion that there is vocal force in reserve, the resources: physical, vocal, and emotional in reserve are limitless. Then in the classic: this is a god or a demigod The insecure man, the impotent man (or woman) shouts and forces to the limits of power. Omnipotence the heroic of classical tragedy is created by the illusion of limitless power.

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PHÈDRE: The wife of Theseus dares to love Hippolyte.

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Phèdre (Cont.)

685

690

695

700

705

710

Toi-même en ton esprit rappelle le passé: C'est peu de t'avoir fui, cruel, je t'ai chassé; J'ai voulu te paraître odieuse, inhumaine; Pour mieux te résister, j'ai recherché ta haine. De quoi m'ont profité mes inutiles soins? Tu me haissais plus, je ne t'aimais pas moins; Tes malheurs te prêtaient encor de nouveaux charmes. J'ai langui, j'ai séché dans les feux, dans les larmes: Il suffit de tes yeux pour fen persuader, Si res yeux un moment pouvaient me regarder . . . Que dis-je? cet aveu que je viens de te faire, Cet aveu si honteux, le crois-tu volontaire? Tremblante pour un ills que je n'osais trahir, Je te venais prier de ne le point hair: Faibles projets d'un cur trop plein de ce qu'il aime! Hélas! je ne t'ai pu parler que de toi-même! Venge-toi, punis-moi d'un odieux amour: Digne ills du héros qui t'a donné le jour, Délivre l'univers d'un monstre qui t'irrite. La veuve de Thésée ose aimer Hippolyte! [per; Crois-moi, ce monstre affreux ne doit point t'échapVoilà mon cur: c'est là que ta main doit frapper. Impatient déjà d'expier son offense, Au-devant de ton bras je le sens qui s'avance. Frappe. Ou si tu le crois indigne de tes coups; Si ta haine m'envie un supplice si doux, Ou si d'un sang trop vil ta main serait trempée, Au défaut de ton bras prête-moi ton épée; Donne.


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685

690

695

700

705

710

Now you yourself know well what happened in the past: I chased you from this place and made you an outcast. I tried to show myself so odious to you, By being hateful and inhuman in your view. What good was this great war I waged without success? You hated me much more, I did not love you less. Your sadness gave your face a charm beyond your years. I languished, I burned up, in fire and in tears. Your eyes could witness to the truth of what I say, If you could lift them up and make them look my way. What am I saying now? have I become so ill I could make such a vow, and of my own free will? I fear for my one son, I must protect this child, And so I had begun to ask you to be mild. The feeble weakness of a heart to full too speak! Alas, for it is you and you alone I seek. Revenge yourself, my Lord, on my disgraceful shame. Son of a hero who first gave you your own name, Here is your chance to kill another beast of Crete: / / The wife of Theseus dares to love Hippolyte! This terrible monster should not escape you now. Here is my heart, right here, it's waiting for your blow. It is impatient now to pay for its foul lust, It feels your hand reach out and make the fatal thrust. So strike. Or if you think your hatred should abstain From granting me at least this last sweet peaceful pain, Or if you think my blood would soil your hand, my Lord, Then do not make a move, yet let me have your sword. Now. Phèdre is like one possessed. The tirade builds inexorably. Hippolyte, with his face turned away from Phèdre, seems frozen, immobile. Lines 700-701, mark the crescendo of the tirade. Then abrupt stop and pause before line 702. Lines 702-711, Phèdre hazards all, in ecstasy and with abandonment. The word 'Now' comes forth from Phèdre with the shock of a clap of thunder. Having drawn Hippolyte's short sword, she offers him the blade with which to kill her.

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THÉRAMÈNE: Why do you stand there with no color, speech or-sword?

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none Que faites-vous, madame! Justes dieux! Mais on vient. Evitez des témoins odieux; Venez, rentrez, fuyez une honte certaine. Scène VI: Hippolyte, Théramène. Théramiène 715

Est-ce Phèdre qui fuit, ou plutôt qu'on entraîne? Pourquoi, seigneur, pourquoi ces marques de douleur Je vous vois sans épée, interdit, sans couleur [leur? Hippolyte

720

Théramène, fuyons. Ma surprise est extrême. Je ne puis sans horreur me regarder moi-même. Phèdre . . . Mais non, grands dieux! qu'en un profond Cet horrible secret demeure enseveli! [oubli

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Oenone: (Continued.) (Pulling Phèdre back with her left hand; her right arm is around her waist.) What is this, Madame? By all gods far and near! (She crosses with Phèdre to right of ramp.) (Stops.) But someone comes. xQuickly, you must not be found here; (She drops Phèdre arm, pulling her up to platform center.) (Phèdre looks over her shoulder at Hippolyte) Come, xlet us leave this place of so much shame and dread. (Both exeunt right from platform, as THÉRAMÈNE enters.) (Hippolyte turns away down right, crossing down three steps.) Scene Six: Hippolyte, Théramène Théramène: (He crosses to Column #4.) 715

xIs PHÈDRE fleeing from us, or is she being led? And what are all these signs of suffering, my Lord?x (Crossing right to Hippolyte.) Why do you stand here with no color, speech or sword? Hippolyte: (Turning to Théramène.)

720

xWe must fly, Théramène. I feel such wild surprise, I find that I despise myself in my own eyes. / / (Turning to look out down right.) Phèdre . . . / / / / No, xby all the gods! Let this deep secret be Kept hidden in the dark through all eternity. Oenone forcefully takes the sword from her In the spirit of the classicism of the seventeenth century, there is the greatest economy of physical contact between characters. When contact between characters (actors) occurs, it is climactic

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Théramène Si vous voulez partir, la voile est préparée. Mais Athènes, seigneur, s'est déjà déclarée; Ses chefs ont pris les voix de toutes ses tribus: Votre frère l'emporte, et Phèdre ale dessus. Hippolyte 725

Phèdre! Théramène Un héraut chargé des volontés d'Athènes De l'état en ses mains vient remettre les rênes. Son fils est roi, seigneur. Hippolyte Dieux, qui la connaissez, Est-ce donc sa vertu que vous récompensez?

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Théramène: (Turning left, crossing in.) If you are going to go, the ship is in the port My Lord, / before you board, listen to this report: (Crossing in.) xAthens has made her choice, the voices all avow Your brother is the one. Phèdre has full power now. Hippolyte: 725

(Turning up stage.) xphèdre? Théamène: An athenian is coming with a scroll To put into her hands, which gives complete control. Her son is King, my Lord. Hippolyte: (Crying out, he crosses down center two steps.) You who look down on us, (Hippolyte turns to Théramène.) Is she so virtuous that you reward her thus?x / (Théramène crosses down right center on a level with Hippolyte) Théramène does not learn what has upset Hippolyte He assumes that his loss of Athens may trouble deeply Hippolyte.

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Théramène 730

Cependant un bruit sourd veut que le roi respire: On prétend que Thésée a paru dans l'Epire. Mais moi, qui l'y cherchai, seigneur, je sais trop bien . . . Hippolyte

735

N'importe; écoutons tout, et ne négligeons rien. Examinons ce bruit, remontons à sa source: S'il ne mérite pas d'interrompre ma course, Partons; et, quelque prix qu'il en puisse coûter, Mettons le sceptre aux mains dignes de le porter.

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Théramène: 730

However, now they say the King is still alive, That he is in Épire, is well and seems to thrive.x (Hippolyte crosses up left two steps; Théramène stops him) But I have sought him there, my Lord, and I know well . . . Hippolyte:

735

We must investigate whatever people tell. / / (Brightly.) Let us look into this, and trace it to its source: If it should prove untrue, I will pursue my course, (Quietly, and pensively) And we will go; xand so no matter what it takes, We'll choose the ruler who is best for all our sakes. (Both exit left.) End of Act II Line 729. marks an important transition Lines 733-736, Hippolyte delivers this slowly and deliberately Hippolyte is deeply troubled. Théramène, who has known him since birth, moves in to assuage his disturbed feelings Once again there is the foreshadowing of a turn in the action Theseus may, after all, be alive

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Acte Troisieme Scène I: Phèdre, none. Phèdre

740

745

Ah! que l'on porte ailleurs les honneurs qu'on m'enImportune, peux-tu souhaiter qu'on me voie? [voie: De quoi viens-tu flatter mon esprit désolé? Cache-moi bien plutôt: je n'ai que trop parlé. Mes fureurs au-dehors ont osé se répandre: J'ai dit ce que jamais on ne devait entendre. Ciel! comme il m'écoutait! Par combien de détours L'insensible a longtemps éludé mes discours! Comme il ne respirait qu'une retraite prompte! Et combien sa rougeur a redoublé ma honte! Pourquoi détournais-tu mon funeste dessein?

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Act Three Scene One: Phèdre, Oenone (At the rise of the curtain both are up stage center on platform.) Phèdre: (Phèdre crosses down to column #4 as Oenone crosses to column #3.)

740

745

xI wish that they would take this fame and praise away! Now how can you make me see anyone today? What have you come to say to comfort my despair? (Crossing left a step.) I spoke my secret mind, and I should hide somewhere.x My passions all broke out more than I meant to show. (Oenone crosses down stage center a step.) I have already said what no one else should know.x (Phèdre stares down right where Hippolyte had been.) God, how he listened so! and how he seemed to be Distracted and obtuse, misunderstanding me! And how he tried to find some safe way to escape! (Oenone crosses to Phèdre,) His blushing bothered me and made my shamex take shape! (Recoiling.) xWhy did you keep me from my fatal last request? Phèdre enters, turning restlessly. Line 743, Phèdre sees where Hippolyte had first stood Line 747, Phèdre turns speaking to Oenone who has just crossed to her In classical acting the actor's movements and gestures are full, large, controlled, but economical and measured in rhythm with the verbal rhythms. The fingers of the actors in gestures are not spread, but held together

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Phèdre (Cont.)

750

Hélas! quand son eépée allait chercher mon sein, A-t-il pâli pour mòi? mè l'a-t-il arrachée? Il suffit que ma main l'ait une fois touchée, Je l'ai rendue horrible à ses yeux inhumains; Et ce fer malheureux profanerait ses mains. none

755

Ainsi, dans vos malheurs ne songeant qu'à vous plaindre, Vous nourrissez un feu qu'il vous faudrait éteindre. Ne vaudrait-il pas mieux, digne sang de Minos, Dans de plus nobles soins chercher votre repos; Contre un ingrat qui plaît recourir à la fuite, Régner, et de l'état embrasser la conduite? Phèdre

760

Moi, régner! Moi, ranger un éat sous ma loi Quand ma faible raison ne règne plus sur moi! Lorsque j'ai de roes sens abandonné l'empire! Quand sous un joug honteux à peine je respire! Quand je me meurs!


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750

(Crossing down to right center.) (Oenone 'dresses' stage) Alas! when his great sword was resting on my breast,x Did he grow pale for me?-or snatch it from my grasp? (Phèdre stops. Then recoils.) No, no, it was enough for my proud hand to clasp The handle, and I made that instrument abhorred Forever in the eyes of this inhuman Lord. Oenone: (Crossing down right to Phèdre.)

755

Your own misfortunes soar and cause you to complain, You feed a fire which you must put out again. (Crossing in.) Would it not be discreet and wise as Minos was, To have much nobler cares than your self-pity does? Instead of mourning for this wretch who flies his fate, (Stepping in) Be Queen, and concentrate on the affairs of State. Phèdre: (Sadly.) (Stepping back and taking Oenone's hand.)

760

Be Queen! and make the State come under my strong rule, When I myself stand here, a weak and lawless fool! When I have lost control of the whole world of sense! (Stepping with right foot with her back to Oenone.) When I can hardly breath, xmy shame is so intense! (Collapsing on Oenone's shoulder with her head facing right) / / / When I am dying. Line 758, demonstrates, once again, the tragdy is by no means solely a personal or domestic crises: politics are ever in the thoughts of all characters Despite the turmoil that is within, the style of PHÈDREis the triumph of order and restraint over these volcanic emotions seeking to erupt

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none Fuyez. Phèdre Je ne le puis quitter. none Vous l'osâtes bannir, vous n'osez l'éviter? Phèdre 765

770

Il n'est plus temps: il sait mes ardeurs insensées. De l'austère pudeur les bornes sont passées: J'ai déclaré ma honte aux yeux de mon vainqueur, Et l'espoir malgré moi s'est glissé dans mon cur. Toi-même, rappelant ma force défaillante, Et mon âme déjà sur mes lèvres errante, Par tes conseils flatteurs tu m'as su ranimer: Tu m'as fait entrevoir que je pouvais l'aimer.

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Oenone: / Fly. Phèdre: (Whispered, turning her head to the front.) / / / I cannot turn and run. Oenone: (Not understanding.) You dared to banish him, whom now you dare not shun Phèdre: (Crossing down stage, slowly, two steps.) 765

770

There's no more time for that. He knows my lust at last. All thoughts of modesty and patient tact are past. I have declared my guilt to his proud hero's eyes; / / (Phèdre faces front.) (Oenone crosses down to Phèdre.) Hope stole into my heart, I could not hold my sighs (Recoiling, Phèdre turns to Oenone.) And it was you yourself, ignoring my complaint, Reviving my poor life when I was growing faint. With Flattery and guile, who told me your grand plan: (Oenone shrinks back.) You made me seem to see / that I could love this man. (Phèdre turning profile away from Oenone.) Oenone, on lines 769-772, shrinks back from the merciless atack of Phèdre. Phèdre continues to relive the scene that had just passed with Hippolyte. Her glance strays repeatedly to the spot over to her right where she had stripped herself of all restraint and had confessed to him her love. At moments, ignoring Oenone, she is like a sleepwalker. Absorbed, lost, she moves to the spot where she bared her soul.

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none

775

780

Héas! de vos malheurs innocente ou coupable, De quoi pour vous sauver n'étais-je point capable? Mais si jamais l'offense irrita vos esprits, Pouvez-vous d'un superbe oublier les mépris? Avec quels yeux cruels sa rigueur obstinée Vous laissait à ses pieds peu s'en faut prosternée! Que son farouche orgueil le rendait odieux! Que Phèdre en ce moment n'avait-elle roes yeux! Phèdre

785

none, il peut quitter cet orgueil quite blesse; Nourri dans les forêts, il en a la rudesse. Hippolyte, endurci par de sauvages lois, Entend parler d'amour pour la previère fois: Peut-être sa surprise a causé son silence; Et nos plaintes peut-être ont trop de violence. none Songez qu'une barbare en son sein l'a formé. Phèdre Quoique Scythe et barbare, elle a pourtant aimé.


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Oenone: (Taking two steps back.)

775

780

xAlas! these pains are not something I could contrive, And what would I not do to make you stay alive? If insults have hurt you, and made you try to hide, Could you forget the scorn of such a haughty pride? With cruel and stubborn eyes, his obstinate conceit Watched as you almost fell and lay there at his feet! How his great vanity made me hate him again! If only you had seen, as I could see him then! Phèdre:

785

Oenone, he could subdue this pride that bothers you. His ways are just as wild as those woods where he grew. This Hipolyte is rude and savage in his prime, And now he heard of love perhaps for the first time. Perhaps his great surprise gives rise to his silence, And our complaints perhaps have too much violence. Oenone: (Crossing up a step.) Remember he was formed and born from a strange womb. Phèdre: That Scythian knew well how true love could consume. Defensive, Oenone speaks firmly, as once she did to Phèdre as a child. All is repressed, never forgetting Phèdre is Queen, but she fumes. Lines 784-786, Speaking slowly, Phèdre makes excuses for Hippolyte His hearing of love, perhaps for the first time, is ''the wave that breaks on the shore'' Line 788, The Scythian is Hippolyte's Amazon mother. This is a scene packed with dramatic irony: Phèdre has no knowledge of the love of Hippolyte for Aricie that has just revealed itself. With line 785 she tragically indulges in wishful thinking. All she has known of young and chaste Hippolyte is his commitment to the hunt. A smile crosses, momentarily, her face as she gives utterance to line 785

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none Il a pour tout le sexe une haine fatale. Phèdre 790

795

800

805

Je ne me verrai point préférer de rivale. Enfin tous tes conseils ne sont plus de saison: Sers ma fureur, none, et non point ma raison. Il oppose à l'amour un cur inaccessible; Cherchons pour l'attaquer quelque endroit plus sensible. Les charmes d'un empire ont paru le toucher: Athénes l'attirait, il n'a pu s'en cacher; Déjà de ses vaisseaux la pointe était tournée, Et la voile flottait aux vents abandonnée. Va trouver de ma part ce jeune ambitieux, none; fais briller la couronne à ses yeux. Qu'il mette sur son front le sacré diadème; Je ne veux que l'honneur de l'attacher moi-même. Cédons-lui ce pouvoir que je ne puis garder. Il instruira mon fils dans l'art de commander; Peut-être il voudra bien lui tenir lieu de père: Je mets sous son pouvoir et le fils et la mère. Pour le fléchir enfin tente tous les moyens: Tes discours trouveront plus d'accès que les miens;


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Oenone: He has a fatal hate which sets our sex apart. Phèdre: 790

795

800

805

Then I shall never see a rival in his heart. But all of your advice is overdue and blind. Now serve my love, Oenone, and never mind my mind. This man opposes love because his heart is hard: We must find some new way to gain his kind regard. (Oenone crosses down right center on a level with Phèdre.) At least the lure of rule appealed to his high pride; Athens attracted him, that much he could not hide; Already all his ships are turned towards that great State, The sails are in the wind, the men can hardly wait. (Turning to Oenone.) Find this ambitious youth whose heart is in the skies, Oenone; and make the crown shine brightly in his eyes. The sacred diadem is his possession now; I only ask that I might place it on his brow. Give him the power now which is not in my hands He will instruct my son in how to give commands; Perhaps he may consent to play the father's role. The mother and the son are placed in his control. (Crossing right to Oenone, one step.) Use every trick you know to move him to my view: Your words will do more good than mine could ever do. Lines 790-792, Phèdre moves as if carved from marble, head in line with the body. Lines 799-806, Crossing to Oenone, Phèdre musters false hopes, urging Oenone to appeal to Hippolyte's political ambitions, leading to his being a father to her son, hence her husband

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Phèdre (Cont.) 810

Presse, pleure, gémis; peins-lui Phèdre mourante; Ne rougis point de prendre une voix suppliante. Je t'avouerai de tout; je n'espère qu'en toi. Va: j'attends ton retour pour disposer de moi. Scène II: Phèdre. Phèdre

815

O toi, qui vois la honte où je suis descendue, Implacable Vénus, suis-je assez confondue! Tune saurais plus loin pousser ta cruauté. Ton triomphe est parfait; tous tes traits ont porté. Cruelle, si tu veux une gloire nouvelle, Attaque un ennemi qui te soit plus rebelle. Hippolyte te fuit; et, bravant ton courroux,

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810

(Crossing up to Oenone.) So plead and weep for me; say Phèdre grows weak and dies; And do not be ashamed of begging with your cries. (Phèdre takes Oenone by the shoulder.) (Oenone crosses left to column #5; she turns pleadingly) You can do anything; I send my hopes with you. / / So go: I will wait here to learn what I must do. (Oenone exits left) Scene Two: Phèdre (alone) Phèdre:

815

O being who can see the shame of my rebuff, Implacable Venus, am I not low enough? But you should not prolong this useless cruelty My downfall is complete; for you have wounded me. Now if you truly choose your glory should be known, Attack another heart more stubborn than my own. This Hippolyte flees you; defying your decrees, The tension mounts The Alexandrines roll on, wave after mounting wave Phèdre has capitulated totally to her obsession. Desperate, she is prepared to give all the throne, power, full control over herself and her son Racine, knowing the heart as few poets have, understood profoundly the lengths to which the lover spurned is prepared to go. Lines 813-814, Phèdre talks to herself. Line 816, Phèdre turns, stops, but does not pause. Lines 817-818, Phèdre may take her time here. She crosses to where she had confronted Hippolyte

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Phèdre (Cont.) 820

Jamais à tes autels n'a fléchi les genoux; Ton nom semble offenser ses superbes oreilles: Déesse, venge-toi; nos causes sont pareilles. Qu'il aime . . . Mais déjà tu reviens sur tes pas, none! On me déteste; on ne t'écoute pas! Scène III: Phèdre, none. none

825

Il faut d'un vain amour étouffer la pensée, Madame; rappelez votre vertu passée: Le roi, qu'on a cru mort, va paraitre * à vos yeux; Thésée est arrivé, Thésée est en ces lieux.

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Phèdre: (Continued) 820

He never sees your shrine nor kneels down on his knees. He has a pride of mind your name cannot assuage. Goddess, avenge yourself: we share the same outrage! (Crossing left a step as Oenone reenters.) xLet him love xHere you are, you have come back to me, (Turning to Oenone.) (Oenone crosses right center.) Oenone? xThen he hates me; he would not hear your plea. Scene Three: Phèdre, Oenone Oenone: (Crossing to center stage.)

825

Put out of mind this lust, this love that must not be, (Taking a step in to Phèdre.) Madame. Instead, recall your virtue instantly. (Phèdre crosses left two steps to Oenone.) xThe King they said was dead is very much alive; They know Theseus is here for they saw him arrive. Lines 820-824, Phèdre is obsessed. Line 823, Phèdre advances as if to force the Goddess of Love to make Hippolyte love. Line 824, Phèdre is to deliver the line rapidly Phèdre, alone, figuratively she hugs herself as if against a chill. As a demi-goddess, herself, she speaks to the Goddess of Love, Venus, with her eyes raised but on a level. She is no suppliant mortal In this soliloquy Phèdre is deeply within the situation: "make the audience feel the utterances as coming out for the very first time.' The middle of the tragedy has been reached; there is that brief, ominous calm before the storm breaks which it does with Oenone's catastrophic news.

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none (Cont.) 830

Le peuple, pour le voir, court et se précipite. Je sortais par votre ordre, et cherchais Hippolyte, Lorsque jusques au ciel mille cris élancés . . . Phèdre Mon époux est vivant, none; c'est assez. J'ai fait l'indigne aveu d'un amour qui l'outrage; Il vit: je ne veux pas en savoir davantage. none Quoi! Phèdre

835

Je te l'ai prédit; mais tu n'as pas voulu: Sur mes justes remords tes pleurs ont prévalu. Je mourais ce matin digne d'être pleurée; J'ai suivi tes conseils, je meurs déshonorée. none Vous mourez?


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Oenone: (Continued.) (Turning her head left.) 830

So now they rush and run to see his famous face. I searched for Hippolyte in almost every place, (Raising her left hand) But then a thousand cries went x flying to the skies . . . / Phèdre: (Stopping her with her left hand on oenone's left arm.) My husband lives, Oenone, give me no more replies. I have already sworn a love he must abhor. He lives: that is enough, now I must know no more. Oenone:

835

What? (Crossing up left center to Phèdre.) Phèdre: I predicted this; but you preferred to doubt. My own remorse was weak, and your weeping won out. If I had only died this morning, all would mourn; But I took your advice, so I must die forlorn. Oenone: (Crossing in a step.) You are dying? Line 832. Phèdre's gesture stops Oenone; Phèdre may take all the time she wants to reply to Oenone Line 834, crossing down stage of Oenone, as if to exit to the palace, Phèdre moves as if she is bent on killing herself Line 835, Phèdre picks up the line. and with it attacks Oenone. Lines 837-838, Phèdre's mood changes abruptly. The storm has broken. The first half of the tragedy has been reached with the news that Oenone brings. With the return of Theseus, the King, politics no longer plays a part in the action

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Phèdre 840

845

850

855

Juste ciel! qu'ai-je fait aujourd'hui! Mon époux va paraitre *, et son fils avec lui! Je verrai le témoin de ma flamme adultère Observer de quel front j'ose aborder son père, Le cur gros de soupirs qu'il n'a point écoutés, L'il humide de pleurs par l'ingrat rebutés! Penses-tu que, sensible à l'honneur de Thésée, Il lui cache l'ardeur dont je suis embrasée? Laissera-t-il trahir et son père et son roi? Pourra-t-il contenir l'horreur qu'il a pour moi? Il se tairait en vain: je sais mes perfidies, none, et ne suis point de ces femmes hardies Qui, goûtant dans le crime une tranquille paix, Ont su se faire un front qui ne rougit jamais. Je connais mes fureurs, je les rappelle toutes: Il me semble déjà que ces murs, que ces voûtes Vont prendre la parole, et, prêts à m'accuser, Attendent mon époux pour le désabuser. Mourons. De tant d'horreurs qu'un trépas me délivre. Est-ce un malheur si grand que de cesser de vivre?

