Charles Bodinier
Charles Bodinier by Daniel Bérard in 1883, musée Carnavalet
Born(1844-01-06)January 6, 1844
Beaufort-en-Vallée, Maine-et-Loire, France
Died1911 (1912) (aged 67)
NationalityFrench
OccupationTheater director
Known for"La Bodinière" theater

Charles Bodinier (6 January 1844 - 1911) was a French theater manager. After working for the Comédie-Française he became director of the Théâtre d'Application and then of the Théâtre La Bodinière. La Bodinière appealed to an elite audience, and staged a variety of lectures and performances until Bodinier retired in 1902.

Early years

Charles Bodinier was born on 6 January 1844 in Beaufort-en-Vallée, Maine-et-Loire. He became a professional soldier, and was captured in the war of 1870. He was not released until 1874. In 1876 he joined the staff of the Comédie-Française.[1] Bodinier was Secretary-General of the Comédie-Française from 1882 to 1889.[2]

Théatre d'Application

In 1886 Bodinier proposed to establish a small theater where the students of the Conservatoire could stage performances of the Classics, a concept that was well received by the Minister of Fine Arts.[3] In his application to the Commission des Auteurs et Compositeurs Dramatiques Bodinier insisted that the Théâtre d'Application would be a school and not a profit-making enterprise, and on that basis he was given permission for six months.[4] Both the municipal council and the ministry subscribed to establishing the theater.[5]

In 1887 Bodinier opened the Théâtre d'Application in an old tannery at 18 rue Saint-Lazare for use by students at the Conservatoire de Paris.[1] He became director of the theater in 1888.[1] The foyer of the premises were used as an art gallery. The artists Jules Chéret, Ferdinand Bac and Théophile Steinlen had their first one-person shows there while the main room was being used for the Théâtre d'Application.[6]

La Bodinière

The original purpose evolved. The theater at 18 rue Saint-Lazare became known as "La Bodinière" and began to be used for different purposes.[1] La Bodinière's audience came to include members of the Parisian upper class and intelligentsia. Starting in 1890, Bodinier began to put on matinées-causeries, where well-known literary figures gave talks.[7] He also staged plays and shadow shows.[1] A popular format was a combined lecture with a recital that illustrated the topic.[7]

Charles Bodinier abandoned the theater in 1902 and left philosophically to spend in a quiet retirement in the suburbs. He died in 1911 aged 67.[8]

References

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Goudeau 2000, p. 221.
  2. ↑ Maupassant & Busnach 2005, p. 100.
  3. ↑ Hemmings 2006, p. 179.
  4. ↑ Société des auteurs et compositeurs dramatiques 1883, p. 74.
  5. ↑ Commission de l'inventaire 1911, p. 313.
  6. ↑ Silverman 1995, p. 99.
  7. 1 2 Fulcher 2011, p. 271.
  8. ↑ Les Annales politiques et littéraires.

Sources

  • Commission de l'inventaire (1911). Inventaire général des richesses d'art de la France: Province. Monuments civils (8 v.). Commission de l'inventaire général des monuments et des richesses artistiques, Ministère de l'éducation nationale, Musée national des monuments français (Paris, France). E. Plon. Retrieved 2013-06-04.
  • Fulcher, Jane F. (2011). The Oxford Handbook of the New Cultural History of Music. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-534186-7. Retrieved 2013-06-04.
  • Goudeau, Émile (2000). Dix ans de bohème. Editions Champ Vallon. ISBN 978-2-87673-287-2. Retrieved 2013-06-04.
  • Hemmings, Frederic William John (2006-12-14). The Theatre Industry in Nineteenth-Century France. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-03501-9. Retrieved 2013-06-04.
  • Les Annales politiques et littéraires: revue universelle. Paris. 1911. p. 52. Retrieved 2013-06-04.
  • Maupassant, Guy de; Busnach, William (2005). Madame Thomassin. Publication Univ Rouen Havre. ISBN 978-2-87775-771-3. Retrieved 2013-06-04.
  • Silverman, Willa Z. (1995). The Notorious Life of Gyp: Right-wing Anarchist in Fin-de-siáecle France. Oxford University Press, Incorporated. ISBN 978-0-19-508754-3. Retrieved 2013-06-04.
  • Société des auteurs et compositeurs dramatiques (1883). Bulletin. Commission des Auteurs et Compositeurs Dramatiques (France). Retrieved 2013-06-04.
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