Antoine Danchet
Encyclopedia
Antoine Danchet was a French playwright
, librettist and dramatic poet.
, in the Auvergne
, France. Having been a professor of rhetoric at Chartres
and then a tutor at Paris
, Danchet gave
up teaching to write for the theatre. He wrote some opera libretti which, set to music by André Campra
, met with success. By contrast, his tragedies, mediocre imitations of Racine
, almost all failed. He died in Paris
.
An associate member of the Académie des inscriptions et belles-lettres
from 1705, he
was elected to the Académie française
in 1712 thanks to the
patronage of Mesdames de Ferriol et de Tencin
.
Voltaire
wrote an epigram about him stating that his membership was
more for his good deeds than his writing.
His works, published in 1751 include, in addition to dramatic works,
odes, cantatas, and letters.
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
, librettist and dramatic poet.
Biography
Danchet was born in RiomRiom
Riom is a commune in the Puy-de-Dôme department in Auvergne in central France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.-History:Until the French Revolution, Riom was the capital of the province of Auvergne, and the seat of the dukes of Auvergne. The city was of Gaulish origin, the Roman Ricomagus...
, in the Auvergne
Auvergne (province)
Auvergne was a historic province in south central France. It was originally the feudal domain of the Counts of Auvergne. It is now the geographical and cultural area that corresponds to the former province....
, France. Having been a professor of rhetoric at Chartres
Chartres
Chartres is a commune and capital of the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France. It is located southwest of Paris.-Geography:Chartres is built on the left bank of the Eure River, on a hill crowned by its famous cathedral, the spires of which are a landmark in the surrounding country...
and then a tutor at Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Danchet gave
up teaching to write for the theatre. He wrote some opera libretti which, set to music by André Campra
André Campra
André Campra was a French composer and conductor.Campra was one of the leading French opera composers in the period between Jean-Baptiste Lully and Jean-Philippe Rameau. He wrote several tragédies en musique, but his chief claim to fame is as the creator of a new genre, opéra-ballet...
, met with success. By contrast, his tragedies, mediocre imitations of Racine
Jean Racine
Jean Racine , baptismal name Jean-Baptiste Racine , was a French dramatist, one of the "Big Three" of 17th-century France , and one of the most important literary figures in the Western tradition...
, almost all failed. He died in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
.
An associate member of the Académie des inscriptions et belles-lettres
Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres
The Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres is a French learned society devoted to the humanities, founded in February 1663 as one of the five academies of the Institut de France.-History:...
from 1705, he
was elected to the Académie française
Académie française
L'Académie française , also called the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution,...
in 1712 thanks to the
patronage of Mesdames de Ferriol et de Tencin
Claudine Guérin de Tencin
Claudine Alexandrine Guérin de Tencin was a French salonist and author. She was the mother of Jean le Rond d'Alembert, philosophe and contributor to the Encyclopédie.- Early life :...
.
Voltaire
Voltaire
François-Marie Arouet , better known by the pen name Voltaire , was a French Enlightenment writer, historian and philosopher famous for his wit and for his advocacy of civil liberties, including freedom of religion, free trade and separation of church and state...
wrote an epigram about him stating that his membership was
more for his good deeds than his writing.
His works, published in 1751 include, in addition to dramatic works,
odes, cantatas, and letters.
Principal works
- HésioneHésioneHésione is an opera by the French composer André Campra. It takes the form of a tragédie en musique in a prologue and five acts. The libretto, by Antoine Danchet, is based on the Greek myth of Hesione and Laomedon....
(1700) ; - TancrèdeTancrèdeTancrède is a tragédie en musique in a prologue and five acts by composer André Campra and librettist Antoine Danchet, based on Gerusalemme liberata by Torquato Tasso....
(1702) ; - Cyrus (1706) ;
- Les Tyndarides (1708) ;
- Les Héraclides (1719) ;
- Nitétis (1724).