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Phèdre: 840

845

850

855

My god! What did I do today! My husband and his son already on their way! This witness who has seen all my deceitful charms Will watch my features greet his father to my arms, My heart still filled with sighs which he would not accept, My eyes still wet with tears which he could not respect. (Turning her head to Oenone; Oenone crosses to Phèdre.) To keep the self-respect of Theseus clean and free, Will he now try to hide this love inside of me? (Crossing down center two steps.) Will he let me betray his father and his King? Can he contain his rage at this dishonoring? No, he could not be still. Besides I know my crime, Oenone, but I have not grown hard in my lifetime, Like some who even seem to take delight in blame, Who wear a smiling face and never blush with shame. (Crossing down right.) I know my madness now, I can recall it all. (At up right center, Phèdre turns to look up stage center.) I feel the ceiling sees, and each great vacant wall Awaits my husband's face, and when Theseus appears, They will speak my disgrace to his astonished ears. (Crossing up to Oenone.) (Oenone takes her arm.) O let me die, let death deliver me instead.x (Phèdre lifts her head.) I wonder can it be so dreadful to be dead? Line 845, Phèdre turns her head to Oenone, as Oenone comes to her. Line 849, Phèdre pushes Oenone away. Line 857, Phèdre reaches for Oenone, and Oenone moves to support her. Phèdre is more than conflicted; she is in a state of panic. She suffocates. Death seems the only way out of the dilemma. Up to the entrance of Theseus the scene is played rapidly, both characters being driven by fear.

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Phèdre (Cont.) 860

865

La mort aux malheureux ne cause point d'effroi: Je ne crains que le nom que je laisse après moi. Pour mes tristes enfants quel affreux héritage! Le sang de Jupiter doit enfler leur courage; Mais, quelque juste orgueil qu'inspire un sang si beau, Le crime d'une mère est un pesant fardeau. Je tremble qu'un discours, hélas! trop véritable, Un jour ne leur reproche une mère coupable. Je tremble qu'opprimés de ce poids odieux L'un ni l'autre jamais n'osent lever les yeux. none

870

Il n'en faut point douter, je les plains l'un et l'autre; Jamais crainte ne fut plus juste que la vôtre. Mais à de tels affronts pourquoi les exposer? Pourquoi contre vous-même allez-vous déposer? C'en est fait: on dira que Phèdre, trop coupable, De son époux trahi fuit l'aspect redoutable.

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Phèdre: (Continued.) 860

865

Death is not terrible to those in misery. I only fear the name which I leave after me. (Crossing down right center as Oenone follows.) My wretched children shall inherit this chagrin! The blood of Jupiter should help them to begin; And yet despite their pride in such a great estate, A mother's wickedness can be a hateful weight. / (Crossing right to proscenium.) I fear that they shall hear, alas! the fatal truth, Their mother had such shame when they were in their youth. I fear in later years, when this guilt multiplies, That neither one of them will dare to lift his eyes. Oenone: (Crossing down to Phèdre, stopping one step above her.)

870

Believe me, I agree, their future makes me grieve; I feel you are quite right to fear what you perceive. But why expose them to such terrible insults? And why accuse yourself of such grotesque results? That's that: for they will say that Phèdre, so filled with shame, Is racing to escape her husband's rage and blame.x (Crossing right, one step, and profile look to the right) Line 864, marks a transition. Lines 869-870, Oenone rocks her gently as if she were a baby. Lines 871-876, without haste, Oenone says this to Phèdre quietly. As Oenone is speaking, Phèdre moves, listens, reacts. Mention of Phèdre's children prompts Oenone to see the way to regain control over Phèdre. Oenone has achieved 'her second wind' She rallies. All her guile, motivated by love of Phèdre, comes to the fore, enabling her to be her most persuasive

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OENONE: Then strike first, and have the bravery.

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none (Cont.) 875

880

Hippolyte est heureux qu'aux dépens de vos jours Vous-même en expirant appuyez ses discours. A votre accusateur que pourrai-je répondre? Je serai devant lui trop facile à confondre: De son triomphe affreux je le verrai jouir, Et conter votre honte à qui voudra l'ouir. Ah! que plutôt du ciel la flamme me dévore! Mais, ne me tgrompez point, vous est-il cher encore? De quel il voyez-vous ce prince audacieux? Phèdre Je le vois comme un monstre effroyable à mes yeux. none

885

Pourquoi donc lui céder une victoire entière? Vous le craignez: osez l'accuser la première Du crime dont il peut vous charger aujourd'hui. Qui vous démentira? Tout parle contre lui:

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Oenone: (Continued.) 875

880

And Hippolyte is glad to see the end of you, For by your dying you support his point of view. Now how could I reply to these things he accused? Before him I would be too easily confused. Then I would have to see this Hippolyte rejoice And tell your tale to all with ears to hear his voice. (Crossing right to Phèdre.) I wish I were struck by some fire from the sky! / / Now do not lie to me, does he still make you sigh? How do you see this Prince, so boastful, so upright? Phèdre: (Facing three-quarters front) I see him as a beast, made frightful to my sight. Oenone:

885

Then why should he achieve an easy victory? You fear him. / Then strike first, and have the bravery To say he did this crime which he may lay to you. For who will disagree, and claim it is not true? Lines 881-883, Oenone realizes that they are on the edge of a catastrophe and, as she crosses to Phèdre, that she must find a new solution. Lines 885-892, As at the end of Act I, Oenone takes charge, affirmatively, like drops of poison she presents each rationalization for what she proposes to do. In gesture as well as in movement just as in the vocal expression, there is nothing of the everyday. Thus the purity of style is safe-guarded. There is a great economy of language; the action is crystalized In order that this purity of style be totally sustained, the actresses must then move in a manner that may have nothing of the prosaic or ordinary in it. Their gestures, like the Alexandrines they speak and the actions they make, must then be calculated, selected and rhythmical. If the actresses perform here in an everyday, ordinary (naturalistic) manner, the spectator is likely to ask himself why the characters are speaking in such an un-naturalistic way. The magic of theatre, the willing suspension of disbelief, is lacking.

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none (Cont.) 890

Son épée en vos mains heureusement laissée, Notre trouble présent, votre douleur passée, Son père par vos cris dès longtemps prévenu, Et déjà son exil par vous-même obtenu. Phèdre Moi, que j'ose opprimer et noircir l'innocence! none

895

900

Mon zèle n'a besoin que de votre silence. Tremblante comme vous, j'en sens quelques remords. Vous me verriez plus prompte affronter mille morts. Mais, puisque je vous perds sans ce triste remède, Votre vie est pour moi d'un prix à qui tout cède: Je parlerai. Thésée, aigri par mes avis, Bornera sa vengeance à l'exil de son fils:

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Oenone: (Continued.) 890

How fortunate his sword is left here in your hands! All know your present woe, and each man understands His father heard your words whenever you complained, And it was due to you his exile was obtained. Phèdre: (Crosses down stage a step) How can I injure one so innocent of sin? Oenone: (Firmly.)

895

900

My purpose only needs your silence to begin. I tremble as you do, and I feel some remorse.x (Crosses in up of Phèdre.) To die a thousand times would be a better course. But I lose you unless you let me have my way, (Looking off left center.) And your life is to me worth more than I can say. (Turning to Phèdre.) I will speak out. Theseus, when my fierce tale is done, (Phèdre slowly turns her head down stage left.) Will limit his revenge to banishing his son. (Phèdre raises left hand slowly.) Line 893, Finding terrible what Oenone is saying, she utters the line as an exclamation Lines 894-909, Internalizing her emotions, and warming to her projected strategy, Oenone forcefully but with measured delivery outlines what she is to do. Line 899, Oenone looks to the right to see that no one may overhear, and without too much projection, she says the climatic: 'I will speak out.' Phèdre clasps her hand, giving Oenone a tacit, 'Yes' Phèdre has been so deeply preoccupied, she is groggy. A small part of her has taken in all that Oenone has been saying; Oenone has hypnotized her. With line 893, Phèdre does protest, but to no avail. Oenone is fiercely the stronger at this moment.

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none (Cont.)

905

Un pèe, en punissant, madame, est toujours père; Un supplice léger suffit à sa colère. Mais, le sang innocent dût-il être versé, Que ne demande point votre honneur menacé? C'est un trésor trop cher pour oser le commettre. Quelque loi qu'il vous dicte, il faut vous y soumettre, Madame; et pour sauver votre honneur combattu, Il faut immoler tout, et même la vertu. On vient; je vois Thésée. Phèdre

910

Ah! je vois Hippolyte; Dans ses yeux insolents je vois ma perte écrite. Fais ce que tu voudras, je m'abandonne à toi. Dans le trouble où je suis, je ne puis rien pour moi.

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Oenone: (Continued.)

905

A father, in great rage, xstill has a father's mind: (Oenone takes Phèdre's hand.) And a light punishment is all that he will find. But if in spite of all some guiltless blood must spill, Why should your honor put such things beyond your will? For your integrity should not be thrown away, And it has certain laws you know you must obey, Madame; / and so to save your threatened honor, you Must give up everything, / perhaps your virtue too. (Oenone crosses up center to center line.) Who's there? xI see Theseus. Phèdre: (Crossing up to Oenone, taking her right hand with her left hand, turning three-quarters front)

910

xAh! I see Hippolyte; In his cruel eyes I see my downfall is complete. Do what you want with me, my heart is torn and sore. (Oenone steps back to right column #3, bowing her head.) The way things are right now, xI can do nothing more. Lines 909-912, Phèdre must keep the lines moving. The poetic structure of Phèdre is the Alexandrine; the Alexandrine is a calculated, regular series of pulsations. Thus one may say it is not everyday speech. It is notated with a rhythm, as is music.

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Scène IV: Thésée, Phèdre, Hippolyte, Théramène, none. Thésée La fortune à mes vux cesse d'être opposée, Madame, et dans vos bras met . . . Phèdre 915

920

Arrêtez, Thésée, Et ne profanez point des transports si charmants: Je ne mérite plus ces doux empressements; Vous êtes offensé. La fortune jalouse N'a pas en votre absence épargnée votre épouse. Indigne de vous plaire et de vous approcher, Je ne dois désormais songer qu'à me cacher.

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Scene Four: Theseus, Hippolyte, Phèdre, Oenone, Théramène (Theseus, followed by Hippolyte and Théramène enters left.) Theseus: I am no longer torn by the strong force of fate, Madame, and to your arms I . . . Phèdre:

915

920

Theseus, you must wait,x (Crossing to column #5.) Do not profane your name by saying anything, For I do not deserve these greetings that you bring. You are greatly disgraced. Fate labored to debase Your helpless wife while you were absent from this place. Unworthy of your words, and of your fine high pride, From now on I must find the safest way / to hide. (Turning to Oenone she crosses up ramp.) (She exits right on platform.) Lines 914-917, Phèdre doesn't look at Theseus. Throughout the speech she stands stiffly Lines 918-920, are spoken very softly. Phèdre has already withdrawn physically.

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Scène V: Thésée, Hippolyte, Théamène. Thésée Quel est l'étrange accueil qu'on fait à votre père, Mon fils? Hippolyte

925

Phèdre peut seule expliquer ce mystèe. Mais, si rues vux ardents vous peuvent émouvoir, Permettez-moi, seigneur, de ne la plus revoir; Souffrez que pour jamais le tremblant Hippolyte Disparaisse des lieux que votre épouse habite. Thésée Vous, mon fils, me quitter? Hippolyte

930

Je ne la cherchais pas; C'est vous qui sur ces bords conduisites * ses pas. Vous daignâtes, seigneur, aux rives de Trézène Confier en partant Aricie et la reine: Je fus même chargé du soin de les garder.


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Scene Five: Theseus, Hippolyte, Théramène Theseus: (Gently.) (Taking center stage.) Why this excitement now at the mere sight of me, My son? Hippolyte:

925

/ / /Phèdre is the one to solve this mystery. / Yet if my earnest wish can move your brave heart, then Let me, my Lord depart and not see her again. Your son is so upset that he must disappear From any place your wife decides she may come near. Theseus: (Astonished.) My son, / you're going to go? Hippolyte:

930

I did not search for her: You were the one who made her coming here occur. When you had left Théramène, my Lord, by your decree, You also chose to leave the Queen and Aricie. I took good care of them according to my vow. Theseus is a demi-god, clear of eye, virile, still the passionate lover, now faithful to Phèdre and his family The rhythms the music dictate the rhythms of physical movement of the actor as well These physical movements need to be meshed, integrated with the verbal utterances. A demi-god moves as if his legs were of iron.

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Hippolyte (Cont.)

935

940

945

950

Mais quels soins désormais peuvent me retarder? Assez dans les forêts mon oisive jeunesse Sur de vils ennemis a montré son adresse: Ne pourrai-je, en fuyant un indigne repos, D'un sang plus glorieux teindre mes javelots? Vous n'aviez pas encore atteint l'âge où je touche, Déjà plus d'un tyran, plus d'un monstre farouche Avait de votre bras senti la pesanteur; Déjà de l'insolence heureux persécuteur, Vous aviez des deux mers assuré les rivages; Le libre voyageur ne craignait plus d'outrages; Hercule, respirant sur le bruit de vos coups, Déjà de son travail se reposait sur vous. Et moi, fils inconnu d'un si glorieux père, Je suis même encor loin des traces de ma mère! Souffrez que mon courage ose enfin s'occuper: Souffrez, si quelque monstre a pu vous échapper, Que j'apporte à vos pieds sa dépouille honorable; Ou que d'un beau trépas la mémoire durable, Eternisant des jours si noblement finis, Prouve à tout l'univers que j'étais votre fils.

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Hippolyte: (Continued.)

935

940

945

950

But what care makes me stay behind in this place now? / Far in the forests, I have wasted each new day By chasing frightened game and slaying my small prey. Why can't I fly from this great laziness I'm in, And find genuine blood to stain my javelin? / / When you were in your youth, and not yet my own age, Strange beasts were beaten down by your enormous rage, And tyrants felt the crush of your tremendous blow; The innocent were safe, and insolent brought low; You made peace on the sea, protecting all our shores. Travelers did not fear unnecessary wars; And Hercules, who heard the ordeals you went through, Could lay his labors down and rest because of you. And I, the unknown son who sees my father's fame, I even envy now my mother's honored name. Allow my courage now to be put to good use. If some beast escaped you and is still on the loose, Then let me try to set its corpse before your feet; Or if I have to die, / then let my death be sweet, So everyone will praise my days so bravely done, (He kneels.) And weigh my famous name, and say I was your son.x Line 935, Theseus stops Hippolyte Line 937, is a point of transition in Hippolyte's Tirade The noble Hippolyte is faced with the impossible. He falters, and he is unnerved Part of his motivation of evasion is to shield his beloved father from disgrace Searching for something to say, he blushes, speaking of heroism. As sub-text, his concealing what has happened is heroism; it is in part his rationalization for silence. Theseus is a keen observer of men; the extent to which his son is deeply troubled does not at all escape him.

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Thésée

955

960

965

970

Que vois-je? quelle horreur dans ces lieux répandue Fait fuir devant mes yeux ma famille éperdue? Si je reviens si craint et si peu désiré, O ciel, de ma prison pourquoi m'as-tu tiré? Je n'avais qu'un ami: son imprudente flamme Du tyran de l'Epire allait ravir la femme; Je servais à regret ses desseins amoureux; Mais le sort irrité nous aveuglait tous deux. Le tyran m'a surpris sans défense et sans armes. J'ai vu Pirithoüs, triste objet de mes larmes, Livré par ce barbare à des monstres cruels Qu'il nourrissait du sang des malheureux mortels. Moi-même il m'enferma dans des cavernes sombres, Lieux profonds et voisins de l'empire des ombres. Les dieux, après six mois, enfin m'ont regardé: J'ai su tromper les yeux de qui j'étais gardé. D'un perfide ennemi j'ai purgé la nature; A ses monstres lui-même a servi de pâture. Et lorsque avec transport je pense m'approcher De tout ce que les dieux m'ont laissé de plus cher;

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Theseus:

955

960

965

970

What madness greets my face?/ / what horror fills this place And makes my family fly off in such disgrace? / If I come back so feared, so little needed here, Gods why did you help me and make me persevere? I only had one friend. Desires plagued his life, He labored in Épire to take the tyrant's wife; I helped him to attain this passion of his mind; But an outrageous fate dazed us and made us blind. The tyrant stepped aside and took me by surprise. I saw Pirithöus destroyed before my eyes Thrown down and torn apart and eaten by strange beasts Who feed on human flesh in their atrocious feasts. I was shut far away in dark abysmal caves, A deep and dismal place, and underneath all graves. Then after six long months the gods came back to me: And so I could escape by my own subtlety. The tyrant tried to fight, and when I slaughtered him His beasts fell on his corpse and tore it limb from limb. So when with joy I thought at last I could come near The gift of all the gods that is to me most dear; Lines 962-964, are spoken by Theseus with full voice. Since Hippolyte's behavior strikes Theseus as false, his recital of his deeds enables him to mark time as he scrutinizes his son.

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Thésée (Cont.)

975

980

985

Que dis-je? quand mon âme, à soi-même rendue, Vient se rassasier d'une si chère rue, Je n'ai pour tout accueil que des frémissements; Tout fuit, tout se refuse à mes embrassements. Et moi-même, éprouvant la terreur que j'inspire, Je voudrais être encor dans les prisons d'Epire. Parlez. Phèdre se plaint que je suis outragé: Qui m'a trahi? pourquoi ne suis-je pas vengé? La Grèce, à qui mon bras fut tant de fois utile, A-t-elle au criminel accordé quelque asile? Vous ne répondez point! mon fils, mon propre fils, Est-il d'intelligence avec mes ennemis? Entrons: c'est trop garder un doute qui m'accable. Connaissons à la fois le crime et le coupable; Que Phèdre explique enfin le trouble où je la voi.

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Theseus: (Continued.)

975

980

985

What can I say? when I myself return all right, And eagerly expect to satisfy my sight, My only welcome is a trembling everywhere: All fly, and all refuse the greetings that I bear. And I, filled with the fear my coming here has brought, Wish I were still kept in the cave where I was caught. (Harshly.) Speak to me, / Phèdre has said that I have been disgraced. Who betrayed me? Why has the traitor not been traced? Would Greece, whom I have saved and served with by brave toil, Protect the guilty one on her own sacred soil? But you do not reply. Then could my own son be Collaborating with his father's enemy? (Sadly.) My mind is overwhelmed with doubt: I must find out The criminal and what the crime is all about. So Phèdre will have to say what has been troubling her. (Theseus exits up right.) The greeting he has received upon his return was so different from his expectations He is deeply troubled. Theseus' tirade, weighted, builds slowly to a crescendo He will get to the bottom of this oppressive gloom.

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Scène VI: Hippolyte, Théamène. Hippolyte

990

995

1000

Où tendait ce discours qui m'a glacé d'effroi? Phèdre, toujours en proie à sa fureur extrême, Veut-elle s'accuser et se perdre elle-même? Dieux - que dira le roi? Quel funeste poison L'amour a répandu sur toute sa maison! Moi-même, plein d'un feu que sa haine réprouve, Quel il m'a vu jadis, et quel il me retrouve! De noirs pressentiments viennent m'épouvanter. Mais l'innocence enfin n'a rien à redouter. Allons, cherchons ailleurs par quelle heureuse adresse Je pourrai de mon père émouvoir la tendresse, Et lui dire un amour qu'il peut vouloir troubler, Mais que tout son pouvoir ne saurait ébranler.

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Scene Six: Hippolyte, Théramène Hippolyte: (Rising.)

990

995

1000

Why does my blood run dry and make my senses blur? Is Phèdre now giving in to all her inner strife? Will she accuse herself and lose her right to life? Gods! what will the King say? What fatal hate has love Spread over all our heads, that we are dying of? And I, fed by a fire which he cannot allow, Think how he saw me once, and how he sees me now! / / Forebodings fill the air and terrify me here. But then, the innocent should have no cause to fear So let us go, and find some way to state my case And make my father say that I am in his grace, Because although he may despise this love today, No power in the world can make it go away. (Hippolyte exits right; Théramène exits left.) End of Act III Hippolyte is desperate All has become for him a nightmare He shudders as he gives way to fatal presentiments His exit right signals that he is seeking Aricie for some measure of solace.

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OENONE: Her silence tried to hide that you had been undone.

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Acte Quatrieme Scène I: Thésée, none. Thésée

1005

1010

Ah! qu'est-ce que j'entends? Un traitre *, un téméraire Préparait cet outrage à l'honneur de son père! Avec quelle rigueur, destin, tu me poursuis! Je ne sais où je vais, je ne sais où je suis. O tendresse! ô bonté trop mal récompensée! Projet audacieux! détestable pensée! Pour parvenir au but de ses noires amours, L'insolent de la force empruntait le secours! J'ai reconnu le fer, instrument de sa rage, Ce fer dont je l'armai pour un plus noble usage. Tousles liens du sang n'ont pule retenir! Et Phèdre différait à le faire punir! Le silence de Phèdre épargnait le coupable! none

1015

1020

Phèdre épargnait plutôt un pére déplorable: Honteuse du dessein d'un amant furieux, Et du feu criminel qu'il a pris dans ses yeux, Phèdre mourait, seigneur, et sa main meurtrière Eteignait de ses yeux l'innocente lumière. J'ai vu lever le bras, j'ai couru la sauver. Moi seule à votre amour j'ai su la conserver: Et, plaignant à la fois son trouble et vos alarmes, J'ai servi, malgré moi, d'interprète à ses larmes.


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Act Four Scene One: Theseus, Oenone (Theseus enters right on platform, accompanied by Oenone.) Theseus:

1005

1010

How can I hear these things? / What traitor could betray His father's famous name in this disgraceful way? The pain of my great fate keeps on pursuing me! I don't know where I am or where I ought to be. / / O all my tenderness so callously paid back! The bald audacity of such a bad attack! In order to achieve his evil intercourse, This proud insolent Prince resorted to cruel force. That was his weapon there, I recognized his sword: He swore brave deeds the day I gave it to this Lord. Didn't our common blood give him the least restraint? (Turning away from Oenone.) And why did Phèdre delay in voicing her complaint? / Or did her silence try to hide the guilty one? Oenone:

1015

1020

Her silence tried to hide that you had been undone. Ashamed that she should be the cause of all his sighs And of the lawless fire that kindles in his eyes, Phèdre would have lied, my Lord, and killed herself outright, So closing both her eyes, extinguishing the light. / / I saw her raise her arm, and I ran to her side; I made her save her life for love of your high pride. No pitying your shock and her disturbing fears, I have, despite my vows, interpreted her tears. Lines 1003-1004, are to be uttered by Theseus with grandeur. Lines 1009-1010, are delivered with scarcely any voice Theseus strides on, every inch a demi-god; he is crazed with rage and shock Big as the passions may be they are to be contained within the 'iron corset'

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Thésée

1025

Le perfide! il n'a pu s'empêcher de pâlir: De crainte, en m'abordant, je l'ai vu tressaillir. Je me suis étonné de son peu d'allégresse; Ses froids embrassements ont glacé ma tendresse. Mais ce coupable amour dont il est dévoré Dans Athènes déjà s'était-il déclaré? none

1030

Seigneur, souvenez-vous des plaintes de la reine: Un amour criminel causa toute sa haine. Thésée Et ce feu dans Trézène a donc recommencé? none Je vous ai dit, seigneur, tout ce qui s'est passé. C'est trop laisser la reine à sa douleur mortelle, Souffrez que je vous quitte et me range auprès d'elle. Scène II: Thésée, Hippolyte. Thésée

1035

Ah! le voici. Grands dieux! à ce noble maintien Quel il ne serait pas trompé comme le mien?


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Theseus:

1025

Dishonesty! I see why he became so pale, And when we met again, his feelings had to fail. / I was astonished at his lack of happiness; His cold embraces stole and froze my tenderness. But how long has his love so hideously grown? When he was in Athens was it already known? Oenone: (Stepping closer to Theseus.)

1030

My Lord, remember how the Queen complained to you. It was this shameful love, which she already knew. Theseus: (Turning again to question Oenone.) This love began again once back here in Trézène? Oenone: I've told you everything, my Lord, that happened then. / But I have left the Queen alone in her distress; Let me go now and see to her uneasiness. (Exiting up right.) Scene Two: Theseus, Hippolyte Theseus: (Enters down right.)

