Francisque Sarcey
Encyclopedia
Francisque Sarcey was a French
journalist
and dramatic critic
.
He was born in Dourdan
, Essonne
. After some years as schoolmaster, a job for which his temperament was ill-fitted, he entered journalism in 1858. He contributed to Le Figaro
, L'Illustration, Le Gaulois, Le XIX' Siècle and other periodicals; but his main interest was dramatic criticism, of which he had his first experience in L'Opinion nationale in 1859. In 1867 he began to contribute to Le Temps
the "feuilleton" with which his name was associated till his death. His position as dictator of dramatic criticism was unique. He had the secret of taking the public into his confidence, and his pronouncements upon new plays were accepted as final.
He was a masterly judge of acting
and of stage effect; his views as to the drama itself were somewhat narrow and indifferent to artistic progress. He published several miscellaneous works, of which the most interesting are Le Siege de Paris, an account compiled from his diary (1871), Comédiens et comediennes (1878-1884), Souvenirs de jeunesse (1884) and Souvenirs d'âge mur (1892; Eng. trans., 1893). Quarante ans de theatre (1900) is a selection from his dramatic Feuilletons edited by A Brisson. He died in Paris.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and dramatic critic
Critic
A critic is anyone who expresses a value judgement. Informally, criticism is a common aspect of all human expression and need not necessarily imply skilled or accurate expressions of judgement. Critical judgements, good or bad, may be positive , negative , or balanced...
.
He was born in Dourdan
Dourdan
Dourdan is a commune in the Essonne department in Île-de-France in northern France.It is located in the metropolitan area of Paris.-Géography:Dourdan is located on the river Orge in the western Essonne...
, Essonne
Essonne
Essonne is a French department in the region of Île-de-France. It is named after the Essonne River.It was formed on 1 January 1968 when Seine-et-Oise was split into smaller departments.- History :...
. After some years as schoolmaster, a job for which his temperament was ill-fitted, he entered journalism in 1858. He contributed to Le Figaro
Le Figaro
Le Figaro is a French daily newspaper founded in 1826 and published in Paris. It is one of three French newspapers of record, with Le Monde and Libération, and is the oldest newspaper in France. It is also the second-largest national newspaper in France after Le Parisien and before Le Monde, but...
, L'Illustration, Le Gaulois, Le XIX' Siècle and other periodicals; but his main interest was dramatic criticism, of which he had his first experience in L'Opinion nationale in 1859. In 1867 he began to contribute to Le Temps
Le Temps (Paris)
Le Temps was one of Paris's most important daily newspapers from April 25, 1861 to November 30, 1942.Founded in 1861 by Edmund Chojecki and Auguste Nefftzer, Le Temps was under Nefftzer's direction for ten years, when Adrien Hébrard took his place...
the "feuilleton" with which his name was associated till his death. His position as dictator of dramatic criticism was unique. He had the secret of taking the public into his confidence, and his pronouncements upon new plays were accepted as final.
He was a masterly judge of acting
Acting
Acting is the work of an actor or actress, which is a person in theatre, television, film, or any other storytelling medium who tells the story by portraying a character and, usually, speaking or singing the written text or play....
and of stage effect; his views as to the drama itself were somewhat narrow and indifferent to artistic progress. He published several miscellaneous works, of which the most interesting are Le Siege de Paris, an account compiled from his diary (1871), Comédiens et comediennes (1878-1884), Souvenirs de jeunesse (1884) and Souvenirs d'âge mur (1892; Eng. trans., 1893). Quarante ans de theatre (1900) is a selection from his dramatic Feuilletons edited by A Brisson. He died in Paris.