Quinault-Dufresne
Encyclopedia
Abraham-Alexis Quinault, called Quinault-Dufresne, was a French actor, born in Verdun
9 September 1693, died in Paris
12 February 1767. He was a member of the Quinault family
of actors.
He made his début at the Comédie-Française
on 7 October 1712, playing Orestes in Électre (1709) by Prosper Jolyot de Crébillon
, and was admitted to the company in December. He had striking good looks and musical talent, and he soon took over the male leading roles in both comedy and tragedy, and remained the star of the troupe until his retirement in 1741.
Voltaire
asked him to play the title role in his first tragedy, Œdipe, in 1718, and the actor went on to create many roles for Voltaire, including some in his most popular plays: Orosmane in Zaïre (1732), Zamore in Alzire (1736) and Euphémon the son in L'Enfant prodigue (The Prodigal Son, 1736). For Crébillon he created title roles in Rhadamiste et Zénobie (1711) and Pyrrhus (1726), and had starring roles in Antoine Houdar de la Motte
's Inès de Castro (1723), Pierre-Claude Nivelle de La Chaussée
's Le Préjugé à la mode (1735), and Louis de Boissy
's Les Dehors trompeurs, three of the most successful plays of the century. He was always most closely identified with Le Glorieux (The Conceited Count, 1732), a smash-hit comedy written for him by Philippe Néricault Destouches
. According to legend, the title character was based on Quinault-Dufresne himself, and he lived up to his reputation by refusing to play the role unless his character won the heroine's heart at the end, and would not even look at the author's last-minute revisions. The story may be apocryphal, but it caught on because it seemed plausible.
Quinault-Dufresne married another star of the Comédie-Française, Catherine-Jeanne Dupré, known in the theater as Mlle de Seine. They signed the marriage contract in Lyon
on 20 May 1727, but were already quarreling in the courts by 1730. He retired from the stage in 1741, with a pension from the king as well as the one paid by the company. Little is known of his life after retirement.
Verdun
Verdun is a city in the Meuse department in Lorraine in north-eastern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.Verdun is the biggest city in Meuse, although the capital of the department is the slightly smaller city of Bar-le-Duc.- History :...
9 September 1693, 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...
12 February 1767. He was a member of the Quinault family
Quinault family
This Quinault family were French actors, active in the first half of the 18th century.*Jean Quinault was the father of this family. He was born at Bourges around 1656 or 1658, and died before June 1728. Said to be the son of a doctor from Issoudun, he joined an acting company based in Rouen called...
of actors.
He made his début at the Comédie-Française
Comédie-Française
The Comédie-Française or Théâtre-Français is one of the few state theaters in France. It is the only state theater to have its own troupe of actors. It is located in the 1st arrondissement of Paris....
on 7 October 1712, playing Orestes in Électre (1709) by Prosper Jolyot de Crébillon
Prosper Jolyot de Crébillon
Prosper Jolyot de Crébillon was a French poet and tragedian.-Life and works:He was born in Dijon, where his father, Melchior Jolyot, was notary-royal. Having been educated at the Jesuit school in the town, and afterwards at the Collège Mazarin. He became an advocate, and was placed in the office...
, and was admitted to the company in December. He had striking good looks and musical talent, and he soon took over the male leading roles in both comedy and tragedy, and remained the star of the troupe until his retirement in 1741.
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...
asked him to play the title role in his first tragedy, Œdipe, in 1718, and the actor went on to create many roles for Voltaire, including some in his most popular plays: Orosmane in Zaïre (1732), Zamore in Alzire (1736) and Euphémon the son in L'Enfant prodigue (The Prodigal Son, 1736). For Crébillon he created title roles in Rhadamiste et Zénobie (1711) and Pyrrhus (1726), and had starring roles in Antoine Houdar de la Motte
Antoine Houdar de la Motte
Antoine Houdar de la Motte was a French author.He was born and died in Paris. In 1693 his comedy, Les Originaux, was a complete failure, and so depressed the author that he contemplated joining the Trappists. Four years later he began writing texts for operas and ballets, e.g...
's Inès de Castro (1723), Pierre-Claude Nivelle de La Chaussée
Pierre-Claude Nivelle de La Chaussée
Pierre-Claude Nivelle de La Chaussée , French dramatist who blurred the lines between comedy and tragedy with his comédie larmoyante....
's Le Préjugé à la mode (1735), and Louis de Boissy
Louis de Boissy
Louis de Boissy was a French writer. He was elected to seat 6 of the Académie française on 12 August 1754...
's Les Dehors trompeurs, three of the most successful plays of the century. He was always most closely identified with Le Glorieux (The Conceited Count, 1732), a smash-hit comedy written for him by Philippe Néricault Destouches
Philippe Néricault Destouches
Philippe Néricault Destouches was a French dramatist.-Biography:Destouches was born at Tours, in the today's department of Indre-et-Loire....
. According to legend, the title character was based on Quinault-Dufresne himself, and he lived up to his reputation by refusing to play the role unless his character won the heroine's heart at the end, and would not even look at the author's last-minute revisions. The story may be apocryphal, but it caught on because it seemed plausible.
Quinault-Dufresne married another star of the Comédie-Française, Catherine-Jeanne Dupré, known in the theater as Mlle de Seine. They signed the marriage contract in Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
on 20 May 1727, but were already quarreling in the courts by 1730. He retired from the stage in 1741, with a pension from the king as well as the one paid by the company. Little is known of his life after retirement.