1035

Ah, here he is. Good god! Seeing his noble air, What naive eye would not make the same error there? Lines 1027-1028, are spoken directly to Oenone; 'Theseus must know.' Oenone does not let Theseus escape. She seizes the moment to pour more venom into Theseus' ear. Theseus is devastated, and Oenone senses she has saved Phèdre, that she has achieved her objective. She leaves quickly, returning to Phèdre

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THESEUS: Fly traitor do not try to brave my hatred now.

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Thèsèe (Cont.)

1040

Faut-il que sur le front d'un profane adultère Brille de la vertu le sacré caractère! Et ne devrait-on pas à des signes certains Reconnaitre * le cur des perfides humains! Hippolyte Puis-je vous demander quel funeste nuage, Seigneur, a pu troubler votre auguste visage? N'osez-vous confier ce secret à ma foi? Thésée

1045

1050

1055

Perfide! oses-tu bien te montrer devant moi? Monstre, qu'a trop longtemps épargné le tonnerre, Reste impur des brigands dont j'ai purgé la terre, Après que le transport d'un amour plein d'horreur Jusqu'au lit de ton père a porté sa fureur, Tu m'oses présenter une tête ennemie! Tu parais dans des lieux pleins de ton infamie! Et ne vas pas chercher, sous un ciel inconnu, Des pays où mon nom ne soit point parvenu? Fuis, traitre*. Ne viens point braver ici ma haine, Et tenter un courroux que je retiens à peine: C'est bien assez pour moi de l'opprobre éternel D'avoir pu mettre au jour un fils si criminel, Sans que ta mort encor, honteuse à ma mémoire, De mes nobles travaux vienne souiller la gloire.


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Theseus: (Continued)

1040

(Taking one step down.) Why must the forehead of profane adultery Shine with the sacred grace of virtue's simile? (A step down.) Are there no secret signs, is there no special art To know, with no mistake, a false dishonest heart? Hippolyte: (Entering down right.) Now let me ask of you what hideous disgrace, My Lord, is on your mind and showing in your face? Will you not dare to speak this great shame to my ear? Theseus:

1045

1050

1055

Traitor and slave! how dare you stand before me here? Sky's brightest lightning bolt should throw you to the void, Almost the last outlaw of those I have destroyed! (Turning up.) After this ugly lust had come into your head (Hippolyte steps back and down.) And led you to defame your father's wedding bed, You still present yourself, and show your hated face, And do parade your shame throughout this fatal place, And do not go away, under some foreign sun, Where my own name may be unknown to everyone. (Theseus moves toward Hippolyte.) Fly, traitor! xdo not try to brave my hatred now, So go, while my great rage is kept inside somehow, It is enough for me to bear my own despair For having brought you forth into the living air, Without your death as well dishonoring my name And spoiling endlessly the splendor of my fame. The storm breaks. Lines 1044-1076, Theseus builds the tirade as if mounting a stairs.

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Thésée (Cont.) 1060

1065

1070

1075

Fuis: et, si tune veux qu'un châtiment soudain T'ajoute aux scélérats qu'a punis cette main, Prends garde que jamais l'astre qui nous éclaire Ne te voie en ces lieux mettre un pied téméraire. Fuis, dis-je; et, sans retour précipitant tes pas, De ton horrible aspect purge tous mes états. Et toi, Neptune, et toi, si jadis mon courage D'infâmes assassins nettoya ton rivage, Souviens-toi que, pour prix de mes efforts heureux, Tu promis d'exaucer le premier de mes vux. Dans les longues rigueurs d'une prison cruelle Je n'ai point imploré ta puissance immortelle; Avare du secours que j'attends de tes soins, Mes vux t'ont réservé pour de plus grands besoins: Je t'implore aujourd'hui. Venge un malheureux père; J'abandonne ce traiitre * à toute ta colère; Etouffe dans son sang ses désirs effrontés: Thésée à tes fureurs connaitra* tes bontés.

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Theseus: (Continued.) 1060

1065

1070

1075

Fly; if you do not wish a swift and fatal blow To add you to the beasts that I myself brought low, Make sure that that bright sun which shines up in the sky Will never see you breathe beneath its flaming eye. Fly, I say, forever, now never come back here, Do not let your foul face infect our atmosphere. / / (Crossing down right.) And you, Neptune, xyes, you: if I was ever brave, If I have ever raged against the slaves that rave, Remember my reward, you promise to obey Whatever I would ask, whatever I would pray. In the cruel agonies of a crude prison cell, I did not cry for help to free me from that hell. I held myself in check, I waited in my greed, Until some later day saw some much greater need. But I implore you now. Revenge a father's heart. I leave this traitor's life for you to tear apart; Stifle his filthy vice in his own blood and lust: I will worship your worth if you do what you must. Line 1065 marks a transition; Theseus uses a different tonality. Theseus is a demigod talking to a god. The gaze of the actors is at all times high, but never much above the plane of eye level. These demigods; e.g. Theseus talks to Neptune largely as an equal, not as a suppliant or as a mortal. In this feeling there is, out of mutual respect, a quality of reverence; e g., when Theseus goes to invoke the aid of Nepture for the revenge he seeks on his son.

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Hippolyte

1080

D'un amour criminel Phèdre accuse Hippolyte! Un tel excès d'horreur rend mon âme interdite; Tant de coups imprévus m'accablent à la fois, Qu'ils m'ôtent la parole, et m'étouffent la voix. Thésée

1085

Traitre *, tu prétendais qu'en un lâche silence Phèdre ensevelirait ta brutale insolence: Il fallait, en fuyant, ne pas abandonner Le fer qui dans ses mains aide à te condamner; Ou plutôt il fallait, comblant ta perfidie, Lui ravir tout d'un coup la parole et la vie. Hippolyte

1090

1095

D'un mensonge si noir justement irrité, Je devrais faire ici parler la vérité, Seigneur; mais je supprime un secret qui vous touche. Approuvez le respect qui me ferme la bouche, Et sans vouloir vous-même augmenter vos ennuis, Examinez ma vie, et songez qui je suis. Quelques crimes toujours précèdent les grands crimes; Quiconque a pu franchir les bornes légitimes Peut violer enfin les droits les plus sacrés: Ainsi que la vertu, le crime a ses degrés; Et jamais on n'a vu la timide innocence Passer subitement à l'extrême licence.


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Hippolyte:

1080

So Phèdre says Hippolyte is guilty of such shame! Such excellent excess of horror shakes my frame; So many sudden blows must overthrow me now, They take away my voice and make me dumb somehow. Theseus:

1085

Traitor, / you may have thought that by your keeping still Poor Phèdre would try to hide your insults and ill will? You made one great mistake, just now when you withdrew, To take away the sword which now accuses you; / / Or rather, you forgot to make your deed complete, (Turning away from Hippolyte.) And take away her life to cover your retreat. Hippolyte:

1090

1095

Now irritated by so foul and black a lie, I feel I should reveal the truth in my reply, My Lord, / yet I suppress something which touches you. You should approve my tact, my duty to subdue; Without the slightest wish of stirring up more strife, (Crossing in to Theseus.) Remember who I am, and look through my whole life. Always, some minor sins precede great major crimes. Whoever breaks the law at first for a few times, Will finally go on to break all sacred rights; For crime has its degrees, it has its depths and heights; Thus one has never seen timmidity grow strong And leap to the extreme of evil and vile wrong. / Oenone has set in motion father against son. The confrontation builds with his raging anger, the horrendous curse laid by Theseus on the innocent Hippolyte. Hippolyte is stunned, not knowing how to respond

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1105

1110

Un jour seul ne fait point d'un mortel vertueux Un perfide assassin, un lâche incestueux. Elevé dans le sein d'une chaste héroïne, Je n'ai point de son sang démenti l'origine. Pitthée, estimé sage entre tousles humains, Daigna m'instruire encore au sortir de ses mains. Je ne veux point me peindre avec trop d'avantage; Mais si quelque vertu m'est tombée en partage, Seigneur, je crois surtout avoir fait éclater La haine des forfaits qu'on ose m'imputer. C'est par là qu'Hippolyte est connu dans la Grèce. J'ai poussé la vertu jusques à la rudesse: On sait de mes chagrins l'inflexible rigueur. Le jour n'est pas plus pur que le fond de mon cur. Et l'on veut qu'Hippolyte, épris d'un feu profane . . .

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1105

1110

More than a single day is needed to create A monster capable of incest, sin and hate: / Brought up in the chaste gaze of a great heroine, I never scorned with pride of my own origin. Old Pittheus, esteemed by all men everywhere, Agreed to teach me when I left my mother's care. I do not seek to see myself in some great light, But if I have revealed my worth, however slight, My Lord, above all things I think I have made clear My hatred for those crimes I am accused of here. And Hippolyte is known for this in all of Greece. My virtue hurts, and yet I work for its increase. / / All know I suffer from so strict and harsh an art. The light of day is not so pure as my own heart. Yet they say Hippolyte, obsessed with a strange flame . . . with Lines 1099-1100, Hippolyte is pressing that he is not a traitor Lines 1101, marks a transition. Line 1112, is 'the most beautiful line written by Racine' (Deiber).

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Thésée 1115

Oui, c'est ce même orgueil, lâche! quite condamne. Je vois de tes froideurs le principe odieux: Phèdre seule charmait tes impudiques yeux; Et pour tout autre objet ton âme indifférente Dédaignait de brûler d'une flamme innocente. Hippolyte

1120

1125

Non, mon père, ce cur, c'est trop vous le celer, N'a point d'un chaste amour dédaigné de brûler. Je confesse à vos pieds ma véritable offense: J'aime, j'aime, il est vrai, malgré votre défense. Aricie à ses lois tient roes vux asservis La fille de Pallante a vaincu votre fils: Je l'adore; et mon âme, à vos ordres rebelle, Ne peut ni soupirer, ni brûler que pour elle.

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Theseus: 1115

This is the same high pride that damns you to your shame. I see what evil hides behind your cold disguise: For only Phèdre alone could charm your brazen eyes; And for all other loves your sly and lifeless soul Would never once catch fire, but kept its self-control. Hippolyte:

1120

1125

No, my father, this heart it's too much to conceal Has not refused a love for someone chaste and real. Here at your feet I make my great apology: (Crossing down stage of Theseus, kneels.) I love; I love, it's true, what you forbid to me. For I love Aricie: it is already done; The daughter of Pallas has overcome your son. I worship her, and I, defying all your laws, Am lost in my own sighs, of which she is the cause. Lines 1114-1118, are spoken coldly by Theseus, saying 'leave me alone; I'll not speak with you.' On Line 1121 Hipolyte kneels to his father. On Liens 1122-1126 Hippolyte is thinking 'How will my father feel about this, my love for Aricie, the sister of his enemies' With Line 1114, Theseus is still savage in his condemnation of his son Hippolyte, dropping to his knee before his father, makes a confession loudly of what is uppermost in his mind: he loves Aricie. He knows full well the war Theseus has waged with the family of Aricie. In his innocence he naively trusts that his 'confession' will divert Theseus from his suspicions in respect to Hippolyte and Phèdre

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Thésée Tu l'aimes? ciel! Mais non, l'artifice est grossier: Tu te feins criminel pour te justifier. Hippolyte 1130

Seigneur, depuis six mois je l'évite et je l'aime: Je venais, en tremblant, vous le dire à vous-même. Hé quoi! de votre erreur rien ne vous peut tirer! Par quel affreux serment faut-il vous rassurer? Que la terre, le ciel, que toute la nature . . . Thésée

1135

Toujours les scélérats ont recours au parjure. Cesse, cesse, et m'épargne un importun discours, Si ta fausse vertu n'a point d'autre secours.

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Theseus: (Stepping toward Hippolyte.) You love her? / / God! But no, this trick is to distract: Act like a criminal to cover up your act. Hippolyte: 1130

My Lord, for six long months, I fought this love for her. I came here trembling now to tell you this news, sir. But how? Can anything erase this great mistake? Could any oath I take persuade you for my sake? ''By this earth, by this sky, by nature all in all . . .'' Theseus: (Taking two steps left.)

1135

Always, false hypocrites perjure their own downfall. No, do not bore me now with more of your fine lies, If your dishonesty can find no new disguise. Line 1131, Hippolyte comes to see that his father does not believe his confessing a love for Aricie. Momentarily, Theseus is confused. One anger seeks to displace the other At once Theseus returns to his obsession respecting his honor.

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Hippolyte Elle vous parait * fausse et pleine d'artifice: Phèdre, au fond de son cur, me rend plus de justice. Thésée Ah! que ton impudence excite mon courroux! Hippolyte 1140

Quel temps à mon exil, quel lieu prescrivez-vous? Thésée Fusses-tu par-delà les colonnes d'Alcide, Je me croirais encor trop voisin d'un perfide. Hippolyte Chargé du crime affreux dont vous me soupçonnez, Quels amis me plaindront, quand vous m'abandonnez?

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Hippolyte: You think all this is false and full of subtlety. But Phèdre in her own heart is much more fair to me. Theseus: Ah! / / / how your impudence makes me more angry now! Hippolyte: 1140

Where will I be exiled, and how long is our vow? Theseus: Far beyond the Pillars of Hercules would be Not far enough, and much too near the heart for me. Hippolyte: Charged with this awful crime, this foul atrocity, What friends will pity me, when you abandon me? Line 1138, is delivered strongly. Lines 1141-1142, are delivered by Theseus almost as one line Lines 1143-1144, are a cry from Hippolyte's heart The climax of this scene becomes one of the most intense of the drama Theseus' anger has reached white-hot, but is contained within the 'iron corset.' With lines 1143-1144 the youthful Hippolyte moves an audience with pity (as Aristotle has said of tragedy) as well as with fear, for him.

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Thésée 1145

Va chercher des amis dont l'estime funeste Honore l'audultère, applaudisse à l'inceste; Des traitres *, des ingrats sans honneur et sans loi, Dignes de protéger un méchant tel que toi. Hippolyte

1150

Vous me parlez toujours d'inceste et d'adultère: Je me tais. Cependant Phèdre sort d'une mmère, Phèdre est d'un sang, seigneur, vous le savez trop bien, De toutes ces horreurs plus rempli que le mien. Thésée

1155

Quoi! ta rage à mes yeux perd toute retenue? Pour la dernière fois, ôte-toi de ma vue; Sors, traitre*: n'attends pas qu'un père furieux Te fasse avec opprobre arracher de ces lieux.

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Theseus: 1145

Go and invent new friends, whose own dishonesty Congratulates incest, applauds adultery Outlaws without conscience, traitors who know no law, Able to care for you and share your brazen flaw. Hippolyte:

1150

You keep on speaking of incest, adultery? I do not speak. But Phèdre comes from her family Her mother's blood, my Lord, you know it very well, Is worse than mine, and filled with all the filth of hell. Theseus:

1155

What? have you lost all sense, that you rage to my face? For the last time, get out, get away from this place:x (Hippolyte backs away from his father's wrath.) Go, traitor, do not wait for your own father's hand To drive you forcefully before you leave this land. (Hippolyte exits right.) Lines 1145-1152, Theseus and Hippolyte are two tigers confronting each other. Lines 1151-1152, Hippolyte makes one last effort to make his father understand. Line 1153, Theseus reacts as if his son had dug his fingernails into his skin. Having flung Phèdre's ancestry in his father's face, Hippolyte exits in a bound, swept off by the strangled anger of his father.

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Scène III: Thésée.

1160

1165

Misérable, tu cours à ta perte infaillible! Neptune, par le fleuve aux dieux mêmes terrible, M'a donné sa parole, et va l'exécuter. Un dieu vengeur te suit, tune peux l'éviter. Je t'aimais; et je sens que, malgré ton offense, Mes entrailles pour toi se troublent par avance. Mais à te condamner tu m'as trop engagé: Jamais père, en effet, fut-il plus outragé? Justes dieux qui voyez la douleur qui m'accable, Ai-je pu mettre au jour un enfant si coupable!

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Scene Three: Theseus (alone) Theseus:

1160

1165

Wretched, you are running to your own ruin now. (Crossing down right.) xNeptune, god of that sea which all gods fear somehow, Has given me his word and he will make it good. You cannot flee a god, let that be understood. / I loved you; and I sense, in spite of your great crime, The pain you must endure in such a little time. But you condemned yourself, and now the deed is done. Has any father been so outraged by a son? O gods, / who see the grief which overwhelms me here, How could I ever cause this monster to appear? Theseus is now more the shattered father than the cavalier lover and proud demigod and King. The sub-test of the tirade is that Theseus has deep within doubts, for he has deeply loved and admired his son. Invoking the gods gives him little peace of mind.

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Scène IV: Thésée, Phèdre. Phèdre

1170

Seigneur je viens à vous, pleine d'un juste effroi; Votre voix redoutable a passé jusqu'à moi: Je crains qu'un prompt effet n'ait suivi la menace. S'il en est temps encore, épargnez votre race, Respectez votre sang; j'ose vous en prier: Sauvez-moi de l'horreur de l'entendre crier; Ne me préparez point la douleur éternelle De l'avoir fait répandre à la main paternelle. Thésée

1175

Non, madame, en mon sang ma main n'a point trempé; Mais l'ingrat toutefois ne m'est point échappé: Une immortelle main de sa perte est chargée, Neptune me la doit; et vous serez vengée. Phèdre Neptune vous la doit! Quoi! vos vux irrités . . .


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Scene Four: Phèdre, Theseus Phèdre: (Enters on ramp.)

1170

My Lord, I come to you, filled with a ghastly fear. / / I heard your strong loud voice as you were speaking here. I am afraid your threats have ended in something. If there is still some time, then spare your own offspring; Respect your flesh and blood, I dare to beg of you. I cannot hear the cries of what you plan to do; Do not condemn me to this future misery, That your own hand has killed one of your family. Theseus: (Taking her hand, both cross down stage.)

1175

Madame, there is no blood at all on my own hand. And yet the criminal shall not flee from this land. For an immortal hand is raised in rage right now. So you will be revenged, / Neptune has made the vow. Phèdre: (Stepping back.) Neptune has made the vow! xWhat? just one angry word ... Lines 1167-1169, Phèdre is almost crazed from fear. Line 1170, Phèdre almost kneels to him. Line 1179, Phèdre does not understand. Phèdre, consumed with guilt for remaining silent, fears what compulsive Theseus may do Guilt vies with shame in her heart.

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THESEUS May Neptune's justice come and be most cruel and quick.

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Thésée 1180

1185

Quoi! craignez-vous déjà qu'ils ne soient écoutés? Joignez-vous bien plutôt à mes vux légitimes: Dans toute leur noirceur retracez-moi ses crimes, Echauffez mes transports trop lents, trop retenus. Tous ses crimes encor ne vous sont pas connus: Sa fureur contre vous se répand en injures; Votre bouche, dit-il, est pleine d'impostures; Il soutient qu'Aricie a son cur, a sa foi, Qu'il l'aime. Phèdre Quoi, seigneur! Thésée

1190

Il l'a dit devant moi: Mais je sais rejeter un frivole artifice. Espérons de Neptune une prompte justice: Je vais moi-même encore au pied de ses autels Le presser d'accomplir ses serments immortels.

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Theseus: 1180

1185

What? now are you afraid that that will not be heard? Instead, join with me now in prayers of righteousness. Recite his crimes to me in all their foul excess; Arouse my wrath which is too slow and too restrained. All of his evil deeds have not yet been explained: Your world is furious with insults in his eyes: Your mouth, he says, is full of foul deceits and lies; He swears that Aricie has all his heart and soul, (Crossing up left.) xThat he loves her. Phèdre: / / What's that? Theseus:

1190

He spoke with self-control. But I know how to scorn this artificial trick. May Neptune's justice come, and be most cruel and quick. / Now I myself will go to worship at his shrine, And urge him to perform that oath that was divine. (Exiting left.) Lines 1187-1188, A sword has pierced Phèdre's jealous heart Her efforts to save Hippolyte end with these lines. From her entrance in this scene Phèdre is very much at the point of making a full confession to her husband, freeing Hippolyte of all blame . . The reappearance of Phèdre has stirred up the coals of Theseus' anger The torrent of his words prevents her from speaking out. Then on line 1186 Theseus turns slightly away, gazing off where Hippolyte had rushed away; he fails to see the impact that his reference to Hippolyte's love for Aricie has on his wife. 'What's that?' comes forth as if ripped, a hoarse utterance, from Phèdre's throat Theseus exits quite oblivious to Phèdre's reaction.

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Scène V: Phèdre.

1195

1200

1205

1210

Il sort. Quelle nouvelle a frappé mon oreille! Quel feu mal étouffé dans mon cur se réveille! Quel coup de foudre, ô ciel! et quel funeste avis! Je volais tout entière au secours de son fils; Et, m'arrachant des bras d'none épouvantée, Je cédais au remords dont j'étais tourmentée. Qui sait même où m'allait porter ce repentir? Peut-être à m'accuser j'aurais pu consentir; Peut-être, si la voix ne m'eût été coupée, L'affreuse vérité me serait échappée. Hippolyte est sensible, et ne sent rien pour moi! Aricie a son cur! Aricie a sa foi! Ah, dieux! lorsqu'à mes vux l'ingrat inexorable S'armait d'un il si fier, d'un front si redoutable, Je pensais qu'à l'amour son cur toujours fermé Fût contre tout mon sexe également armé: Une autre cependant a fléchi son audace; Devant ses yeux cruels une autre a trouvé grâce. Peut-être a-t-il un cur facile à s'attendrir: Je suis le seul objet qu'il ne saurait souffrir. Et je me chargerais du soin de le défendre!

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Scene Five: Phèdre (alone) Phèdre:

1195

1200

1205

1210

/ / / He's gone. / What news is this which has just struck my ear? Now what slow smouldering begins within me here? O sky, what thunderbolt! what words that shock and stun! I came here willingly to save his noble son; Breaking away, I left Oenone's own frightened arms, And gave myself to all these torments and alarms. What if I were found out, and driven to repent? I might have just confessed, admitting my intent; If he had not gone on to interrupt my speech, I might have let the truth go flying out of reach. For Hippolyte can feel, and does not feel for me! His heart to Aricie? his soul to Aricie! (Stepping down stage.) Ah Gods!x to my own live this Lord was so unkind, With his derisive eye, and his high pride of mind, That I imagined he, with such a hardened heart, Would have to hate my sex and be set far apart. But now another has attained this famous place; In his great scornful gaze another has found grace. Perhaps he has a heart which some can tempt and lure. I am the only one that he cannot endure; So why should I defend what he has been about?x (Crossing two steps up left.) Following the exit of Theseus, there is silence. The serpent jealousy has entered the heart of Phèdre She is at first in a state of shock. Slowly but rapidly rising to a rapid crescendo, she is able to get in touch with her feelings: 'Hippolyte can feel, and does not feel for me!/His heart to Aricie . . .' Her rival is young and beautiful, the most formidable competition for the aging woman. All compassion now for Hippolyte is spent. She has been spurned.

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Scène VI: Phèdre, none. Phèdre Chère none, sais-tu ce que je viens d'apprendre? none 1215

Non; mais je viens tremblante, à ne vous point mentir; J'ai pâli du dessein qui vous a fait sortir; J'ai craint une fureur à vous-même fatale. Phèdre none, qui l'eût cru? j'avais une rivale! none Comment! Phèdre

1220

Hippolyte aime; et je n'en puis douter. Ce farouche ennemi qu'on ne pouvait dompter, Qu'offensait le respect, qu'importunait la plainte, Ce tigre, que jamais je n'abordai sans crainte, Soumis, apprivoisé, reconnait * un vainqueur: Aricie a trouvé le chemin de son cur. none

1225

Aricie?


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Scene Six: Phèdre, Oenone (Oenone enters right on platform.) Phèdre: (Crossing to Oenone, taking her hand.) Dear Oenone, do you know what I have just found out? Oenone: 1215

No, but I tremble now, I must make you believe I fear for this mad plan which made you try to leave: For I distrust the path your fatal passions choose. Phèdre: I have a rival now: this is my bitter news. Oenone: How? Phèdre:

1220

Hippolyte's in love, consumed by a great flame. That same cold enemy whom no one else could tame, Who praised his own chaste days, and hated others' praise / / This tiger, / how I stayed in fear of his wild ways, And now he has been tamed, he knows a stronger soul, For Aricie now keeps his heart in her control. Oenone:

1225

Aricie?, The wound that Phèdre has just experienced is deep and ragingly painful, but still in her telling all to her confidante, Oenone, she cannot resist torturing herself for details, probing the wound. Bewildered, Oenone is close at hand. Phèdre deflects some anger on her.

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Phèdre

1230

1235

1240

1245

1250

Ah! douleur non encore éprouvée! A quel nouveau tourment je me suis réservée! Tout ce que j'ai souffert, mes craintes, mes transports, La fureur de mes feux, l'horreur de mes remords, Et d'un cruel refus l'insupportable injure, N'était qu'un faible essai des tourments que j'endure. Ils s'aiment! par quel charme ont-ils trompé mes yeux? Comment se sont-ils vus? depuis quand? dans quels Tu le savais: pourquoi me laissais-tu séduire? [lieux? De leur furtive ardeur ne pouvais-tu m'instruire? Les a-t-on vus souvent se parler, se chercher? Dans le fond des forêts allaient-ils se cacher? Hélas! ils se voyaient avec pleine licence: Le ciel de leurs soupirs approuvait l'innocence; Ils suivaient sans remords leur penchant amoureux; Tous les jours se levaient clairs et sereins pour eux! Et moi, triste rebut de la nature entière, Je me cachais au jour, je fuyais la lumière: La mort est le seul dieu que j'osais implorer. J'attendais le moment où j'allais expirer; Me nourrissant de fiel, de larmes abreuvée, Encor, dans mon malheur de trop près observée, Je n'osais dans mes pleurs me noyer à loisir. Je goûtais en tremblant ce funeste plaisir; Et, sous un front serein déguisant mes alarmes, Il fallait bien souvent me priver de mes larmes.


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Phèdre:

1230

1235

1240

1245

1250

Ah, despair which is still unimproved! Which way is my own heart still waiting to be moved? All that I have suffered, my passions and my fears, The fury of my love, the horror of my tears And the cruel injury of having been refused, Were all a worning that I would be more abused. They are in love! but how? right here before my face? How did they meet? / and when? / and in what secret place? You knew of it. But then, why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you describe this dear conspracy? How often have they talked and walked together now? (Looking off right.) Far in the forest, / did they hope to hide somehow? Alas! once they met there, they were completely free. There the wide open sky smiled on their ecstasy; They did whatever they themselves desired to do; And each new day was clear and splendid in their view. While I, the sad outcast of everything in sight, I tried to hide by day and fly from the bright light: Death is the only god I dared to glorify. I waited for the day I could lie down and die: Filled with this bitterness, alone in my despair, Still in my illness watched by all eyes everywhere, I could not find the time to dry as I desired; That was a fatal joy I privately acquired; The peaceful features which I wore as my disguise Required that I hide the tears of my own eyes. Phèdre's jealous obsession mounts. Painful as it may be, she visualizes the joys of Hippolyte and Aricie's romance denied to her. She relives her own desparate state, dying for love of an 'unfaithful' Hippolyte. Racine depicts with total accuracy the anguish of a human being wracked with jealousy.

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none Quel fruit recevront-ils de leurs vaines amours? Ils ne se verront plus. Phèdre

1255

1260

1265

Ils s'aimeront toujours! Au moment que je parle, ah, mortelle pensée! Ils bravent la fureur d'une amante insensée! Malgré ce même exil qui va les écarter, Ils font mille serments de ne se point quitter . . . Non, je ne puis souffrir un bonheur qui m'outrage; none, prends pitié de ma jalouse rage. Il faut perdre Aricie; il faut de mon époux Contre un sang odieux réveiller le courroux: Qu'il ne se borne pas à des peines légères; Le crime de la sur passe celui des frères. Dans mes jaloux transports je le veux implorer. Que fais-je? où ma raison se va-t-elle égarer? Moi jalouse! et Thésée est celui que j'implore! Mon époux est vivant, et moi je brûle encore! Pour qui? quel est le cur où prétendent mes vux? Chaque mot sur mon front fait dresser mes cheveux.


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Oenone: What true fruit did they taste from their vain endeavor? For they will have to part. Phèdre:

1255

1260

1265

They will love forever. / / And right now, as I speak ah! what a deadly thought! They brave the rage of one who raves and is distraught. Despite the long exile which takes them far apart, They swear they will remain within each other's heart. No, no, Oenone, no no, I cannot bear their joy; Take pity on my hate which hastens to destroy. This Aricie must die. My husband must revive His wrath against that race he said must not survive. And he must not lay down a few light penalties: This sister has surpassed her brother's blasphemies. (Crossing left to column #5.) (Recoils.) My jealousy will speakxand seek ways to cajole.x (Turning fast) What am I doing now?xhave I lost all control? I, jealous! and Theseus becomes the one I seek! My husband is alive, and love still makes me weak! For whom? and for whose heart are all ny prayers addressed? Each word I say creates new chaos in my breast. On lines 1268 to 1273, Phèdre paces slowly, arriving at column #5 Trying to comfort her mistress, Oenone's words are unintentionally cruel and are brushed aside

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Phèdre (Cont.) 1270

1275

1280

1285

1290

Mes crimes désormais ont comblé la mesure: Je respire à la fois l'inceste et l'imposture; Mes homicides mains, promptes à me venger, Dans le sang innocent brûlent de se plonger. Misérable! et je vis! et je soutiens la vue De ce sacré soleil dont je suis descendue! J'ai pour aïeul le père et le maitre * des dieux; Le ciel, tout l'univers est plein de mes aïeux. Où me cacher? Fuyons dans la nuit infernale. Mais que dis-je? mon père y tient l'urne fatale; Le sort, dit-on, l'a mise en ses sévères mains: Minos juge aux enfers tous les pâles humains. Ah! combien frémira son ombre épouvantée, Lorsqu'il verra sa fille à ses yeux présentée, Contrainte d'avouer tant de forfaits divers, Et des crimes peut-être inconnus aux enfers! Que diras-tu, mon père, à ce spectacle horrible? Je crois voir de ta main tomber l'urne terrible; Je crois te voir, cherchant un supplice nouveau, Toi-même de ton sang devenir le bourreau . . . Pardonne: un dieu cruel a perdu ta famille; Reconnais sa vengeance aux fureurs de ta fille.


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1275

1280

1285

1290

Now all my hopes fly off beyond all scope of crime. Incest and fraud exist in me at the same time. My own cold reckless hands, restless for violence, Are burning to disturb the breath of innocence. Wretched! and I still live? I am still in the sight Of that great sacred sun which bore me in its light? / (Crossing and pacing.) xMy father is the first of all the gods on high; And my own ancestors still populate the sky. Where can I hide? far down in the foul dark of hell. But how? for even there my father casts a spell; He holds the fatal urn the gods put in his hand: Minos dooms all who fall to that last ghastly land. Ah, just imagine how his spirit will despair When his own daughter comes into his presence there, Confessing all her crimes, with shame in every word, And sins the underworld perhaps has never heard! Father, what will you say when I have said it all? I know, your hand will drop, the fatal urn will fall; Then you shall have to choose what torment you prefer, So you yourself can be my executioner. (Kneels.) xForgive me: a cruel god has damned this family; And he still takes revenge in my anxiety. Line 1273, the enormity of what she has done breaks in upon her Line 1274, marks a transition Form this point on the tirade builds. Lines 1277-1284, are delivered almost as one line Line 1289, Phèdre kneels. As a major turning point in the drama, the scene is of jealous passion, pain, emotion and extremes There must be a balance between passion and coolness.

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Phèdre (Cont.) Hélas! du crime affreux dont la honte me suit Jamais mon triste cur n'a recueilli le fruit: Jusqu'au dernier soupir de malheurs poursuivie, Je rends dans les tourments une pénible vie. none 1295

1300

1305

Hé! repoussez, madame, une injuste terreur! Regardez d'un autre il une excusable erreur. Vous aimez; on ne peut vaincre sa destinée: Par un charme fatal vous fûtes entrainee *. Est-ce donc un prodige inouï parmi nous? L'amour n'a-t-il encor triomphé que de vous? La faiblesse aux humains n'est que trop naturelle: Mortelle, subissez le sort d'une mortelle. Vous vous plaignez d'un joug imposé dès longtemps: Les dieux mêmes, les dieux de l'Olympe habitants, Qui d'un bruit si terrible épouvantent les crimes, Ont brûlé quelquefois de feux illégitimes.

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Phèdre: (Continued.) Alas! and my sad heart has never know the taste Of this forbidden love for which I am disgraced. Pursued by suffering until my dying breath, (Sitting.) I leave a painful life as I fly towards my death. Oenone: (Crossing up to Phèdre.) 1295

1300

1305

Ah, Madame,x do reject this insubstantial fear. / Do take another look at what has happened here. (Dropping to her knees.) You love.x And yet we know one cannot conquer fate. The gods themselves led you into this hateful state. But then are you so sure your story in unique? Others, equally strong, have grown equally weak. For flesh is flesh, and frail unfortunate, but true. Since you are human, you must do what humans do. Your woe is a great weight imposed so long ago. For the Olympians, / the greatest gods we know, Who with a dreadful curse condemn all kinds of crime, Have had their own desires and sinned from time to time. Lines 1291-1294, Phèdre must resist crying too much. The characrter Phèdre may not be aware of the irony of lines 1291 and 1292, that despite her feelings of shame, she has regret that she 'had never known the taste of this forbidden live .' She recoils before her awakening awareness of what she has just said and seeks death As at Phèdre's first entrance, talk of death galvanizes Oenone. She mobilizes all her forces once again to divert Phèdre from her morbid longings Oenone is mistress of providing rationalizations that gloss over sins and crimes. It is the age old tactics of those who serve rulers However, they shock Phèdre into an awareness of the role that Oenone has played

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Phèdre

1310

1315

1320

Qu'entends-je! quels conseils ose-t-on me donner! Ainsi donc jusqu'au bout tu veux m'empoisonner, Malheureuse! voilà comme tu m'as perdue; Au jour que je fuyais c'est toi qui m'as rendue. Tes prières m'ont fait oublier mon devoir; J'évitais Hippolyte; et tu me l'as fait voir. De quoi te chargeais-tu? pourquoi ta bouche impie A-t-elle, en l'accusant, osé noircir sa vie? Il en mourra peut-être, et d'un père insensé Le sacrilège vu peut-être est exaucé. Je ne t'écoute plus. Va-t'en, monstre exécrable; Va, laisse-moi le soin de mon sort déplorable. Puisse le juste ciel dignement te payer! Et puisse ton supplice à jamais effrayer Tous ceux qui, comme toi, par de lâches adresses, Des princes malheureux nourrissent les faiblesses, Les poussent au penchant où leur cur est enclin, Et leur osent du crime aplanir le chemin!

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Phèdre:

1310

1315

1320

What do I hear? what words of wisdom do you give? You will still poison me for as long as I live, You wretch! remember that you ruined me this way; For it was you that made me face the light of day. Your prayers made me forget the duty that I knew; I fled from Hippolyte; you forced him in my view. By what right did your words, which were so full of shame, Accuse his blameless life and darken his good name? Perhaps he will be killed, perhaps his father's vow To strike him down is one and he is dead right now. (Oenone kneels.) I will not hear your words. Get out, you worthless beast!x Leave me my last few days and my own fate at least. / Let heaven pay you back for all that you have done! And may your punishment petrify everyone All who, like you, may dare to use deceitful speech, Feeding the weakness of each Prince within their reach, Luring their hearts to go which way they are inclined, And daring them to do the crimes in their own mind! Lines 1307- 1312, spoken softly, Phèdre sees as in a glass all that has happened. Lines 1313-1314, Phèdre must not take the lines too quickly. If the actress gets too emotionally involved in the tirade and the dialogue with Oenone, the text gets strangulated. An excess of passion on the stage results in the audience's feeling less. Line 1319, marks a transition.

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Phèdre (Cont.) 1325

Détestables flatteurs, présent le plus funeste Que puisse faire aux rois la colère céleste! none, seule. Ah, dieux! pour la servir j'ai tout fait, tout quitté; Et j'en reçois ce prix! je l'ai bien mérité.

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(Throwing down Oenone.) O fatal flatterers,x the most destructive things Which heaven in its rage inflicts on sinful Kings!x (Phèdre rapidly exits up and off right.) Oenone: (alone.) Ah gods look down on me, my faith begins to fade. / / So this is what I get. / I have been well repaid. (She exits slowly.) (The curtain falls.) Line 1319, marks a transition Lines 1325-1326, Phèdre speaks the lines intensely and in a harsh whisper. PHÈDRE turns on Oenone Conflicting emotions of guilt, fear for Hippolyte's life, jealousy, cause Phèdre to find in Oenone a victim, a scapegoat. She turns on her, casting her off End of Act IV

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Acte Cinquieme Scène I: Hippolyte, Aricie, Ismène. Aricie 1330

1335

Quoi! vous pouvez vous taire en ce péril extrême? Vous laissez dans l'erreur un père qui vous aime? Cruel, si, de mes pleurs méprisant le pouvoir, Vous consentez sans peine à ne me plus revoir, Partez; séparez-vous de la triste Aricie; Mais du moins en partant assurez votre vie. Défendez votre honneur d'un reproche honteux, Et forcez votre père à révoquer ses vux: Il en est temps encor. Pourquoi, par quel caprice, Laissez-vous le champ libre à votre accusatrice? Eclaircissez Thésée.

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Act Five Scene One: Hippolyte, Aricie (Ismène) (Hippolyte enters center; Aricie enters right; at rise of curtain Ismène stands at column #4.) Aricie: 1330

1335

Now you are so unsafe Speak out, for your own sake! You leave your father here to make the same mistake? You are too cruel if you turn from my tears of pain (Hippolyte crosses right.) And easily agree not to see me again;x Yet if you go away and leave your Aricie, At least you should assure your own security: You must defend your name against this shame right now, And force your father to take back his solemn vow (Crossing down.) For there is still some time. Why,x and by what caprice, (Stepping in.) Does your accuser keep her freedom in such peace? You should tell Theseus all. Lines 1329-1337, to Aricie: 'When you have an idea, go to the end of it, but not too fast.' Aricie is not weak. Lines 1337-1338, Aricie does not understand The actor must not waste the least breath before speaking. An actor's breathing must be based on what is to follow the sense, the action, that is to follow If the actor breathes for that which is before what follows the tirade will fall

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Hippolyte 1340

1345

Eh! que n'ai-je point dit! Ai-je dû mettre au jour l'opprobre de son lit? Devais-je, en lui faisant un récit trop sincère, D'une indigne rougeur couvrir le front d'un père? Vous seule avez percée ce mystère odieux. Mon cur pour s'épancher n'a que vous et les dieux. Je n'ai pu vous cacher, jugez si je vous aime, Tout ce que je voulais me cacher à moi-même. Mais songez sous quel sceau je vous l'ai révélé: Oubliez, s'il se peut, que je vous ai parlé,

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Hippolyte: 1340

1345

Now what have I not said? And how could I reveal the shame of his own bed? Should I describe the truth in all sincerity And watch my father blush at the indignity? For you alone have known the worst of what is true. (Crossing to Aricie.) xMy heart has only told the gods above and you. For I loved you that much from you I could not hide What I myself despised and tried to keep inside. But see the secrecy with which my words are sealed: Forget now, if you can, the things I have revealed, Lines 1339-1342, for Hippolyte all is finished- he feels he can say no more However, he is not relaxed for there is danger Lines 1343-1344, are poetic and are to be set off. Lines 1345-1346, provide the only calm moment in the scene of 'marriage ceremony' Line 1347, Hippolyte makes it important. For a hundred years in performances of Racine's plays, actors paid little heed to veracity of costume or decor. Their clothes on stage were extravagantly cut, showily decorated and in contemporary styles Gradually in the late eighteenth century a few actors had grave doubts about the rightness of playing Theseus, Hippolyte, Théramène in full-bottomed, powered wigs, satin breeches, and red-heeled shoes. (An actor of the Comédie Française dispensing with a wig offered an affront to his Majesty whose societaire or pensionnaire he was.) Gloves for actresses, as well as actors, were considered a vital necessity. When in January, 1789, in Voltaire's BRUTUS, the great classical French actor, Talma, took his place on stage (beside a breeched, bewigged Brutus) wearing a Roman toga, sandals and his own unpowdered hair the audience gasped and burst into astonished applause He had created a legend.

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1355

1360

Madame; et que jamais une bouche si pure Ne s'ouvre pour conter cette horrible aventure. Sur l'équité des dieux osons nous confier; Ils ont trop d'intérêt à me justifier: Et Phèdre, tôt ou tard de son crime punie, N'en saurait éviter la juste ignominie. C'est l'unique respect que j'exige de vous. Je permets tout le reste à mon libre courroux: Sortez de l'esclavage où vous êtes rédunite; Osez me suivre, osez accompagner ma fuite; Arrachez-vous d'un lieu funeste et profané, Où la vertu respire un air empoisonné; Profitez, pour cachet votre prompte retraite, De la confusion que ma disgrâce y jette.

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1355

1360

Madame, because I pray your lips which are so fair May never once repeat this tale of foul despair. The gods are rational and they deserve our trust; Now for their own sake they shall save me and be just: Unable to escape her punishment in time, Soon Phèdre will pay at last for her most shameful crime. Your silence is the thing I ask for, at this stage (Crossing back to center stage) And for all else,x I give a free rein to my rage: Fly from this hateful state where you have been a slave; / (Aricie crosses to him.) Accompany my flight,x come with me and be brave; Now tear yourself away and leave this fatal place Where virtue has to breathe the great stench of disgrace; Your hope lies in disguise to hide your swift retreat, Use the confusion which is caused by my defeat. Line 1357, marks a transition for breathing. Lines 1357-1362, are all in the same sense; the breath must be taken before these lines; they must not be taken too fast. There is a breathless urgency throughout the scene between Aricie and Hippolyte The dialogue between the two is rapid and animated Each is poised for flight. Over all there is the hushed atmosphere of a conspiracy.

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Hippolyte (Cont.)

1365

1370

1375

Je vous puis de la fuite assurer les moyens: Vous n'avez jusqu'ici de gardes que les miens; De puissants défenseurs prendront notre querelle; Argos nous tend les bras, et Sparte nous appelle: A nos amis communs portons nos justes cris; Ne souffrons pas que Phèdre, assemblant nos débris, Du trône paternel nous chasse l'un et l'autre, Et promette à son fils ma dépouille et la vôtre. L'occasion est belle, il la faut embrasser . . . Quelle peur vous retient? vous semblez balancer? Votre seul intérêt m'inspire cette audace: Quand je suis tout de feu, d'où vous vient cette glace? Sur les pas d'un banni craignez-vous de marcher?

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Hippolyty: (Continued.)

1365

1370

1375

I can assure you of the safest means of flight: The guards here are all mine, the only men in sight; Now we will take our cause to powerful allies Argos holds out its arms, Sparta will sympathize: We can count on these friends to hear our just appeal; For Phèdre must not succeed, keeping what she can steal, For she will seize the throne, and once that prize is won, She will give everything we have to her own son. / (Stepping down.) This is our perfect chance, and now we must not waitx . . . (Aricie crosses down) But what fear holds you back?x you seem to hesitate! It's only your own cause that moves me to be bold: When I am all on fire, why do you seem so cold? Does my own banishment fill you so full of fear? Lines 1363-1365, explain the means of flight (What has been said before was 'feeling.') The delivery of them is more prosaic Line 1370, marks a transition. Line 1373, is almost an excuse. Line 1374, Hippolyte raises still another question. The sun has begun to set, symbolic of the action of the drama True to the unities of neo-classicism, the entire action of the tragedy takes place between sunrise and sunset.

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Aricie

1380

1385

Hélas ! qu'un tel exil, seigneur, me serait cher ! Dans quels ravissements, à votre sort liée, Du reste des mortels je vivrais oubliée ! Mais, n'éant point unis par un lien si doux, Me puis-je avec honneur dérober avec vous ? Je sais que, sans blesser l'honneur le plus sévère, Je me puis affranchir des mains de votre père: Ce n'est point m'arracher du sein de mes parents; Et la fuite est permise à qui fuit ses tyrans. Mais vous m'aimez, seigneur: et ma gloire alarmée . . . Hippolyte

1390

Non, non, j'ai trop de soin de votre renommée. Un plus noble dessein m'amène devant vous : Fuyez vos ennemis, et suivez votre époux. Libres dans nos malheurs, puisque le ciel l'ordonne, Le don de notre foi ne dépend de personne. L'hymen n'est point toujours entouré de flambeaux. Aux portes de Trézène, et parmi ces tombeaux, Des princes de ma race antiques sépultures, Est un temple sacré formidable aux parjures.


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Aricie: (To Hippolyte)

1380

1385

Such a sweet banishment would be to me most dear! What happiness to be tied to your destiny, Forgotten by the rest of sad humanity! (Crossing down stage.) xBut not united now by any tie so sweet, How could I try to leave this place without deceit? (Circles right to right center stage.) xI know that I can go against all stern commands And free myself right now out of your father's hands: This place is not the home of my own family; And the flight is right for those who flee from tyranny. But you love me, my Lord; and there is my good name . . . Hippolyte:

1390

No, you are in my care and you shall know no shame. I have a nobler plan for you and for your life: (Crossing up stage.) Fly from your enemies,x and join me as my wife. / We shall be free in grief, and under the same sun, Our loving vows shall not depend on anyone. (Crossing to her.) A marriage does not need bright torchlight and loud sound. In the parts of Trézène, in the tombs underground, (Crossing down left; then both cross down left center.) xGreat ancient sepulchres of Princes of my race, There is a temple there which is a sacred place. Lines 1386-1387, Hippolyte does not try to charm Aricie Line 1388, marks a transition. Hippolyte is at his most loving. As the scene develops it becomes the 'symbolic' marriage of Hippolyte and Aricie in ACT V. Here Hippolyte leads on a diagonal upstage from right to down left center and he is followed m measured rhythm and step by Aricie This is symbolic marriage in the scene, but there is never body contact at any time during this rhapsodic and lyrical marriage scene.

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1400

1405

C'est là que les mortels n'osent jurer en vain : Le perfide y reçoit un châtiment soudain ; Et, craignant d'y trouver la mort inévitable, Le mensonge n'a point de frein plus redoutable. Là, si vous m'en croyez, d'un amour éternel Nous irons conformer le serment solennel ; Nous prendrons à témoin le dieu qu'on y révère : Nous le prierons tous deux de nous servir de père. Des dieux les plus sacrès j'attesterai le nom, Et la chaste Diane, et l'auguste Junon, Et tousles dieux enfin, témoins de mes tendresses, Garantiront la foi de mes saintes promesses. Aricie

1410

Le roi vient: fuyez, prince, et partez promptement. Pour cacher mon départ je demeure un moment. Allez; et laissez-moi quelque fidèle guide. Qui conduise vers vous ma démarche timide.

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1400

1405

There men would never dare to make their vows in vain: For perjurers receive a penalty of pain; And fearing to find there their own predestined death, Liars will never try to take that fatal breath. (Aricie looks out full front.) xThere, if you believe me, we can declare our love And swear it in the sight of the great gods above; Our witness will be He whom they all worship there; And our father will be all good gods everywhere. (Softly.) To the great sacred ones I will address our plea, To chaste Diana, and to Juno's majesty, (Stepping out.) And all the others there, they see my sweet love now, And they will guarantee the conscience of my vow. (Ismène pauses; then crosses down left to Aricie) Aricie: (Aricie Looks at IsmèNe, Then Speaks To Hippolyte.)

1410

xThe King comes now: fly, Prince,x you must leave right away. (Hippolyte reacts with shock; both cross up left.) No one must know my plans to go, so I shall stay. (Hippolyte exits left.) But please leve me someone to show me what to do,x (Theseus enters right.) To guide my timid steps and lead my love to you. Lines 1395-1406, are above all not to be made sad, and the sense must continue uninterrupted Lines 1407-1408, are not to be spoken too forcefully For a century, fastened to actresses' figures were hanches, horsehair pads to make the contemporary costume stand out in an imposing way, giving the impression of the actress 'filling the stage.' Similarly, paniers had forced upon the acreesses of PIèDRE the mincing gait of the eighteenth century salon. Costumes for DEIBER's production were derived from renaissance paintings, evoking classicial Greece.

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Scène II: Thésée, Aricie, Ismène. Thésée Dieux ! éclairez mon trouble, et daignez à mes yeux Montrer la vérité, que je cherche en ces lieux. Aricie Songe à tout, chère Ismène. et sois prête à la fuite. Scène III: Thésée, Aricie. Thésée 1415

Vous changez de couleur, et semblez interdite, Madame : que faisait Hippolyte en ce lieu ? Aricie Seigneur, il me disait un éernel adieu. Thésée Vos yeux ont su dompter ce rebelle courage; Et ses premiers soupirs sont votre heureux ouvrage.


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Scene Two: Theseus, Aricie, Ismène Theseus: (Remaining up center on platform.) (Ismène crosses down left of Aricie, looking at Theseus.) O gods, enlighten me and give me by your grace The living sight of truth I search for in this place! Aricie: (Circling to down left.) Remember everything, Ismène; prepare our flight. Scene Three: Theseus, Aricie Theseus: 1415

You color now, Madam, and you are seized with fright; Now why did Hippolyte leave here so secretly? Aricie: My Lord, he came to say his last farewells to me. Theseus: (Crossing Left.) Your eyes have overcome the high pride of his heart; And his first secret sighs are those you made him start. A strain has always existed between the 'captive' Aricie and Theseus, as King. She acknowledges his presence with head bowed. Her responses to his questions are cold and reserved.

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Aricie 1420

Seigneur, je ne vous puis nier la vérité : De votre injuste haine il n'a pas hérité ; Il ne me traitait point comme une criminelle. Thésée J'entends : il vous jurait une amour éternelle. Ne vous assurez point sur ce cur inconstant ; Car à d'autres que vous il en jurait autant. Aricie Lui, seigneur ? Thésée

1425

Vous deviez le rendre moins volage : Comment souffriez-vous cet horrible partage ? Aricie

1430

Et comment souffrez-vous que d'horribles discours D'une si belle vie osent noircir le cours ? Avez-vous de son cur si peu de connaissance ? Discernez-vous si mal le crime et l'innocence ? Faut-il qu'à vos yeux seuls un nuage odieux Dérobe sa vertu qui brille à tous les yeux !


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Aricie: 1420

My Lord, I cannot lie and hide the truth from you: Nothing could make him take your hateful point of view; (Crossing to Theseus.) He never treated me like some lost criminal. Theseus: I know: he swore his love would be perpetual. But do not put your trust in his inconstant mind; (Crossing down right center.) For he swore other loves with vows of the same kind.x Aricie:

1425

My Lord? Thesus: You should have trained this Prince to be less vain: (Crossing down right.) xHow could you bear to share his love without great pain? Aricie:

1430

How can you bear to say such evil of his ways, (Stepping in.) Maligningx this fair man and darkening his days? Have you so little wit to understand his heart? (Theseus crosses left.) Or can you not keep crime and innocence apart?x (Crosses center.) Must you see his virtue in some grotesque disguise, When it so brightly shines before all other eyes? Lines 1419-1420, Aricie stresses that the situation is serious. On Aricie's lst two lines, once Theseus has arrived on stage, he sees the departing Hippolyte. He is deeply troubled. Line 1425, Aricie rebukes Theseus. Lines 1425-1426, Theseus angrily presents Aricie with a question. Lines 1427-1438, Aricie rebuts the question fiercely.

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Aricie (Cont.)

1435

Ah ! c'est trop le livrer à des langues perfides. Cessez : repentez-vous de vos vux homicides ; Craignez, seigneur, craignez que le ciel rigoureux Ne vous haisse assez pour exaucer vos vux. Souvent dans sa colère il reçoit nos victimes : Ses présents sont souvent la peine de nos crimes. Thésée

1440

Non, vous voulez en vain couvrir son attentat ; Votre amour vous aveugle en faveur de l'ingrat. Mais j'en crois des témoins certains, irréprochables : J'ai vu, j'ai vu couler des larmes véritables. Aricie

1445

1450

Prenez garde, seigneur : vos invincibles mains Ont de monstres sans hombre affranchi les humains ; Mais tout n'est pas détruit, et vous en laissez vivre Un . . . Votre fils, seigneur, me défend de poursuivre. Instruite du respect qu'il veut vous conserver, Je l'affligerais trop si j'osais achever. J'imite sa pudeur, et fuis votre présence Pour n'être point forcée à rompre le silence.


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Arcie: (Continued)

1435

You damn him to slander and scandal everywhere. Stop it: you should repent of your relentless prayer; O you should fear, my Lord, that heaven will fulfill Its own great hate for you and execute your will. Its fatal rage may take away our prey sometimes. Sometimes its benefits repay us for our crimes. Thesus:

1440

(Crossing up left.) No,x now you cannot hide how he has been so lewd: (Crosses down.) Your lovex has made you blind to his ingratitude. But I have witnesses who testified right here: And I myself have seen fierce tears which are sincere. Aricie:

1445

1450

(Crossing to Theseus.) xTake care, / my Lord, take care: / / for your heroic hands Have slain the numberless monsters of many lands; (Theseus crosses to her.) But all are not destroyed,x because you did not seek One . . . But your son, my Lord, forbids me now to speak. (Crossing down.) xInformed of the respect which he still holds for you, I would grieve him too much if I said what I knew. (Backing away.) xSo I shall be discreet, and leave your presence now; If I stayed I might say more than I should somehow. (Crossing left center and exits right.) Very quickly Aricie and Theseus are adversaries. She confronts Theseus, filled with range Each, however, conducts herself and himself with dignity Napoleon, who did so much to reconstitute the Comédie Française (where actors had suffered greatly during the revolution and The Reign of Terror) was partial to tragedy. He is reported to have said to an actor: 'Persons duly constituted in authority, owing their elevation to birth or ability, are close and self-contained when stirred by passions.'

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1455

1460

Scène IV: Thésée. Quelle est donc sa pensée, et que cache un discours Commencé tant de fois, interrompu toujours ? Veulent-ils m'éblouir par une feinte vaine ? Sont-ils d'accord tous deux pour me mettre à la gêne ? Mais moi-même, malgré ma sévère rigueur, Quelle plaintive voix crie au fond de mon cur ? Une pitié secrète et m'afflige et m'étonne. Une seconde fois interrogeons none : Je veux de tout le crime être mieux éclairci. Gardes. qu'none sorte, et vienne seule ici. Scène V: Thésée, Panope. Panope J'ignore le pro jet que la reine médite, Seigneur; mais je crains tout du transport qui l'agite. Un mortel désespoir sur son visage est peint ;

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Scene Four: Theseus, (alone) Theseus:

1455

1460

/ / What went on in her mind? / what did her saying hide Begun, and then cut off, unable to confide? Were they to baffle me by their hypocrisy? Or do the two of them resort to torture me.? And meanwhile I myself, despite my self-control, What is the voice I hear cry out in my own soul? A secret pity pleads and weeps in my heart's core. I must seek out Oenone and question her once more: I must find out the truth, my mind must be made clear. Now guards, go find Oenone alone, and bring her here. Scene Five: Theseus, Panope (Panope enters up right on platform.) Panope: My Lord, I do not know what the Queen means to do, But I fear for the state which she now suffers through. A fatal pale despair is painted on her face, Line 1456, is a poetic line which reveals the heart of Theseus. Theseus, alone, gives utterance to his fears, his pain, his doubts, his suspicions. His tirade builds to the higherst intensity, made more so by being contained within the 'iron corset' Panope's entrance arrests Theseus' impetus to rush off She is the stolid, but warmly affectionate and loyal attendant to the Queen. She is both puzzled and troubled by Oenone's suicide.

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Panope (Cont.) 1465

La pâleur de la mort est déjà sur son teint. Déjà de sa présence avec honte chassée, Dans la profonde mer none s'est lancée. On ne salt point d'où part ce dessein furieux ; Et les flots pour jamais l'ont ravie à nos yeux. Thésée Qu'entends-je ? Panope

1470

1475

Son trépas n'a point calmé la reine ; Le trouble semble croître en son âme incertaine. Quelquefois, pour flatter ses secrètes douleurs, Elle prend ses enfants et les baigne de pleurs ; Et soudain, renonçant à l'amour maternelle, Sa main avec horreur les repousse loin d'elle : Elle porte au hasard ses pas irrésolus ; Son il tout égaré ne nous reconnaît plus ; Elle a trois fois écrit; et, changeant de pensée, Trois fois elle a rompu sa lettre commencée. Daignez la voit, seigneur; daignez la secourir. Thésée

1480

O ciel ! none est morte, et Phèdre veut mourir ! Qu'on rappelle mon fils, qu'il vienne se défendre ;


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Panope: (Continued)

1465

(Theseus reacts, turning right to stare at Panope.) Already,x the great dread of death has left its trace. Already, leaving her and flying shamefully, Oenone has thrown herself into the raging sea. No no one knows what cruel madness made her obey: We only know the waves have taken her away. Theseus: What do I hear? (Stepping toward Panope.) Panope:

1470

1475

Her death has not disturbed the Queen; The anguish of her soul is so grotesquely seen. Sometimes, as if to ease the torment of her fears, She holds her children close and bathes them with her tears; And then, rejecting them, renouncing tenderness, She pushes them away, far from her best caress; She walks as if she lived in some oblivion; And her distracted gaze does not know anyone; (Backing up.) Three times she tried to write; and then, changing her mind,x Three times she rose and tore the letter up unsigned. See her, my Lord, see her, / and listen to her cry.x (Panope exits up right.) Theseus:

1480

O gods! Oenone is dead, and Phedre desires to die! (Crossing to center of platform) Recall my son, he must defend himself somehow;x Lines 1475-1479, are spoken without Panope's raising her voice. Lines 1480-1481, Theseus realizes how terrible has been his action. As Panope relives the scene with the Queen, her reporting becomes louder and more rapid. As a bearer of distressing news, she is eager to tell all and leave. Without pause or break, Theseus' speech links Panope's news to the even more tragic tale to be delivered by Théramène.

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Thésée (Cont.)

1485

Qu'il vienne me parler, je suis prêt de l'entendre. Seul. Ne précipite point tes funestes bienfaits, Neptune; j'aime mieux n'être exaucé jamais. J'ai peut-être trop cru des témoins peu fidèles, Et j'ai trop tôt vers toi levé mes mains cruelles. Ah ! de quel désespoir mes vux seraient suivis ! Scène VI: Thésée, Théramène. Thésée

1490

Théramène, est-ce toi ? qu'as-tu fait de mon fils ? Je te l'ai confié dès lâge le plus tendre. Mais d'où naissent les pleurs que je te vois répandre ? Que fait mon fils ? Théramène O soins tardifs et superflus ! Inutile tendresse ! Hippolyte n'est plus. Thésée Dieux ! Théramène J'ai vu des mortels périr le plus aimable, Et j'ose dire encor, seigneur, le moins coupable.


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1485

(Crossing right) No let him speak to me, I want to hear him now.x The fatal vow must wait, it cannot be begun, Neptune; I almost wish my prayer could be undone. Perhaps I have believed people I should not trust, I may have raged too soon and asked you to be just. Now into what despair am I led by my vow? / Scene Six: Theseus, Théramène (Theramene enters left) Theseus:

1490

Théramène, is it you? And where is my son now? I trusted him to you in his most tender years. But now I see you weep: what is behind these tears? Where is my son? Théramène: Too late, this should have come before! Your suit is useless now: / Hippolyte is no more. Theseus: / / Oh gods! Théramène: I saw him die, this loveliest of men, And this man had no guilt, my Lord, I say again. Lines 1480-1481, Theseus realizes how terrible has been his action. Line 1484, he moves to the spot where he called upon Neptune Line 1487, marks a silence and a move as a transition Line 1488, the scene begins slowly, but the pace is not funereal Line 1490, is spoken softly Line 1491, is an order not a supplication. Théramène enters as might a sleep-walker. Emphasis is upon reportage with scarcely any movement The voice and the emotions of the actor must hold the attention of the audience.

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Thésée 1495

Mon ills n'est plus ! Hé quoi ! quand je lui tends les bras, Quel coup me l'a ravi, quelle foudre soudaine ? Théramène

1500

1505

1510

1515

A peine nous sortions des portes de Trézène, Il était sur son char; les gardes affligés Imitaient son silence, autour de lui rangés ; Il suivait tout pensif le chemin de Mycènes ; Sa main sur ses chevaux laissait flotter les rênes ; Ses superbes coursiers qu'on voyait autrefois Pleins d'une ardeur si noble obéir à sa voix, L'il morne maintenant, et la tête baissée, Semblaient se conformer à sa triste pensée. Un effroyable cri, sorti du fond des flots, Des airs en ce moment a troublé le repos ; Et du sein de la terre une voix formidable Répond en gémissant à ce cri redoutable. Jusqu'au fond de nos curs notre sang s'est glacé ; Des coursiers attentifs le crin s'est hérissé. Cependant sur le dos de la plaine liquide, S'élève à gros bouillons une montagne humide ; L'onde approche, se brise, et vomit à nos yeux, Parmi des flots d'écume, un monstre furieux. Son front large est armé de comes menaçantes ; Tout son corps est couvert d'écailles jaunissantes ;


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Theseus: 1495

My son is no more now! / I would have been his friend, / / But the impatient gods have rushed him to his end! What blow has taken him? What great stroke of the fates? Théramène: (Crossing down to Theseus.)

1500

1505

1510

1515

When he had left Trézène and gone beyond the gates, He drove his chariot; and with a solemn air, His silent grieving guards were all around him there; Sadly he chose the road to Mycenae, and he Relaxed the reins so that his horses all ran free; These handsome animals, which once were his own choice, And eager to obey the loud sound of his voice, Now galloped with sad eye and raced with heavy head, As if responding to his own keen sense of dread. A frightful cry, which came from far along the shore, Cut through the quiet sky with an ungodly roar; And from the earth itself there came a great loud shout Which terrorized the air and echoed all about. Afraid in our stark hearts, our own life blood froze cold; The horses heard and reared and could not be controlled. Just then, erupting from the surface of the sea. There rose a mound of foam which burst ferociously; The wave approached, and broke, and vomited to sight, Amidst the waves of foam, a monster of great height. Its large forehead was armed with long and pointed horns; Covered with yellow scales, the beast could be sea-born, Lines 1495-1496, Theseus continues in the same rhythm. The actor must not do anything on stage in the midst of one of these tirades He has to stay there and bring everything out; he cannot move. What the actor must do to make the audience listen to a long descriptive speech, covering several pages, it to make them attend For a long speech both actor and audience have to work harder The audience can be made to think the long story is worth listening to, to feel the story as it moves forward, as long as the actor is deeply inside the situation He must 'coin' the language symbolically, as it were, as if the lines were coming out for the first time.

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Théramène (Cont.) 1520

1525

1530

1535

1540

Indomptable taureau, dragon impétueux, Sa croupe se recourbe en replis tortueux ; Ses longs mugissements font trembler le rivage. Le ciel avec horreur voit ce monstre sauvage ; La terre s'en émeut, l'air en est infecté ; Le flot qui l'apporta recule épouvanté. Tout fuit; et, sans s'armer d'un courage inutile, Dans le temple voisin chacun cherche un asile. Hippolyte lui seul, digne fils d'un héros, Arrête ses coursiers, saisit ses javelots, Pousse au monstre, et d'un dard lancé d'une main sûre, Il lui fait dans le flanc une large blessure. De rage et de douleur le monstre bondissant Vient aux pieds des chevaux tomber en mugissant, Se roule, leur présente une gueule enflammée Qui les couvre de feu, de sang et de fumée. La frayeur les emporte; et, sourds à cette fois, Ils ne connaissent plus ni le frein ni la voix ; En efforts impuissants leur maître se consume ; Ils rougissent le mors d'une sanglante écume. On dit qu'on a vu même, en ce désordre affreux, Un dieu qui d'aiguillons pressait leur flanc poudreux. A travers des rochers la peur les précipite ; L'essieu crie et se rompt : l'intrépide Hippolyte Voit voler en éclats tout son char fracassé ; Dans les rênes lui-même il tombe embarrassé.


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Théramène: (Continued.) 1520

1525

1530

1535

1540

A fiery dragon, a wild and raging bull; The hair along its back was twisted, thick and full; Its shrieking shook the shore and cut across the air. The sky with horror saw the savage monster there; The earth quaked, and the sight poisoned the atmosphere; The same great wave of foam it came on, fled with fear. Everyone flew, we knew that now no one was brave; We sought the safety that a nearby temple gave. But Hippolyte remained, true to his origin, Halted his horses here, took up his javelin, Thew at the monster's side, and with a perfect aim He tore a ghastly wound in its enormous frame. The great beast leaped ahead and shrieked with rage and pain, Came where the horses were, fell to the earth again, Rolled over, roared, and showed its throat, began to choke, And bathed the horses there with fire, blood and smoke. Fear overwhelmed them then, none of the horses heard Their master shouting out his stern commanding word; (Crossing up right center.) He pulled back on the reins, his strength was infinite, But their mouths overflowed with blood around the bit. Through all this violence they say that one could see A god with a great whip beating them ruthlessly. Spurred on by their own fear, they raced across the rocks; The axle screeched and broke from such outrageous shocks: The chariot flew off its few shattered remains; But Hippolyte was caught all snarled up in the reins. Lines 1542-1544, Théramène makes use of the words for onamatopoetic effect. Racine's method is simple and concentrated. Inside, the actors have to be very rich, but outside it's not difficult, only to bring everything inside, with an internalization, minimum of voice, minimum of gesture, that's the big art!

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THÉRAMÈNE: And then, at last, the hero died.

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Théramène (Cont.) 1545

1550

1555

1560

1565

1570

Excusez ma douleur : cette image cruelle Sera pour moi de pleurs une source éternelle. J'ai vu, seigneur, j'ai vu votre malheureux ills Traîné par les chevaux que sa main a nourris. Il veut les rappeler, et sa voix les effraie ; Ils courent: tout son corps n'est bientôt qu'une plaie. De nos cris douloureux la plaine retentit. Leur fougue impéueuse enfin se ralentit : Ils s'arrêtent non loin de ces tombeaux antiques Où des rois ses aieux sont les froides reliques. J'y cours en soupirant, et sa garde me suit ; De son généreux sang la trace nous conduit ; Les rochers en sont teints; les ronces dégouttantes Portent de ses cheveux les dépouilles sanglantes. J'arrive, je l'appelle; et, me tendant la main, Il ouvre un il mourant qu'il referme soudain : < < Le ciel, dit-il, m'arrache une innocente vie. Prends soin après ma mort de la triste Aricie. Cher ami, si mon père un jour désabusé Plaint le malheur d'un ills faussement accusé, Pour apaiser mon sang et mon ombre plaintive, Dis-lui qu'avec douceur il traite sa captive ; Qu'il lui rende . . . > > Ace mot, ce héros expiré N'a laissé dans mes bras qu'un corps défiguré : Triste objet où des dieux triomphe la colère, Et que méconnaîtrait l'il même de son père


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Théramène: (Continued.) 1545

1550

1555

1560

1565

1570

Forgive my sorrow now: for knowing what I know, The sight of this will be a constant source of woe. For I saw your own son, my Lord, I saw your son Dragged by his horses there wherever they would run. He tried to call a halt, they bolted at the sound, They ran until he was torn open on the ground. The field could feel the pain, and our hearts were downcast, And then the mad horse race began to slow at last: And finally they stopped near the great ancient tomb Where all the ancestors are kept in the cool gloom. I ran there breathlessly, and his guards followed me: His blood had formed a trail which everyone could see; The rocks were wet with it; there was red everywhere, Even the rough thorns bore his bloody shocks of hair. I reached him, I cried out; and then, trying to rise, The dying Hippolyte opened and closed his eyes: ''The sky,'' he said, "has seized a sinless life from me. When I have died, dear friend, take care of Aricie. If my own father should someday be told the truth, And pities the sad fate of an insulted youth, Tell him, to please my blood and give my spirit peace, That all these injuries to Aricie must cease; Let him give her . . . "And then, at last, the hero died, Leaving his poor torn form to lie there by my side: A figure which the gods decided to despise, Which his own father now would never recognize. Line 1547, the repetition gives emphasis. Line 1552, marks a slowing down of the tirade All the actors resources: feelings, voice control, variety, diction, a growing involvement in telling the 'tale' are practical acting approaches to bringing the tirade to a climax. It must move and take the audience along with it An analysis of the structure of the announcing of the death of Hippolyte is essential. The audience must be moved and eager to know 'what comes next?'

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Thésèe O mon fils ! cher espoir que je me suis ravi ! Inexorables dieux, qui m'avez trop servi ! A quels mortels regrets ma vie est réservée ! Théramène 1575

1580

1585

1590

La timide Aricie est alors arrivée: Elle venait, seigneur, fuyant votre courroux, A la face des dieux l'accepter pour époux. Elle approche; elle voit l'herbe rouge et fumante ; Elle voit (quel objet pour les yeux d'une amante !) Hippolyte étendu, sans forme et sans couleur . . . Elle veut quelque temps douter de son malheur ; Et ne connaissant plus ce héros qu'elle adore, Elle voit Hippolyte, et le demande encore. Mais, trop sûre à la fin qu'il est devant ses yeux, Par un triste regard elle accuse les dieux ; Et froide, gémissante, et presque inanimée, Aux pieds de son amant elle tombe pâmée. Ismène est auprès d'elle; Ismène, tout en pleurs, La rappelle à la vie, ou plutôt aux douleurs. Et moi, je suis venu, détestant la lumiére, Vous dire d'un héros la volonté dernière, Et m'acquitter, seigneur, du malheureux emploi Dont son cur expirant s'est reposé sur moi. Mais j'aperçois venir sa mortelle ennemie.


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Theseus: My son! My only hope now taken far away! (Crossing down right) O gods!x In your high pride you served me well today! I know grief is the fate I must forever face! Théramène: (Crossing down stage.) 1575

1580

1585

1590

Then timid Aricie came up to that sad place:x She came, my Lord, because you made her try to fly; She swore to be his wife by all the gods on high. She came up close; she saw the grass was wet and bright; She saw (and what a thing for a sweet lover's sight!) Without color or form, how Hippolyte stretched out. For a long time she stood, and she had a strong doubt; Not knowing her own love who lay there at her feet, She looked around awhile and called for Hippolyte. But satisfied at last this had to be her love, She gazed up to the sky and blamed the gods above; Then cold and so alone, and losing all restraint, She fell there at his feet, insensible and faint. Ismène was close to her; and lost in tears, Ismène Made her come back to life, or back to grief again. And I myself came here, hating the light of day, To tell you everything he wanted me to say, And finishing, my Lord, this last unpleasant task Which his fine dying heart had strength enough to ask. But now I seem to see his deadly enemy. Théramène's thoughts turn to Aricie. (The sub-text is how he had hoped for the marriage of the two young people to end the waring between the two houses.)

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THESEUS: But Madam, he is dead, and you should claim your prey.

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Scène VII: Thésée, Phèdre, Théramène, Panope, gardes. Thésée 1595

1600

1605

Hé bien ! vous triomphez, et mon fils est sans vie ! Ah! que j'ai lieu de craindre; et qu'un cruel soupçon, L'excusant dans mon cur, m'alarme avec raison ! Mais, madame, il est mort, prenez votre victime ; Jouissez de sa perte, injuste ou légitime : Je consens que mes yeux soient toujours abusés. Je le crois criminel, puisque vous l'accusez. Son trépas à mes pleurs offre assez de matières Sans que j'aille chercher d'odieuses lumiéres, Qui, ne pouvant le rendre à ma juste douleur, Peut-être ne feraient qu'accroître mon malheur. Laissez-moi, loin de vous, et loin de ce rivage, De mon fils déchiré fuir la sanglante image. Confus, persécuté d'un mortel souvenir, De l'univers entier je voudrais me bannir. Tout semble s'élever contre mon injustice ;

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Scene Seven: Theseus, Phèdre, Théramène, Panope (Guards) (Phèdre, followed by Panope, enters from right on the platform, pausing center stage.) Theseus: 1595

1600

1605

/ / / My son has lost his life: this is your victory! It is no wonder now I tried to see his side, Deep in my heart I sensed a doubt I could not hide! (To Phèdre.) But Madam, he is dead, so you should claim your prey; Enjoy his having died, guilty or not, today: For I agree my eyes must be forever blind. (Crossing to Phèdre.) He was a criminal,x you proved it to my mind. His death gives me enough to occupy my grief, Without more questions now, to test my disbelief, Since it would do no good nor cause my son to live A greater source of pain is all that it would give. Let me go far from here, and far away from you, Perhaps the sight of death will vanish from my view. I choke with memory, / and to escape this curse, I would exile myself from the whole universe. Everything rises up against me to complain; Lines 1594-1600, Theseus is conflicted about accusing Phèdre Line 1600, Phèdre recoils. Theseus stands as if turned to stone. Lost in his own grieving thoughts, Theseus is slow to focus on Phèdre who has entered. Theseus is in agony Having invoked Neptune to destroy Hippolyte, he searches for justification of that death to ease his pain.

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Thésée (Cont.) 1610

1615

L'éclat de mon nom même augmente mon supplice: Moins connu des mortels, je me cacherais mieux. Je hais jusques aux soins dont m'honorent les dieux; Et je m'en vais pleurer leurs faveurs meurtrières, Sans plus les fatiguer d'inutiles prières. Quoi qu'ils fissent pour moi, leur funeste bonté Ne me saurait payer de ce qu'ils m'ont ôté. Phèdre Non, Thésée, il faut rompre un injuste silence; Il faut à votre fils rendre son innocence: Il n'était point coupable. Thèsèe

1620

Ah! père infortuné! Et c'est sur votre foi que je l'ai condamné! Cruelle! pensez-vous être assez excusée . . . Phèdre

1625

Les moments me sont chers; écoutez-moi, Thésée: C'est moi qui, sur ce fils chaste et respectueux, Osai jeter un il profane, incestueux. Le ciel mit dans mon sein une flamme funeste: La détestable none a conduit tout le reste.


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Theseus: (Continued) 1610

1615

The fame of my own name increases my great pain: If I were less well known, I might hide easily. I hate all gifts the gods have ever given me; I shall regret their great murderous favors now, And never weary them with any further vow. (Groaning.) What they have given me, cannot at all repay For that which they have now chosen to take away. Phèdre: (Crossing down ramp.) No, Theseus, / let me speak, for I cannot keep still; I must show you your son in his own guiltless will: For he was innocent. (Théramène exits left.)

1620

Theseus: Ah! unfortunate son! (Crossing up to Phèdre) And it was onx your word that this damned thing was done! O cruel! and do you think that I could now forgive . . . Phèdre: (Slowly coming down stage to Theseus.)

1625

Moments are dear to me, so hear me while I live: I am the one in whom this passion had begun, By casting a foul eye on your respectful son. The gods lodged him in me until I was obsessed: Detestable Oenone accomplished all the rest. Lines 1617-1619, Phèdre must take care that her voice does not rise, but she must be heard. Phèdre breaks in on his crying out his bereavement. Her look is that of one seeing far off. Neither will she spare him nor herself All is to come out. Lines 1623-1624, Theseus recoils. Once again Phèdre cuts Theseus short Rising above her weakness, she forces him to listen. Dying, she demands of herself that she expiate her sin through confession. Lines 1622-1644, in this final and climatic tirade, Phèdre is not to excite an emotion by a changing of breath The secret is for the spectators not to hear the breath. Phèdre is always beautiful as she dies She is not to be afraid: she 'disappears' before the audience's eyes.

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PHÈDRE: And death, Gives back the light of day in all its purity.

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Phèdre (Cont.)

1630

1635

1640

Elle a craint qu'Hippolyte, instruit de ma fureur, Ne découvrît un feu qui lui faisait horreur: La perfide, abusant de ma faiblesse extrême, S'est hâtée à vos yeux de l'accuser lui-même. Elle s'en est punie, et fuyant mon courroux, A cherché dans les flots un supplice trop doux. Le fer aurait déjà tranché ma destinée; Mais je laissais gémir la vertu soupçonnée; J'ai voulu, devant vous exposant mes remords, Par un chemin plus lent descendre chez les morts. J'ai pris. j'ai fait couler dans mes brûlantes veines Un poison que Médée apporta dans Athènes. Déjà jusqu'à mon cur le venin parvenu Dans ce cur expirant jette un froid inconnu; Déjà je ne vois plus qu'à travers un nuage Et le ciel et l'époux que ma présence outrage; Et la mort, à mes yeux dérobant la clarté, Rend au jour qu'ils souillaient toute sa pureté. Panope Elle expire, seigneur! Thésée

1645

D'une action si noire Que ne peut avec elle expirer la méMoire!


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1630

1635

1640

She feared that Hippolyte, informed of my mad lust, Would tell you of this love which gave him such disgust: And so this meddling wretch, seeing that I was weak, Hurried to greet you here, and she began to speak. Escaping from my rage, she then began to flee And sought her judgement in the silence of the sea. The sword would have served me, and made me face my fate, But I felt the command of virtue was too great: I wanted to come here, to say what I have said, So then I could descend more slowly to the dead. Medea's poison now runs all along my veins, And I can feel it work, I understand these pains. (Sinking, to lean sitting against column #6) Already, its cruel death is coming on my heart, I feel an unknown cold in every body part; Already my dim eye no longer comprehends My noble husband whom my being here offends; And death, which takes away this great disgrace in me, Gives back the light of day in all its purity. Panope (Standing up stage of Phèdre.)

1645

She has just died, my Lord. Theseus: (Facing front.) If this catastrophe Could only wipe away the fatal memory! Racine himself says: ''descend more slowly to the dead.'' Regarding PHÈDRE's death scene, "If you go faster (to the actress playing Phèdre) you won't be believed. It must be a death of complete calm and tranquility." Phèdre's last line about the daylight is a visable display of the unity of time which Aristotle describes as the rising and setting of the sun.

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Thèsèe (Cont.)

1650

Allons, de mon erreur, hélas, trop éclaircis, Mêler nos pleurs au sang de mon malheureux fils! Allons de ce cher fils embrasser ce qui reste, Expier la fureur d'un vu que je déteste: Rendons-lui les honneurs qu'il a trop mérités; Et, pour mieux apaiser ses mânes irrités, Que, malgré les complots d'une injuste famille, Son amante aujourd'hui me tienne lieu de fille!

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1650

I know my error now, and since it has been done, I must mingle my tears in the blood of my son! (Crossing to left center.) And I must go embrace his mangled body now, To expiate the shame of that great hateful vow, He has deserved his name, his honors will increase; And so that we are sure his soul will rest in peace, I shall, despite the guilt of her whole family, Proclaim to all the world my daughter Aricie! (Theseus crosses left, exiting slowly after Panope.) Theseus establishes order by taking as his daughter, Aricie. END

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COMPARATIVE CHRONOLOGY TO RACINE

YEAR

1620-1630

THEATRE AND LETTERS

MUSIC AND OPERA

GRAPHIC AND PLASTIC ARTS

The L'Hôtel de Bourgogne becomes the first theatre of Paris where were presented the first works of Pierre Corneille.

William Byrd, English composer dies (1623).

A zenith of Dutch art (1630): Rembrandt (1606-1669) Hals (1580-1666) Vermeer (16321675) Rubens (1577-1640)

RACINE

The Fortune Theatre, London, burns down (1621).

Orlando Gibbons, English musician, dies (1625).Bells installed in the gates of the Kremlin in Moscow (1625)

Valazquez paints: THE WATER SELLER OF SEVILLE Bernini sculpts NEPTUNE AND TRITON

Molière born (1622). Shakespeare's First Folio (1623). John Webster, playwright, dies (1625). John Bunyan born (1628). Calderon writes THE PHANTOM LADY (1629). Tirso de Molina writes first of DON JUAN plays (1630). 1624

Saruwaka Kanzaburo opens first kabuki theatre in Yedo (Tokyo).

Monteverdi composed TANCREDI AND CLORINDA.

Jacques Lemercier enlarges the Louvre, Paris France. Guarino Guarini, Italian architect, born.

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(Table continued from previous page) FRENCH COURT AND THE WORLD

MUNDANE EVENTS

CHURCH AND THOUGHT

KNOWLEDGE AND INVENTION

Richelieu makes peace between the queen mother and her son Louis XIII.

Oliver Cromwell denounced because he played the game of cricket.

Pope Paul V dies.

Upsala University Library founded by Gustavus Adolphus. Sweden (1620).

The massacre of Protestants in the Valtelline.

Currency inflation in Germany.

Protestant Huguenots rebel against Louis XIII. A Puritan's ship, Mayflower, lands in New England. John Carver, first governor of Plymouth colony. Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden intervenes in Thirty Years War (1630)

Richard Burton writes THE ANATOMY OF MELANCHOLY (1621).

Francis Bacon writes HISTORY OF The density of population in THE REIGN OF HENRY VII (1622). Germany per square mile: 35 persons. Pascal, French philosopher, born (1623). Potatoes planted in Germany for first time (1621).

University of Strasbourg opened (1621). Benedictine University of Salzburg founded (1622). Bibliotheca Palatina moves from Heidelberg, Germany to Rome, Italy (1623). Johann Rudolf Glauber makes a discovery of what is named Glauber's salt (1625).

Weekly News issued in London for first time (1622). Patent laws in England to protect inventors (1623).

Italian astronomer Giovanni Domenico born (1625)

First fire engines in England (1625).

Charles I grants charter to the Guiana Company (1627).

Introduction of full bottomed wigs in Europe (1625).

First harbor with sluices being constructed at Le Havre (1628).

New France, Canada incorporated by Richelieu (1627).

Johann Kepler, German astronomer dies (1630).

Shah Jahan, the great mogul of India, makes the Peacock Throne (1629). English poet Sir John Suckling invents the game of Cribbage. Dutch settle in New Amsterdam.

George Fox, founder of the Society of Friends, born.

Pembroke College at Oxford founded.

First English settlement in Eastern India.


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(Table continued from previous page) COMPARATIVE CHRONOLOGY TO RACINE THEATRE AND LETTERS

MUSIC AND OPERA


Founding of the Théâtre de Marais.

Jean-Baptiste Lully, composer, born.

Van Dyck made court painter to Charles I.

YEAR RACINE

1626

Birth of Agnès, the aunt of the poet and the future abbess of PortRoyal.

1631 1632

Five schools of Noh performing in Edo (Tokyo), Japan for Shogun.

Monteverdi takes holy orders. Vermeer, born. Christopher Wren, born

1633

Samuel Pepys born.

Jacopo Peri, Italian composer, inventer of recitative, dies.

1634

Oberammergau Passion Play given for Adam Krieser, German the first time, Germany. composer, born.

1635

Lope de Vega dies. Calderon writes LIFE IS A DREAM.

Frescobaldi writes 'Fiori Musicali di Toccate' influencing later Johann Sebastian Bach.

Van Dyck's: CHARLES I. Rembrandt's SASKIA.

Jacques Callot, dies. Francois Mansart's CHATEAU BLOIS


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MUNDAND EVENTS

CHURCH AND THOUGHT


In France, death for the adversary who kills the other man in a duel.

Francis Bacon dies.

Jardin des Plantes established in Paris, France.

Irish College in Rome founded.

Santorio Santorio, an Italian physician, measures human temperature for the first time using thermometer.

The GAZETTE founded in Paris. London Clockmakers Company, Inc. Earthquake in Naples; eruption of Vesuvius. Charles I of England issues charter for colony of Maryland.

First coffee shop opens in London.

John Locke, English philosopher, born

Galileo's treatise on celestial double motion published

Queen Christina ascends throne of Sweden

Russian fur trade established in Siberia.

Spinosa, Dutch philosopher, born.

Leiden University Observatory founded.

Speed limit on hackney coaches in London: 3 mph.

Giuilo Alenio, Italian Jesuit, publishes his first LIFE OF CHRIST in Chinese.

Budapest University established.

Gustavus Adolphus killed in action at Battle of Lutzen.

Thirty Years War becomes a conflict between France and Sweden against the House of Hapsburg Religious refugees of Massachusetts colonize Connecticut under John Winthrop, the younger.

Sale of tobacco in France restricted to pharmacies and only on doctor's prescriptions.

Cornelius Jansan writes tract against Richelieu.

The Boston Latin School founded in America. Robert Hooke, English physician, born.

First inland postal service in Britain between London and Edinburgh.


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(Table continued from previous page) COMPARATIVE CHRONOLOGY TO RACINE

YEAR RACINE 1636

THEATRE AND LETTERS

MUSIC AND OPERA


Corneille's LE CID which precipitates a quarrel as to the rules of classicism.

Shutz's COLLECTION OF MOTETS

Van Dyck's CHARLES I ON HORSEBACK. Valazquez's PRINCE BALTZAR.

Sarawaka Kanzaburo punished for the extravagance of troupe's Kabuki costumes. 1637

Ben Jonson, playwright dies. Buxtehude born. First public opera house opens in Venice. Commercial theatres appear in Venice.

1638

First National Theatre of Europe opens in Amsterdam.

Monteverdi's 8th book of madrigals.

Nicolas Pussin, French painter, paints ET IN ARCADIA EGO. Peter Breughel, the younger, dies.

1639

On the 22nd of December. Jean Racine was baptised at Ferté-Milon The poet took the name of his father; his mother was Jeanne Sconin. He was born of simple government functionaries who had no big income. 'Racine owes his success to his own merits.'

1640

Corneille's CINNA. London's Drury Lane Theatre given royal patent.

Corneille's ORACE

Monteverdi's opera, ADONE, given at the Teatro San Cassino, Venice, Italy.

Luis Lenau architect for Hotel Lambert. Rembrandt paints portrait of his mother.

John Bull, English composer, dies.

William Wycherley, English playwright, born.

Nicolas Pussin paints. THE INSPIRATION OF THE POET. Rembrandt paints SELFPORTRAIT at age 34.


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MUNDANE EVENTS

CHURCH AND THOUGHT


Manchus promulgate the Qing Dynasty.

Tea appears for first time in Paris.

Roger Williams, Puritan banished from Massachusetts, establishes Rhode Island and proclaims complete religious freedom.

Harvard College founded, Cambridge, Mass.

Commercial collapse of Dutch tulip trade.

Suppression and extermination of Christianity in Japan. Also foreign books outlawed and contact with Europeans forbidden.

Descartes': GEOMETRY

Cornelius Jansen. Dutch theologian and father of 'Jansenism', dies

Galileo's DISCOURSI E DIMONSTRAZIONI MATEMATICHE.

Dutch settle in Ceylon.

Birth of Louis XIV

Swedes settle on Delaware River, named New Sweden.

Murade IV of Turkey regains Baghdad from Persians.

Torture abolished in England. Nicolas Male branche, French philosopher, born.

English traders established in Canton. China.

Ann Hutchinson, banished from Boston, sets up a community in Rhode Island.

Russians reach the Pacific. Future minister Mazarin English settle at Madras. enters Richelieu's service. First printing press in North First Bishop's War in America at Cambridge, Scotland. Massachusetts.

The Académie Française compiles dictionary of the French language

William Gascoigne invents micrometer. Quinine being used for medicinal purposes.

Increase Mather, American Puritan clergyman. born. Uriel Acosta, Dutch-Jewish philosopher, commits suicide The Bay Song Book becomes the oldest surviving book Printed in America.

French occupy Alsace

First European cafe opens in Venice.

Abo University, Finland, founded From coal, coke is made for the first time.

Second Bishop's War in Scotland. Portugal becomes independent under John, Duke of Braganza. French pledge support. Sultan Ibrahim of Turkey succeeds Murad IV.


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MUSIC AND OPERA


In January, a little after the birth of Marie, the only sister of the poet, his mother succumbed to an infection.

Corneille's THE DEATH OF POMPEY.

Monteverdi's IL RITORNO D'ULISSE IN PATRIA, an opera.

Claude Lorraine paints EMBARKATION OF ST. URSULA

Racine's father remarries.

All theatres in England closed Monteverdi's THE by order of the Commonwealth. CORONATION OF POPPEA.

YEAR RACINE

1641

1642

Antony Van Dyck dies. Mansart, architect for Maisons Lafitte, France. Rembrandt paints THE NIGHT WATCH.

1643

Racine's father dies. The Molière and Les Bejarts found future poet is thus left their theatre, ILLUSTRE an orphan without any THÉÂTRE money. He was raised by his grandmother and a godmother, Marie des Moulins; as a very small child he also was close to his Aunt Agnès, who had taken orders as a nun at Port-Royal. Ultimately, he was taken into the convent of his aunt, Agnès.

1644

Corneille's tragedy: RODUGUNE. Calderon's THE MAYOR OF ZALEMEA.

Frescobaldi dies.

Valazquez paints VENUS AND CUPID.

Monteverdi dies. Cavalli writes the opera EGISTO.

Stradivari born.

Jacques Lemercier's Val-de-Grace Church, Paris.

Franz von Biebe, German composer, born.

Ribera's ST. PAUL THE HERMIT.


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MUNDANE EVENTS

CHURCH AND THOUGHT


Comte de Sissons' plot against Louis XIII exposed.

French settle in what is now Michigan.

Descartes' MEDITATIONS METAPHYSIQUES written.

Arsenic is prescribed for the first time for medicinal use.

Thomas Hobbes. DE CIVE.

Galileo Galilei dies.

Pope Urban VIII issues bull reducing feast days; prompted by Jesuits, he condemns Jansen's AUGUSTINUS.

Isaac Newton, English mathematician and philosopher born.

Coffee drinking becomes popular in Paris.

Francois Études De Mezeray: HISTORY OF FRANCE.

Torricelli invents the barometer.

Parcel Post established in France.

Roger Williams: KEY INTO THE LANGUAGE OF AMERICA.

Cotton goods manufactured Catholic revolt in Ireland. in Manchester, England. Dutch capture Malacca from Portuguese. Massacre of Ulster protestants. Death of Richelieu; succeeded by Cardinal Mazarin as First Minister of France.

Loire-Seine Canal finished in France. Montreal, Canada founded.

English civil War begins. In-common property tax introduced in England. Charles I and family flee to Hampton Court. Sir William Berkley, governor of colony of Virginia. Death of Louis XIII, succeeded by five year old son, Louis XIV. French army defeated at Duttlingen

Descartes: PRINCIPIA PHILOSOPHICAE (COGITO, ERGO SUM). John Milton: AREOPAGITICA for the freedom of the press.


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MUSIC AND OPERA


Calderon's THE GREAT THEATRE OF THE WORLD, an Auto Sacramentale.

Cardinal Mazarin brings to Paris a Venetian opera company.

Rembrandt paints THE RABBI.

YEAR RACINE

1645

Valazquez paints KING PHILIP IV ON A BOAR HUNT.

Lully made violinist at French Court. 1646

Murillo paints THE ANGEL'S KITCHEN.

1647

Beaumont and Fletcher's plays published.

1648

Tirso de Molina dies.

Pelham Humfrey, English composer, born.

Claude Lorraine paints THE MILL

John Blow, English composer, born.

Claude Lorraine paints EMBARKATION OF THE QUEEN OF SHEBA.

Arts Academy founded in Dresden, Germany.

Ribera paints THE HOLY FAMILY WITH ST. CATHERINE. 1649

Marie des Moulins becoming a widow, also becomes a nun as well. Jean Racine studies at PÉTITES ÉCOLES DE PORTROYAL Later, at the College de Beauvais all his instruction was given by Jansenist masters; Antoine Lemaitre, who was a learned lawyer, Arnolt, the doctor Hamon, and humanist Nicole and Lancelot.

Richard Lovelace writes LUCASTA.

Torelli, Italian composer, born.

Valazquez paints POPE INNOCENT. David Teniers, the elder, Dutch painter, dies.


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MUNDANE EVENTS

The Dutch occupy St. Helena. A newspaper begins to appear in Stockholm, Sweden. Turks and Venetians war over Crete.

CHURCH AND THOUGHT


The Dalai Lama's residence built in Lhasa, Tibet.

Preliminary meetings of London scientists creates the Royal Society. University of Palermo founded.

Alexis I, Czar of Russia. First lime trees planted to create the famous UNTER DEN LINDEN.

Leibniz, German philosopher, born.

Athanasius Kircher of Germany constructs the 'laterna magica'.

Pierre Bayle, French philosopher, born.

Francesco Cavalieri. astronomer, dies.

Creation of zoological gardens in Berlin. Charles I of England taken prisoner.

Yellow fever in Barbados.

Evangelista Torricelli, physicist, dies. William II of Orange succeeds his father.

Calvinists accepted as coreligionists by Lutherans.

Revolt against Spanish in Naples

Dismissal of Anglican professors at Oxford University.

Thirty Years War ends. La Fronde, a rebellion, breaks out in France. John II Casimir, king of Poland.

In Murano, Venice, Italy, chandeliers and mirrors are fashioned.

George Fox founds The Society of Friends (Quakers).

University of Bamberg founded Marin Mersenne, French philosopher and naturalist, dies.

Germany's population, due to war, famine and plague, sank from 17 million to 8 million.

Frederick III, king of Denmark. War of the Fronde begins in France Charles I of England beheaded.

England's free enterprise receives state support.

Descartes LES PASSIONS DES L'AME.

Dutch physician publishes his study of the plague, DE PESTE.

English becomes language of all legal documents in place of Latin in Great Britain.

Muhammed IV succeeds his father.


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MUSIC AND OPERA


1650

Corneille's ANDROMEDE.

The overture before a musical work appears in both Italian and French opera.

Poussin's SELF-PORTRAIT.

1651

First theatre for comedy in Vienna, Austria. Calderon becomes a priest.

King Louis XIV, as a youth, appears as a dancer in a court ballet.

Rembrandt paints GIRL WITH A BROOM.

YEAR RACINE

German sculptor B. Permoser born. 1652

Corneille's NICOMÈDE.

Minuet introduced at French Court.

Thomas Otway, English playwright, born.

1653

Molière's comedy, L'ETOURDI. Death of Kita Shichidayu, outstanding Noh actor.

Inigo Jones dies.

First opera house in Vienna. German composer, Pachelbel, born.

Peter Lely paints OLIVER CROMWELL.

Corelli, Italian composer, born.

Francesco Borromini's S. AGNESE IN AGONE, Rome, Italy. Taj Mahal, Agra, India, completed.

1654 1655

Racine ends his study of rhétorique. He studies Greek, reads Plutarch, Sophocles and Euripides: choice studies for a playwright.

1656

Cyrano de S.G. Bergerac, French poet, dies.

S.G. Staden, German composer, dies.

Rembrandt's WOMAN BATHING IN A STREAM.

Opening of the first London opera house.

Valazquez' LAS MENINAS.


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MUNDANE EVENTS

CHURCH AND THOUGHT

First fiacres in Paris.

Descartes dies.


Opening of first coffee house in England at Oxford. Tea first drunk in England. Louis XIV achieves a majority to rule.

Nell Gwyn, English actress and mistress of Charles II, born.

Thomas Hobbes. LAVIATHAN; defense of absolute monarchy.

The Library of Mazarin closed by order of the French Parliament. Giovanni Riccioli of Italy brings forth his map of the moon and names many of its lunar features.

Yetuna, Shogun of Japan, puts down rebellions. Charles II of England flees to France. First coffee house opened in St. Michael's Alley, Cornhill, London.

Hayashi Shunsai: A HISTORY OF JAPAN

.

Pascal joins the Jansenists at PortRoyal.

Theophraste Renaudot, French physician and philanthropist, dies.

William Byrd, Virginia planter, was born. Oliver Cromwell becomes Lord Letter Boxes appear for the first time in Paris. Protector of England.

Isaac Walton: THE COMPLEAT ANGLER.

Condemnation of Jansenism in France. ENd of the Civil War, the Fronde, in France. Johann Amos Comenius publishes in Germany the first picture book for children. First regular newspaper in Berlin.

A TREASURY OF RESEARCH AND ANTIQUITIES OF GAUL. Oliver Cromwell readmits Jews into England.

A general hospital opens in Paris which combines poorhouse, factory and hospital.

Pascal: LETTERS FROM THE PROVINCES AGAINST JESUITS. Spinosa excommunicated.


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MUSIC AND OPERA


1657

Cyrano's 'trip to moon' published posthumously.

Michel de Lalande, French composer and organist, born.

Rembrandt paints his son, Titus.

1658

John Dryden writes 'stanzas' on Cromwell's death.

YEAR RACINE

Peter de Hooch paints COURTYARD OF A HOUSE IN DELFT.

Nakamura Kanzaburo I of Kabuki dies.

1659

1660

Bernini, having completed St. Peters, Rome (1656) builds church at Castel Gandolfo for the pope.

Racine studies philosophy at the Molière's LES PRECIEUSES College d'Harcourt. Slated for RIDICULES. the profession of a lawyer, he drops it and goes out into the world; thanks to a cousin, Nicolas Vitard. He goes into the service of Chevreuse.

Henry Purcell, English composer born.

A poem of his: LA NYMPHE DE LA SEINE gains attention and also the award of a hundred louis.

Cavalli composes an opera for the marriage of Louis XIV.

Actresses appear on the English stage.

Scarlati, Italian composer born.

Samuel Pepys begins his diary. Louis XIV founds the Royal Academy of Dance.

1661

The Young poet is floundering as to what to do. He leaves for Uzès for the home of his uncle, Antoine Sconin, a vicar general in the hope of attaining an ecclesiastical benefice. He returns thirty months later and having read THE ODYSSEY he looks for a subject for dramatization.

Molière establishes theatre at the Palais-Royal making it the second theatre of Paris.

Vermeer paints A YOUNG GIRL WITH A FLUTE. Valazquez paints INFANTA MARIA THERESA.

Valazquez dies. The palace of Potsdam, Germany built. Zurbaran paints THE YOUNG VIRGIN

Louis Levau creates GALLERY OF APPOLLO, Louvre, Paris. Peter Lely made court painter to Charles II of England.

Daniel Defoe born. Molière writes THE SCHOOL FOR HUSBANDS.


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MUNDANE EVENTS

CHURCH AND THOUGHT


First stockings and fountain pens made in Paris.

Le Sieur, Saunier: L'ENCYCLOPEDIE DES BEAUX ESPRITS; first reference book with encyclopedia in the title.

Dutch scientist designs first pendulum clocks.

Edward Phillips: A NEW WORLD OF WORDS.

Jan Swammerdam observes red blood corpuscles for the first time.

Chocolate, as a drink, is introduced in London. Oliver Cromwell dies. Aurang-Zeb, imprisoning his father Shah Jahan, becomes mogul, emperor of India.

Johann Palmstruck fashions the first bank note which was issued by the Swedish State BANK.

Germans found a Prussian Peace of the Pyrenees between France and Spain State Library in Berlin.

Robert Hooke, naturalist and philosopher, invents balance spring for watches. William Sumner: A DICTIONARY OF SAXON-LATIN-ANGLES.

Thomas Willis, English physician, describes first typhoid fever.

Swiss driven out of Prussia. French found trading station on Sengal Post, Africa Louis XIV marries Maria- CAFE PROCOPE opens in Paris. Teresa of Spain. CHarles II returns to England as king.

A pencil factory founded in Germany.

King George I of England born.

W.C.'s arrive from France in England.

Cardinal Mazarin dies.

John Eveland of England formulates the first or early attack on air pollution due to smoke.

Disgrace for Fouquet, Minister of Finance, imprisoned by Louis XIV. Colbert succeeds him.

James Herrington POLITICAL DISCOURSES. James Howell: A FOUR LANGUAGE LEXICON, English, French, Italian, Spanish dictionary.

John Elliot translates the Bible into Algonquin, becoming the first American Bible edition.

Robert Boyle defines chemical elements.

The Royal Library founded in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Famine in India.


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MUSIC AND OPERA


Molière writes THE SCHOOL FOR WIVES.

A ballet of Cavalli given in Paris.

Andre Lenôtre commissioned for garden of Versailles; Charles Lebrun made artistic advisor for Versailles by Louis XIV.

His ode on the recovery of the king gains attention and is appreciated; Racine makes the acquaintance of Boileau, who becomes his best friend He submits his first tragedy (poor) to Molière, who encourages him and requests of him a second play to be done with LA THÈBAÏDE of the dramatist Boyer.

The Drury Lane Theatre in London opens.

Lully's LE BALLET DES ARTS.

Pussin paints THE FOUR SEASONS.

Racine has prepared a play for the Palais-Royal: LA THEBAIDE OU LES FRERES ENNEMIS for which he ended up on the list of the pensions for men of letters gaining six hundred livres.

Molière's TARTUFFE.

YEAR RACINE

1662

1663

1664

Castle of Nymphenburg built near München, Germany

Colbert founds an academy of inscriptions and belle lettres.

Bernini's SCALA REGIA, Vatican, Rome.

The L'Hôtel de Bourgogne gives Boyer's LA THÉBAÏDE.

Dryden's tragic comedy THE RIVAL LADIES.

French horn becomes an orchestral instrument.

Poussin paints APOLLO AND DAPHNE.

Heinrich Shutz composes Christmas Oratorio Dresden, Germany.

English architect and playwright, John Vanbrugh born. Christopher Wren's Sheldonin Theatre built at Oxford. Zurburan dies.

1665

Racine's tragedy, ALEXANDRE, worked on with the advice of Boileau and other friends, gives at last to Racine a success. Since he had also sent the text to the L'Hotel de Bourgogne, it resulted in a quarrel with Molière and did not put him in a good light with Molière. However, as a consolation for Molière, the performances took in three thousand livres for Molière.

Molière writes DON JUAN.

Shutz composes JOHANNES PASSION.

Nicolas Pussin dies. Bernini finishes the high altar, St. Peter's, Rome.

La Fontaine's stories. Colley Cibber, English actor and dramatist born.

Vermeer paints THE ARTIST'S STUDIO

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MUNDANE EVENTS

French Academy founded in England mints silver pennies. France.

CHURCH AND THOUGHT


Pascal dies.

Founding of the Academia Leopoldina in Vienna. Royal Society receives charter from Charles II.

Royal Society founded in London Connecticut granted a new charter. Gang Xi as Manchu emperor of China, succeeds his father, Shun Zhi. Louis XIV gives first pensions to men of letters.

Turnpike tolls introduced in England.

Writings of Descartes put on the Catholic Index.

John Newton discovers the binomial theorem.

Colbert creates province, New France; Quebec is capital.

First gold guinea pieces coined in England.

Cotton Mather, New England writer and witch hunter born.

Danish physician, Nicolaus Steno, teaches that the heart is a muscle

The Trappist Order founded at La Trappe, Normandy.

Thomas Willis writes on the nervous system.

First scientific journal in England: PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS.

Peter Chamberlen becomes court physician to Charles II, credited with inventing midwifery forceps.

Turks wage war and invade Hungary.

Robert Carter, a Virginia planter, was born (Ancestor of six presidents of the United States).

Driving out of the religious from Portugal.

French furniture becomes the fashion in Europe's palaces and castles.

New Amsterdam becomes New York under the British. The large periwig is introduced as a style. Austrians defeat Turks at St French form a company to Gotthard. control all trade in Canada and their other colonies. The Jansenists refuse to acknowledge their heresy. Ann, future queen of England, born. Charles II succeeds his father Philip IV of Spain.

An archbishop of Muenster sells 7,000 of his subjects as soldiers.

University of Kiel founded.

Great plague of London begins killing more than 68,000 people.

Isaac Newton invents differential calculus

First known turf race in New York.


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MUSIC AND OPERA


Racine lured away from Molière the comedienne Thérèse du Parc. (She was 33 years old. The poet was 27 years) He writes for her a role. This results in a total rupture with Molière.

Molière's LE MISANTHROPE.

Stradivari labels his first violin.

Francois Mansart, architect of France, dies.

Racine marries, in secret, La du Parc, who plays in his new piece, ANDROMAQUE.

Jonathan Swift, born.

YEAR RACINE

1666

1667

Dryden: ANNUS MIRABILIS Franz Hals, Dutch artist, dies.

C. Palavicino becomes Kapellmeister in Dresden.

Milton: PARADISE LOST

Montfleury, the head of the players at the L'Hôtel de Bourgogne played Oreste and with such passion that he died after the fourth performance of a heart attack. ANDROMAQUE is the first of Racine's masterpieces. 1668

Racine writes his comedy PLAIDEURS. Although the play amused the king, the author was disdainful of comedies and did it as an exercise in style. Shortly afterwards La Du Parc dies. (There's talk of poison.) She had given birth to a daughter, JeanneThérèse, for which Racine was surely the father. The child was given over to a nurse and died at the age of 8 years.

Borromini, Italian architect and sculptor, dies. Gabriel Boffrand, French architect, born. Mexico cathedral finished.

Molière: L'AVARE; AMPHITRYON; GEORGE DANDIN

Francois Couperin, French composer, born.

Rembrandt paints RETURN OF THE PRODIGAL SON. Hildebrandt, Austrian architect, born.


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MUNDANE EVENTS

CHURCH AND THOUGHT


Queen mother and Prince De Conti die. Times become favourable for liberal opinions.

Colbert of France establishes the Goeblin Workshops.

The great schism breaks out in the Russian Church.

Isaac Newton measures the moon's orbit.

French and Dutch declare war on England.

Leibniz: DE ARTE COMBINATORIA. Great fire of London, February 2-9.

France captures Antigua, Montserrat and St. Christopher. Beginning of French expansion. The Marquise de Montespan becomes the new favorite of the king of France.

Colbert of France founds the Royal Factory for Furnitures for the crown.

French troops invade Netherlands

French army uses hand granades.

Peace of Breda between Dutch, French and English.

The company making felt incorporated in London.

Pope Alexander VII dies.

National Observatory founded in Paris, France.

William Penn questions the doctrine of the trinity

Isaac Newton constructs reflecting telescope.

Shah Abbas of Persia dies. Peace through treaty ends war between France and Spain. Pact between Louis XIV and Leopold I projects partition of Spanish possessions.

The German canal, OderSpree, completed in Germany.

Giovanni Battista Vico, Italian philosopher, born.

England's East India Company takes over control of Bombay Spain recognizes independence of Portugal.


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The poet was inspired by the historians of the Roman Empire and he wrote the tragedy of BRITANNICUS. This achieved a true success at the L'Hôtel de Bourgogne. The excellent actor Floridor depicted Nero.

Molière's MONSIEUR DE POURCEAUGNAC.

Royal patent for Royal Academy of Operas granted to Pierre Perrin.

Levau redoes Versailles.

Marie Desmares, known as La Champmeslé, at the age of 28 took over the role of Hermione in Racine's tragedy ANDROMAQUE. She became one of the truly great actresses of all time and she exercised a great fascination for the poet. For her he also wrote BÉRÉNICE. Once again, one of the great masterpieces of the poet. It is often referred to as a tragedy without action.

Molière's LE BOURGEOIS GENTILHOMME.

YEAR RACINE 1669

1670

1671

Dryden's comedy, THE WILD GALLANT.

Rembrandt dies. Vermeer paints GIRL AT THE SPINET.

John Blow organist of Westminster Abbey.

Louis Levau dies. Vermeer paints THE PEARL NECKLACE

Corneille's TITUS AND BÉRÉNICE. Dryden's THE CONQUEST OF GRENADA; becomes Poet Laureate. William Congreve born.

Moliere's LES FOURBERIES DE SCAPIN

Paris opera opens.

Lionel Bruant, architect for Hôtel Des Invalides, Paris France.

Mme. De Sévigné begins her letters. Christopher Wren's THE MONUMENT to commemorate the great fire of London in 1666. 1672

Racine writes for La Champmeslé his tragedy BAJAZET. Due to his success, he has been able to accumulate, over a period of six years, a small fortune.

Molière's LES FEMMES SAVANTES.

First public concert in London.

John Webb, English architect, dies.

Joseph Addison, essayist, born. Oxford University's official press founded.

Heinrich Shutz, Gao Cen's famous ink composer, dies. Lully's painting AUTUMN ALCEST, an opera LANDSCAPE. given in Paris, France


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MUNDANE EVENTS

Turkish ambassadorial mission The first French trading station in India. in Paris sets vogue for things 'Turkish'. Cholera in China. South Carolina founded.

CHURCH AND THOUGHT


Pope Clement IX dies.

Nicolaus Steno begins the modern study of geology.

William Penn: NO CROSS, NO CROWN.

Jam Swammerdam: HISTORY OF THE INSECTS.

Venice loses Crete, its last possession. Aurange-Zeb bans Hinduism in India. France occupies Lorraine. Pact between France and Bavaria. Treaty of Dover between France and England. Death of Henriette, Queen of England.

Turks declare war on Poland Charles II makes former pirate, Henry Morgan, deputy governor of Jamaica.

Louis XIV's Minister of War, the Marquis de Louvois, provides the French army with uniforms and paper cartridges.

John Milton: THE HISTORY OF BRITAIN.

English physician, Thomas Willis, describes first symptoms of diabetes.

Pascal: PENSÉES, published posthumously.

First minute hands appear on watches. Hudson Bay Company incorporated by England in North America. The French form the African Senigal Company.

First Bible edition in Arabic printed in Rome.

The English crown takes direct control of the customs.

John Bunyan: A CONFESSION OF MY FAITH.

Court starts move to Versailles. The journal, MERCURE GALANT, established in Paris; a journal for light The start of the case of poisonings by the Marquise de reading. Brinvilliers.

Elias Ashmole INSTITUTIONS, LAWS, CEREMONIES OF THE ORDER OF THE GARTER.

Leibniz defines nature and existence of the ether

Flexible hose for use in fire fighting built by Jan van der Heyde and his son. French missionary Jacques Marquette explores north of the Mississippi River.

France declares war on the Dutch. Czar Peter the Great born


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(Table continued from previous page) COMPARATIVE CHRONOLOGY TO RACINE THEATRE AND LETTERS YEAR RACINE

1673

1674

MUSIC AND GRAPHIC OPERA AND PLASTIC ARTS

Once again for La Champmeslé he writes an historical tragedy, MITHRIDATE. Racine is elected to the French Academy.

Presentation of Molière's LE MALADE IMAGINAIRE; Molière dies

Salvatore Rosa, Spanish painter, dies.

Dryden's MARRIAGE A LA MODE.

Christopher Wren knighted.

Thanks to Colbert, Racine is given the office of a treasurer for France and achieves a substantial income of two thousand four hundred livres per year. His tragedy IPHIGÉNIE is given before the court in August, and again in December at Paris.

Boileau's L'ART POÉTIQUE.

Phillipe de Champaigne, dies.

John Milton dies.

Murillo paints ST. FRANCIS.

1675

Drury Lane theatre is rebuilt after the fire, and reopened.

William Wycherley's THE COUNTRY WIFE.

Vivaldi born. Vermeer dies. Sir Christopher Wren starts the rebuilding of St Pauls, London.

Haiku poems of Basho presented in Japan. 1676

Dryden's AURENGZEBE.

Cavalli dies.

George Etherege's A MAN OF MODE.


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MUNDANE EVENTS

CHURCH AND THOUGHT

The French Court is disturbed by talk of poisonings.

The Mitsui family established Archpriest Petrovich Avvakum their Japan. writes his life, first Russian autobiography.

University of Innsbruck founded

'Beau' Nash, leader of fashion, born in Bath, England.

John Mayow writes on the nature of combustion.

Emperor Leopold I declares war on France.


French explorers Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet attain the head waters of the Mississippi River and then travel to Arkansas.

French expedition against Ceylon. English exclude Catholics from office in England. French troops devastate the Palatine. John III elected king of Poland.

An alliance between France and Poland. War between Sweden and Denmark.

William Byrd II, of Virginia, born. Paris, as a center of culture for Europe, achieves a population of half a million inhabitants.

Czar Alexis of Russia dies. Due to the failure of his dinner for Louis XIV, Chef Robert Walpole, statesman Vatel commits suicide. in England, born. Influenza epidemic in England.

Isaac Watts born. Louis Moreri: THE GREAT HISTORICAL DICTIONARY, first encyclopedia reference work on history. Spinosa finishes his ETHICS

Greenwich Observatory established in England. Olaus Romer, German astronomer. discovers the velocity of light.

Pope Clement X dies. Roger Williams: GEORGE FOX DIGG'D OUT OF HIS BURROWES, an anti-Quaker tract.


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(Table continued from previous page) COMPARATIVE CHRONOLOGY TO RACINE MUSIC AND OPERA


On the first of January was the William Wycherley's THE first performance of PHÈDRE PLAIN DEALER. with La Champmeslé and the actor Baron in the role of Hippolyte A cabal sabotaged the play. On the first of June, Racine renounces the disorder in his private life, and he marries Catherine de Romanet. (Seven children resulted from this marriage.) In September both Racine and Boileau became historians for the king with a pension of six thousand livres. Racine had written that it was Louis XIV 'who had drawn him away from poetry.'

Lully's ISIS given.

Godfrey Kneller, in England, paints MR. VERNON.

Racine and Boileau followed the king into Flanders, in order to record the king's exploits. The birth of Jean Baptiste Racine, future diplomat and author of some letters and notes regarding his father.

First German opera house opens in Hamburg.

Murillo begins first of thirty paintings of THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION.

Scarlati's first opera given in Rome.

Charles Le Brun fashions the HALL OF MIRRORS, Versailles.

YEAR RACINE

1677

1678

THEATRE AND LETTERS

George Farquhar, dramatist, born.

Pieter de Hooch's MUSICAL PARTY IN A COURTYARD.

Andrew Marvell, English poet, dies. Thomas Corneille's LE COMTE D'ESSEX, a medieval tragedy. Dryden's ALL FOR LOVE.

1679

Despite his protected position (or because of it) Racine was the object of an infamous acusation of the poisoner Voisin who claimed that the poet had poisoned La Du Parc. The claim came to nothing, but all was not over.

Dryden and Lee: OEDIPUS.

Jan Steen, Dutch painter, dies. poet had poisoned


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MUNDANE EVENTS

CHURCH AND THOUGHT


Execution of the Marquise de Brinvillier for poisonings.

Ice cream is the popular dessert in Paris.

Spinosa dies.

Isaac Barrow, English mathematician, dies.

John Bunyan: THE PILGRIM'S PROGRESS PART I.

Robert de La Salle explores the Great Lakes.

William III marries Princess Mary, daughter of Duke of York. Dutch-Danish fleet defeats Swedes. Peace of Nijmegen between France and Holland. French army in Flanders takes Ghent and Ypres.

Thomas Thatcher, in America, publishes the first medical treatise on measles and small pox.

The Marquise de Montespan implicated in poisonings.

France promulgates an edict against dueling.

Thomas Hobbes dies.

Treaty between Louis XIV and Leopold I.

The first German coffee house appears in Hamburg.

Elias Ashmole founds the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford, University, England.

French Jesuit, Louis Hannepin, comes upon Niagra Falls.

New Hampshire separated from Massachusetts.


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The Comédie formed by the merging of the two theatres of Paris; La Comédie Française.

Henry Purcell made organist of Westminster Abbey.

Bernini dies.

Samuel Butler, satirist, dies.

Sadlers Wells, London, begins musical entertainments.

Emperor Gang Xi of China promulgates edict which starts art industries and factories.

YEAR RACINE 1680

Commanded by the king, Racine and Boileau prepare an opera, THE FALL OF PHAETON, but Quinault gets the better of them opera being his specialty Quinault gets the credit.

Sir Peter Lely, English painter, dies. 1681

In a memoir of the Marquise de Montespan is discovered criminal suspicion as to the death of La Du Parc. Racine is summoned to give testimony, but an intervention from the very highest source hushes up the affair It is not known if evidence existed against the poet.

1682

Calderon dies

Female dancers on the stage at the Paris opera for the first time.

Gerard Terborch, Dutch painter, dies.

German composer, Telemann, born

Thomas Otway's VENICE PRESERVED.

Lully's opera PERSÉE

Claude Lorraine, French painter, dies. Murillo, Spanish painter, dies. Jacob Van Ruisdael, Dutch painter, dies.

1683

Racine and Boileau follow the king to Alsace.

Izaak Walton, English writer, dies

Jean-Philippe Rameau born. Henry Purcell, court composer to Charles II of England.

Pieter de Hooch, Dutch painter, dies. Guarino Guarini, Italian architect, dies. Charles Le Brun made director of the Royal Academy.


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MUNDANE EVENTS

CHURCH AND THOUGHT


Voisin and others executed for poisonings in France

The flightless bird, dodo, becomes extinct.

Cesar-Pierre Richelet: DICTIONNAIRE FRANÇOIS.

Jan Swammerdam, Dutch naturalist, dies.

French holdings in New World reach from Quebec to mouth of Mississippi River.

England establishes penny post.

Chelsea Hospital, London founded for wounded and discharged soldiers.

Bossuet: DISCOURSES ON UNIVERSAL HISTORY.

Academy of the Sciences founded in Moscow, Russia.

First checks appear in England.

Jean Mabillon makes the study of historical documents as a foundation of historical criticism.

La Salle claims Louisiana Territory for France.

Versailles becomes royal residence.

58,000 French Huguenots forced to convert

Czar Feodor III of Russia dies.

First learned journal appears (in Latin) in Leipzig, Germany.

Pierre Bayle publishes tract against superstitions on comets

Tsunayoshi becomes Shogun of Japan. Alliances between Brandenburg and France. Royal Charter for Pennsylvania.

Jean Picard, French astronomer. dies.

Weaving mill with a hundred looms established in Amsterdam. Turks begin siege of Vienna

First German immigrants arrive in North America.

William Penn: A GENERAL DISCRIPTION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

Colbert dies. The future King George II of England born.

Newton explains theory on tides under gravitational attraction of sun, moon and earth.

First coffee house in Vienna.

Wild boars become extinct Spain declares war on France. in Great Britain. Manchus conquer Formaosa (Taiwan).


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An historical eulogy on the king concerning his conquests 16721687 becomes an historical work carried out by both Racine and Boileau Racine's plays receive distinguished revivals; e.g. IPHIGÉNIE at the Swedish court.

Corneille dies.

Amati, Italian musician, dies.

Jean Antoine Watteau, French painter, born.

Racine becomes director of the French Academy. He eulogizes his rival playwright, Pierre Corneille. A musical poem by Racine, LULLI, is presented at Sceaux, home of Colbert

John Gay, author of THE BEGGAR'S OPERA, born.

J.S. Bach born. George Fredric Handel born.

Kneller paints PHILIP, EARL OF LEICESTER.

Thomas Otway dies

Dominico Scarlati born.

First Swedish theatre opens in Stockholm.

Lully's opera ARMIDE ET RENAUD.

Jules Hardouin-Mansart creates Notre Dame, Versailles.

Lully dies.

Balthasar Neumann, German architect, born

Domenico Zipoli, Italian composer and organist, born

Joachim Sandrart, German art historian and painter, dies.

YEAR RACINE

1684

1685

1686

1687

Takemoto Gidayu begins Bunraku Theatre in Tokyo. Danish dramatist, Ludvig Holberg, born.

At the court, for emissaries of Thailand (Siam), Racine's tragedy BAJAZET was performed. Racine accompanies the king to Luxembourg; he pays court to Mme. de Maintenon.

1688

Pierre de Marivaux, playwright, born. Alexander Pope born.


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MUNDANE EVENTS

CHURCH AND THOUGHT


Louis XIV, following the death of his queen, marries Madame de Maintenon.

First attempt by the English in London to light the streets.

93 Jewish families expelled from Bordeaux.

Englebert Kampfer travels to Persian Gulf, Java and Japan

Louis XIV revokes Edict of Nantes which exiles thousands of French protestants.

David Abercromby writes on variations of the pulse.

Siamese Embassy arrives at the court of Louis XIV at Versailles. Charles II of England died.

Construction of the bridge. Pont Royal, in Paris.

All Chinese ports are open to foreign trade. Silk begins to be made by the French Huguenots in Great Britain.

First settlers arrive in Texas Increase Mather president of Harvard College George Berkley, Irish philosopher, born.

League of Augsbourg against Louis XIV. The French annex Madagascar. James II of England issues a declaration involving liberty of conscience.

The convent school St. Cyr founded by Mme. Maintenon for the Daughters of poor aristocrats.

Jean Leclerc writes a universal and historical library in 25 volumes.

Nell Gwyn dies.

Fenelon: A TREATISE ON THE EDUCATION OF YOUNG WOMEN

University of Bologna founded.

Plate glass is cast for the first time.

Boussuet HISTORY OF THE VARIETIES OF PROTESTANT CHURCHES

Joseph Nicolas Delisle, French astronomer, born.

The papal nuncio received by James II. War between France and the Holy Roman Empire: Louis XIV invades Palatine and takes Heidelberg

Smyrna, Turkey destroyed by earthquake. Emanuel Swedenborg born.

King James II escapes to France.


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YEAR RACINE

1689

At the request of Mme. de Maintenon, morganatic queen to Louis XIV Racine wrote ESTHER, a 'sacred' tragedy on a theme from the Old Testament; the play had been conceived for the young ladies of St. Cyr, it was performed six times by them privately there, with music and choruses. The aunt of Racine, Agnès de Sainte-Thècle, becomes Abbess of Port-Royal.

Samuel Richardson, novelist, born.

Henry Purcell writes DIDO AND AENEUS.

Meindert Hobbema paints AVENUE AT MIDDLEHARNIS

1690

Racine was enobled as GENTILHOMME ORDINAIRE: the ultimate reward for a courtier and poet.

Dryden's comedy AMPHITRYON.

Purcell's THE PROPHETESS presented at Dorset Gardens Theatre, London, England.

Nicolas Lancret, French painter, born.

1691

ATHALIE, the second 'sacred' tragedy was presented at St. Cyr without settings or costumes, making it seem austere and 'modern.'

George Etherege, playwright, dies.

Purcell's KING ARTHUR, an opera with a libretto by John Dryden.

Leonardo de Figuroa, architect for Magdalene Church, Seville, Spain.

1692

Birth of Louis Racine, the poets last child, destined to write his biography

William Congreve writes novel, INCOGNITA.

Purcell's THE FAERIE QUEENE.

Johann Michael Fischer, German architect, born.

Charles Le Brun, French architect, dies.

Giuseppi Tartini, composer and violinist, born. 1693

Racine accompanies Louis XIV to the Siege of Namur; the king confers on his preferred poet the hereditary privilege of GENTILHOMME ORDINAIRE.

La Fontaine's third volume of fables.

Scarlati's opera TEODORA Kneller paints DR BURNET.

George Lillo, English playwright, born. Congreve's THE OLD BACHELOR.


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MUNDANE EVENTS

CHURCH AND THOUGHT


Louis XIV declares war on Great Britain.

The French destroy Heidelberg Castle, Germany.

Montesquieu, French political philosopher, born.

French explorer, Baron de La Hontan comes upon the Great Salt Lake, Utah.

Peter the Great becomes Czar of Russia.

Pope Innocent XI dies. In Lieten, Holland is established the first trade fair.

Alexander VIII becomes Pope

Spain joins an alliance against France.

Printing of calico introduced from France into Great Britain.

John Locke: AN ESSAY CONCERNING HUMAN UNDERSTANDING.

French engineer. Denis Papin, makes the first pump with piston raised by steam.

Turks are defeated.

Paris creates the first directory for addresses.

Pope Alexander VIII dies.

Leibniz writes on geology.

Robert Boyle, English physicist dies.

Massachusetts absorbs Plymouth Colony. New East India Company formed in London. Destruction of the French navy by the English ends France's attempt to invade England.

Greenwich Hospital for wounded sailors and pensioners founded in England.

Butler, English philosopher, born.

William and Mary College. Williams-burg, VA founded

Edict of Toleration for Christians in China.

The Bank opens on the Strand, London. Louis XIV makes reconciliation with the Vatican and begins a policy of peace.

John Locke: THOUGHTS CONCERNING Kingston, Jamaica, founded. EDUCATION on learning foreign languages William Penn. AN ESSAY ON THE PRESENT AND FUTURE PEACE OF EUROPE.


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MUSIC AND OPERA


Purcell and Dryden collaborate on LOVE TRIUMPHANT as a Te Deum for St. Cecilia's Day.

Sir Christopher Wren, architect for Greenwich Hospital.

Congreve's LOVE FOR LOVE.

Purcell's THE INDIAN QUEEN.

Peerre Mignard, French painter, dies.

La Fontaine dies.

Henry Purcell dies.

YEAR RACINE

1694

Racine writes a series of Congreve's THE DOUBLE sacred songs, set to music DEALER, a comedy. by Moreau, similar to his two last tragedies. These works belong more to religious works than literature.

1695

Henry Vaughan, English Poet, dies. 1696

Racine became secretaryadviser to the king.

Colley Cibber's LOVE'S LAST SHIFT, a comedy.

Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, Italian painter, born. Art Academy in Berlin, Germany founded.

1697

He publishes: the digest of the history of PortRoyal; he prepares for publication his dramatic works.

John Vanbrugh's THE RELAPSE.

Johann Joachim Quantz, German composer, born.

Ichikawa Danjuro I performs SHIBARAKU for fist time.

William Hogarth, English painter, born. The remains of Mayan civilization destroyed by the Spanish in the Yucatan. Antonio (Canaletto) Canale, Italian Painter, born.

1698

Racine recovers, with difficulty, from an illness; there is a clash with Mme de Maintenon; the envious at court hope that it will lead to his disgrace.

La Champmeslé, actress, dies.

Metastasio, opera librettist born.

Jules Hardouin-Mansart fashions PLACE VENDOME, Paris, France.


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CHURCH AND THOUGHT


Founding of the Bank of Salt Tax increased in England England.

A dictionary of the French Academy, first edition, two volumes.

University of Halle, Germany founded.

Hussaid becomes Shah of Persia.

Voltaire born.

End of government press censorship in England.

MUNDANE EVENTS

The Royal Bank of Scotland founded.

John Locke: THE REASONABLENESS OF CHRISTIANITY.

University of Berlin, Germany founded.

England imposes a window Ahmad the second, tax. sultan of Turkey dies, succeeded by Mustafa II. William III of England campaigns in Holland against the French.

Peter the Great of Russia William Nicholson: THE ENGLISH sends Russians to Western HISTORICAL LIBRARY. Europe to study ship building.

John Bellers writes on education of children.

Peter the Great takes Asov from the Turks.

First property insurance company founded in England.

English naturalist, John Ray, describes for the first time the aromatic herb, peppermint.

The French attempt to colonize West Africa.

Sedan chair becomes a popular means of transportation.

Peter the Great sets off to study European ways of life France recognizes William III as king of England. Rebellion of Peter the Great's guard in Moscow; the heads executed.

Peerre Bayle: CRITICAL AND HISTORICAL DICTIONARY.

Daniel Defoe recommends income tax.

Johann Jakob Bodmer, Swiss-German writer and historian, born.

Harry Baker, English naturalist, born.

The court of Versailles causes other European courts to immitate it. Whitehall Palace, London burns down. Paper begins to be manufactured in America. Russia taxes beards.

The new East India Trading Company founded in London, Eng.


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MUSIC AND OPERA


Farquhar's LOVE AND A BOTTLE.

Raoul Anger Feuillet writes a manual on dance notation.

Jean Chardin, French painter, born.

YEAR RACINE

1699

Racine dies, the twenty-fourth of April, leaving a will saying 'that he be buried at Port-Royal des Champs, despite the scandals of his past life and the little use (sic!) to which he had put his excellent education received in that institution.' However, Mme. de Sévigné wrote, May 6: 'His majesty spoke of Racine in such a way as to make courtiers wish to die.'

Johann Adolph Hasse, German composer, born.


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MUNDANE EVENTS

CHURCH AND THOUGHT


Treaty signed by Austria, Russia, Poland and Venice with Turkey.

Peter the Great of Russia changes Russia's New Year from September 1 to January 1.

Richard Bentley DISSERTATION UPON THE EPISTLES OF PHALARIS.

Piere Lemoyne founds the first settlement in Louisiana

Denmark and Russia sign mutual defense pact.

Billingsgate, London becomes a market.

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Appendix Translating Racine's Phèdre William Packard When IASTA offered me a commission to attempt the translation, I knew it was going to be an incredibly difficult undertaking. It is not as if the Alexandrine line had never been used in English literature; it has, and sometimes to great effect. But it is not in our pulse, the way Shakespeare's blank verse line is in our pulse. Just as the Italians have their terza rima, and the Japanese have their 17-syllable haiku, so the French have their Alexandrine and the English have their pentameter; it is the unique expression of a civilization, and it cannot really be accounted for. To be sure, Spenser used the Alexandrine line in THE FAERIE QUEENE with nine lines to a stanza; the first eight are pentameter, and the ninth is an Alexandrine: But it in shape and beautie did excell All other idoles which the heath'en adore, Farre passing that, which by surpassing skill Phidias did make in paphos isle of yore, With which that wretched Greeke, that life forlore, Did fall in love: yet this much fairer shined, But covered with a slender veile afore: And both her feete and legs together twyned Were with a snake, whose head and tail were fast combyned. This becomes the famous Spenserian stanza, and is used by Keats in THE EVE OF ST. AGNES: St. Agnes' Eve ah, bitter chill it was! The owl, for all his feathers, was acold. The hare limped trembling through the frozen grass, And silent was the flock in woolly fold.

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Numb were the Beadsman's fingers while he told His rosary, and while his frosted breath Like pious incense from a censer old, Seemed taking flight from heaven without a death, Past the sweet Virgin's picture, while his prayer he saith. Dryden, also, makes use of the Alexandrine, to extend a regular pentameter couplet: Thy gen'rous Fruits, though gather'd ere their prime, Still shew'd a Quickness; and maturing Time But mellows what we write to the dull Sweets of Rhyme. But it is just this sort of elongated ending of a couplet, which Alexander Pope sought to ridicule, in an inimitable satire: A needless Alexandrine ends the song That, like a wounded snake, drags its slow length along. Some modern poets have used the Alexandrine; thus the opening lines in THE COMPLETE POEMS OF EMILY DICKINSON are: Awake ye muses, nine, sing me a strain divine, Unwind the solemn twine, and tie my valentine! And Robert Bridges refers to ''my loose Alexandrines,'' such as the following line: "in the life of Reason to the wisdom of God." Now, it is easy enough to set down the conventions of the Alexandrine line. It must be hexameter, composed of six feet; and as it is used in the neo-classic French theatre, there must be a division in the line, so that there are two equal hemistichs of three feet each. This division is known as the absolute caesura, and it is to be used as a unit of measurement for the breath of the actor. This can be seen very clearly, in the opening lines of PHÈDRE: Le dessein en est pris: je pars, cher Théramène, Et quitte le séjour de l'aimable Trézène.

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Dans le doute mortel dont je suis agité, Je commence a rougir de mon oisiveté. In the first line, there is a complete break after the word pris: this is the caesura. However, in the second line, although there is a metrical pause, it is not so pronounced, and the actor may choose to deal with the entire line as one unit. In my translation, I tried to retain the same principle of a metrical pause, in the following manner: I have made up my mind: I go, dear Théramène, And leave the loveliness of staying in Trézène. Each day I have new doubts, they drive me to distress, And I must blush with shame to see my idleness. Now, there is a further convention of the Alexandrine line that there must be no enjambement, or spilling over of the sense of a sentence, from one line to another. For our purposes, it is convenient to think of the heroic couplet, as it is used by Alexander Pope: Hope springs eternal in the human breast: Man never is, but always to be bless'd: The soul, uneasy and confined from home, Rests and expatiates in a life to come. Here the first two lines are entirely self-enclosed: the last two lines separate the subject and predicates, but do so in a way that is clearly indicated by the punctuation; and there would never be a separation of subject and predicate, beyond the second rhyme of a couplet. Furthermore, the idea and imagery are enclosed within each couplet. The effect of this is a series of beautifully wrought units, whose connection is not so much rhetorical as it is musical. This is in sharp contrast to the poetry of Shakespeare. In Elizabethan blank verse, there will be a great many extended figures of speech, through several lines of text; as, for example: And pity, like a naked new-born babe, Striding the blast, or heaven's cherubim, hors'd Upon the sightless couriers of the air, Shall blow the horrid deed in every eye, That tears shall drown the wind.

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These extended figures accumulate their power through a development over several lines of verse. But in Racine, this will rarely happen. At most, we will be given a single simple image, it will be realized within the couplet, and then it will be dismissed; for example: Je voulais en mourant prendre soin de ma gloire, Et dérober au jour une flamme si noire . . . Here flamme is introduced as a simple image, it is perfectly realized within the figure, and then it is dismissed although it will certainly recur as a simple image, perhaps in the following scene, in another couplet. We can see that there is a profound difference in these two approaches to poetry. The first approach achieves its force through accumulation and development of imagery; the second approach implies its power through simple statement and a pattern of recurrences. The first approach is more rhetorical; the second approach is more mathematical. It is like the difference between Brahms and Mozart. Now aside from the technical problem of the Alexandrine line, and its conventions of rhyme and imagery, there is also the more general problem of finding an English equivalent for the special quality of Racine's style. Surely one outstanding characteristic of Racine is lucidity; by that I mean, his diction has crystal clarity, an absolute simplicity of vocabulary, and an elemental, heightened awareness of the word as a unit of speech. Thus certain words will almost take on the characteristic of being "ciphers" words such as flamme, cachet, funeste, rougirthese will all have a very special meaning within the context of PHÈDRE. Finally, Racine's style seems to consist of a polished surface, a politesse which belies a subtext of violent repression, incest and alienation. It is all some sort of advanced algebra of the heart. Jean-Louis Barrault, writing about PHÈDRE, compares the style with a chandelier because it is luminous, crystalline, complicated, circular and symmetrical. I tried to achieve as much of this style as possible, in my translation. Of course, I tried to retain the literal meaning of Racine in every line, and in some cases I even tried to reproduce the French syntax and sentence structure. And yet, I cared very much that my translation should be the identical length as Racine's original and so the English text has exactly the same number of lines (1654). When the translation was completed, everyone associated with the production was eager to see the reaction of the American actors, to the Alexandrine line. And generally, the company accepted this new rhythm without very much difficulty. Take for example this passage from the second act: Hippolyte is confession his love to Aricie

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Moi, vous haïr?, Madame? Avec quelques couleurs qu'on ait peint ma fierté, Croit-on que dans ses flancs un monstre m'ait porté? Quelles sauvages moeurs, quelle haine endurcie Pourrait, en vous voyant, n'etre point adoucie? Ai-je pu résister au charme décevant . . . My translation is as follows: Madam, could I hate you? No matter what they say or how they paint my pride, Do they suppose some beast once carried me inside? What mind that is unkind, what heart that may be hard, In viewing you, would not grow soft in its regard? Could any man resist the charm of what you are? An actor who played the part of Hippolyte, commented on these lines: Generally, memorization was exceedingly less of a problem, throughout the text, with the Alexandrines. The rhymes provided a lead into the next line; and so the thoughts seem to come out of one another, automatically, so an actor can go into the next line without thinking about it. During the rehearsal period, I reached my peak of irritation at home, when I was fighting the lines I couldn't understand what the translator had done, how the lines had been put together. But then I stopped fighting, and when I allowed the rhythms of the language to happen, suddenly the Alexandrine rhythm began to take over, even with all our hard choppy English. I found the hemistich of great value. Within the knowledge of the caesura, the actor can vary the intensity, volume and meaning of the line, according to his own choice. It becomes a blend of poetic technique and the actor's own craft. Breathing has been an enormous problem for me. This experience has made me realize that we are not properly trained, in the American

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theatre, to breathe correctly, and to know how to use the playwright's punctuation the comma, and semi-colon, and the colon. And so it all becomes a matter of plotting and planning, to find the appropriate breath-pause in each line. But then, of course, the same thing should apply to blank verse, shouldn't it? Because a breath-pause is a change of emotion, a change of pace, whatever the actor's choice determines it to be. I suppose it doesn't make much difference, then, whether one is working with ten syllables or twelve syllables; and if the actor can find the reality of a line, he can use twenty syllables. The other American actors were able to handle the Alexandrine readily, although perhaps all may not have been as aware of the importance of plotting the caesuras before seeking to impose an interpretation on the lines. Perhaps one factor which was operating in favor of the production, was the absence in the American theatre, of any tradition whatsoever, which might have served as a guide for the use of Alexandrine lines. There is no "cliche" way for Americans to do these Alexandrines, as there is a "cliche" way for them to do blank verse; one can always imitate Gielgud or Olivier or the Old Vic, and bluff one's way through Shakespeare; but who is there to imitate, in speaking Alexandrines? The Americans were on their own, entirely. Perhaps the best advice that has ever been given on this matter, was given by Paul Valéry, in his essay "On Speaking Verse," in which he advises actors on the correct approach to an Alexandrine text: First of all, get used to the melody of these lines; study closely the structure of these doubly organized sentences in which the syntax on one hand and the prosody on the other compose a sonorous, spiritual substance and cunningly engendered a form full of life. Valéry goes on to stress the rhythm of the lines as something quite apart from the meaning. He cautions the actors not to be overly concerned with individual words, or with interpretation, or with character that will come of its own accord. What is most important, is the musical form, the rhythm of thought, the sweep of the lines. One must come to terms with the melody of the whole piece, before the separate parts can attain their true dignity and distinction. Wrote PaulÉmile Deiber: "The Royalty of Language", the title of a chapter from a work of Thierry Maulnier devoted to Racine, seems to me to be the key to the true interpretation of PHÈDRE. It seems impossible to substitute the language of Shakespeare for the language of Racine. To this impossibility, however, the poet, William

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Packard, addressed himself, and he deserves much credit for retaining the spirit of Racine while preserving the difficult, but absolutely necessary Alexandrine rhythm. And is it not this rhythm which pounds in the hearts of heroes? All our American actors felt it, and all of them tried to arrive at the sublime poetry inherent in it. But by what means? Simply, by means of the "perfect actor" simply by a synthesis of the three actions: verbal, physical, and interior. Our goal had to be the true music of Racine's art. It takes great ambition to do a great play, but then Racine lives by the nobility of his style, by the inexorable rhythm which is singularly his. The love of the actors was equal to this challenge, and it led them to the discovery of this most French of poets. It is my hope that our professional colleagues through this production may discover the rhythms and passions of the world of Racine where ". . . tout n'est qu'ordre et beauté . . ." (BAUDELAIRE) PHÈDRE subjected professional actors to the rigorous control and discipline of the 17th century French theatre of Racine; they had to learn the rigidity of the body in this careful, classical style; and they had to adjust their speech to the conventions of the Alexandrine line. But they proved decisively that English Alexandrines are possible in our theatre, and by so doing they may have affected the course of translation in the future. Now there is really no reason why the plays of Corneille, Racine and Molière cannot be written in the same meter as the original French text. The final test of the production itself, however, must rest with the audiences. Phèdre Cast of Characters Michael Durrell HIPPOLYTE: THÉRAMÈNE:

Sam Haigler Henry; Graham Jarvis; Eric Tavares

OENONE:

Mildred Dunnock; Maude Higgins; Dorothy Sands, Dorothy Le Baker Hatch

PHÈDRE:

Beatrice Straight; Jean Sullivan

PANOPE:

Marguerite Hunt; Miriam Mitchell; Valerie von Volz

ARICIE:

Anne Draper; Lupe Ferrer; Deborah Gordon

THESEUS:

Jeff David; James Pritchett; Reid Shelton; Martin Waldron

ISMÈNE:

Bette Brandenburg; Marguerite Hunt; Valerie von Volz

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Films and Video Cassettes EURIPIDES' LIFE AND TIMES: THE TROJAN WOMEN ASPECTS OF NEO-CLASSIC THEATRE (includes scenes from PHÈDRE) MOLIÈRE AND THE COMÉDIE FRANÇAISE (includes scenes from LE MISANTHROPE and TARTUFFE) Obtainable, for rental and purchase, through the Institute for Advanced Studies in the Theatre Arts (IASTA), 310 W. 56th St., New York, NY 10019 Selected Bibliography Cronin, Vincent. Louis XIV. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1965 Gassner, John. Masters of the Drama. New York: Dover, 1954. Mauron, Charles, L'Inconscient Dans L'Oeuvre et la vie de Racine. Paris-Genéve: Champion-Slatkine, 1986. Mongrédien, Georges. Des Comédiens au Temps de Molière. Paris: Aux Editions Sun (N.D.) Muller, Herbert J. The Spirit of Tragedy. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1956. Racine, Jean. Oeuvres Complètes: Préface de Pierre Clarac; Mémoires sur la vie et les ouvrages de Jean Racine par Louis Racine. Paris: Aux Editions du Seuil, 1962. Materials and Background Barrault, Jean-Louis. Reflections on the Theatre. London: Rockliff, 1949. Barzini, Luigi. The Europeans. New York: Simon and Shuster, 1983 Chandernagor, Francoise. The King's Way. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1981 De Gramont, Sanche. The French: Portrait of a People. New York: G.P. Putnam's 1969 Gaxotte, Pierre. Versailles que j'aime. . . Paris. Aux Editions Sun (N.D.) Malraux, André. The Voices of Silence. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1978 Manuel, Jean Baptiste. Racine, Britannicus: L'Art de Persuader. Paris: Sorbonne Université IV, 1987 Mossiker, Francis. Madame de Sévigné: A life and Letters. New York: Columbia University Press, 1985

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Southern, Richard. Changeable Scenery. London: Faber and Faber Limited (N.D.) Valéry, Paul. The Art of Poetry. New York: Vintage Books, 1961 Ziegler, Gilette. At the Court of Versailles. New York: E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc., 1966 Recordings and Cassettes Racine: Phèdre FRL 1505 Racine: Bérénice FRL 1514 Racine: Iphigénie FRL 1515 Racine: Andromaque (Hachette) 320E 834/835 Racine: Britannicus. La Comédie Française DTX 323 à 325 An audio cassette of IASTA's production of PHIÈDRE is available through the Institute for Advanced Studies in the Theatre Arts (IASTA), 310 W. 56th St., New York, NY 10019 Music Michel de Lalande and Nicolas Bernier. Festes et Divertissements de Versailles, Vol. 3. Philips LIL 0009 Concerts Royaux (4) Harnoncourt, Vienna Concerties Musicus (No. 2) Francois Couperin VAN C-10029 Lully, Jean Baptiste Alceste (1674) Malgoire, Grande Ecurie & Chambre du Roy 3-Col. M3-34580 Lully, Jean Baptiste Ballet de Xerxes; Suite for Trumpets, Oboes & Timpani Remy, Grande Ecurie & Campra Turn. 34376 Lully, Jean Baptiste Marches; Fanfares Andre, Cochereau, Birbaum, Wind Ens. & Delalande; Mouret Turn. 34232; CT2198 Lully, Jean Baptiste Le Triomphe de L'Amour (Ballet Suite) Weissberg, Vienna Sym. & Couperin-Pieces en concert; Rameau Audio Fi. 50079 Couperin, Louis Fantassies for Viola & Harpsichord Oberlin Baroque Ens. (5) 3-Vox SVBX-5142 Couperin, Louis Organ Music Hamilton (2) & Balbastre, Soler, Sweelinck Orion 73133: Robert & F. Couperin: Pieces None. 71150 Couperin, Louis Pieces de clavecin None. 71265

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Jean Racine's Phedre on Stage

On Stage!

The Mystery on Stage

La maison sans racines

Jean

On Touching-Jean-luc Nancy

Jean

Les Racines du mal

Les racines communicationnelles du Web

Stage Directions: Writing on Theatre, 1970-2008

Work and Play on the Shakespearean Stage

Performing Identities on the Restoration Stage

Performing Identities on the Restoration Stage

Stage Fright on a Summer Night

Performing Identities on the Restoration Stage

Dancing Women: Female Bodies on Stage

Stage Fright on A Summer Night

Stage Fright on a Summer Night

Tragic Heroines on Ancient and Modern Stage

Shakespeare and Feminist Performance: Ideology on Stage

Jean Baudrillard

Practical Jean

Crossing the Stage: Controversies on Cross-Dressing

Jean Rhys

Practical Jean

Centre Stage

Practical Jean

Echenoz, Jean

pierre jean

Jean Loup

Mirror Stage

Jean Racine's Phedre on Stage

On Stage!

The Mystery on Stage

La maison sans racines

Jean

On Touching-Jean-luc Nancy

Jean

Les Racines du mal

Les racines communicationnelles du Web

Stage Directions: Writing on Theatre, 1970-2008

Work and Play on the Shakespearean Stage

Performing Identities on the Restoration Stage

Performing Identities on the Restoration Stage

Stage Fright on a Summer Night

Performing Identities on the Restoration Stage

Dancing Women: Female Bodies on Stage

Stage Fright on A Summer Night

Stage Fright on a Summer Night

Tragic Heroines on Ancient and Modern Stage

Shakespeare and Feminist Performance: Ideology on Stage

Jean Baudrillard

Practical Jean

Crossing the Stage: Controversies on Cross-Dressing

Jean Rhys

Practical Jean

Centre Stage

Practical Jean

Echenoz, Jean

pierre jean

Jean Loup

Mirror Stage

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