Robert Pellevé de La Motte-Ango, marquis de Flers (25 November 1872, Pont-l'Évêque, Calvados – 30 July 1927, Vittel) was a French playwright, opera librettist, and journalist. [1]
Robert Pellevé de La Motte-Ango, marquis de Flers (25 November 1872, Pont-l'Évêque, Calvados – 30 July 1927, Vittel) was a French playwright, opera librettist, and journalist. [1]
He entered the Lycée Condorcet in 1888 where he studied law with the initial ambition of entering diplomatic service. He met and befriended fellow student and writer Marcel Proust, and that relationship had a great influence upon him. Proust exposed Flers to art, literature, and music and his interests soon switched from law to writing, journalism, and literature. The two men enjoyed a lifelong friendship. [1]
After completing his studies, he toured throughout Asia in the mid-1890s. The event inspired his earliest writings: the novel La Courtisane Taïa et son singe vert (1896), the short story Ilsée, princesse de Tripoli (1896), and the travel narrative Vers l’Orient (1897). Upon returning to Paris, he was approached by composer Edmond Audran to write the libretto for his operetta La reine des reines. The worked premiered on 14 October 1896 at the Théâtre de l'Eldorado in Strasbourg. His next libretto was for Gaston Serpette's vaudeville-operetta Shakspeare! which premiered at the Théâtre des Bouffes Parisiens on 23 November 1899. [2]
In 1901 de Flers married Geneviève Sardou, the daughter of Victorien Sardou. He continued to be active writing librettos. His third opera libretto, Les travaux d'Hercule (1901), marked his first collaboration with fellow playwright Gaston Arman de Caillavet and composer Claude Terrasse. Most of his remaining librettos were written with Caillavet, often for Terrasse who was their most frequent musical collaborator. Other composers for which the two men wrote librettos include André Messager, and Gabriel Pierné. The two men also wrote a French translation of Franz Lehár's The Merry Widow in 1905 which was used throughout France during the first half of the 20th century. Their last opera collaboration was for Alfred Bruneau's 1923 opera Le jardin du paradis. De Flers also wrote the librettos for Reynaldo Hahn's Ciboulette (1923) with playwright Francis de Croisset, and Joseph Szulc's Le petit choc (1923). [2]
De Flers and de Caillavet also often worked together on stage plays, producing such comedies as Le Sire de Vergy (1903), Les Sentiers de la vertu (1903), Pâris ou le bon juge (1906), Miquette et sa mère (1906), Primerose (1911), and L’Habit vert (1913) among other works. He later worked frequently with playwright Francis de Croisset, producing such works as Les Vignes du seigneur (1923), Les Nouveaux Messieurs (1925), and Le Docteur miracle (1926). Although a number of his operas were successful in his day, his lasting legacy rests in his stage plays. [1]
De Flers was a member of the Académie française from 1920 up until his death in 1927. He spent the last six years of his life as literary editor of Le Figaro , a position he was appointed to in 1921. He also served as the Conseiller Général of Lozère during his latter years. [1]
Arthur Bernède was a French writer, poet, opera librettist, and playwright.
Francis de Croisset was a Belgian-born French playwright and opera librettist.
The Théâtre des Variétés is a theatre and "salle de spectacles" at 7–8, boulevard Montmartre, 2nd arrondissement, in Paris. It was declared a monument historique in 1974.
Ciboulette[si.bu.lɛt] is a French opérette in three acts, music by Reynaldo Hahn, libretto by Robert de Flers and Francis de Croisset, first performed at the Théâtre des Variétés, in Paris, on 7 April 1923. One of the most elegant and refined compositions of Hahn, it is considered one of the last masterpieces of French operetta.
Gaston Arman de Caillavet was a French playwright.
André Birabeau was a French novelist, playwright and screenwriter.
Henri François Jean André Marchand known as Henri Marchand — was a French actor of stage and screen.
Gisèle Casadesus was a French actress, who appeared in numerous theatre and film productions. She was an honorary member of the Sociétaires of the Comédie-Française, Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor, Officer of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, and Grand-Croix of the National Order of Merit. In a career spanning more than 80 years, Casadesus appeared in more than a dozen films after turning 90.
The Beautiful Adventure is a 1942 French romantic comedy film directed by Marc Allégret and starring Claude Dauphin, Micheline Presle and Louis Jourdan. It is based on 1913 play of the same name by Gaston Arman de Caillavet, Robert de Flers and Étienne Rey.
Miquette is a 1940 French comedy film directed by Jean Boyer and starring Lilian Harvey, Lucien Baroux and André Lefaur. It was one of two films made in France by the Anglo-German star Harvey, after emigrating from Nazi Germany. It was her final film appearance, although she continued to act on stage.
Miquette is a 1950 French comedy film directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot and starring Louis Jouvet, Bourvil and Saturnin Fabre. The film was an adaptation of the play Miquette et sa mere by Robert de Flers and Gaston Arman de Caillavet, which had previously been adapted into 1934 and 1940 films. The film is set around the turn-of-the century.
Ève Lavallière was a French stage actress and later a noteworthy Catholic penitent and member of the Secular Franciscan Order.
Jeanne Renée Deneuve, known professionally as Renée-Jeanne Simonot, was a French actress and voice artist. She was married to actor Maurice Dorléac, the mother of actresses Catherine Deneuve and Françoise Dorléac and the grandmother of actor Christian Vadim and actress Chiara Mastroianni.
Georges Berr in Paris, was a French actor and dramatist, a member and sociétaire of the Comédie-Française from 1886 to 1923.
Étienne Rey was a French writer, dramatist and literary critic and one of the first best-seller writers of the Grasset publisher.
Miquette is a 1934 French comedy film directed by Henri Diamant-Berger and André Gillois and Henri Rollan. It stars Blanche Montel, Michel Simon and Roland Toutain.
Our Lord's Vineyard is a 1932 French comedy film directed by René Hervil and starring Victor Boucher, Simone Cerdan and Victor Garland. It was based on a play of the same title by Francis de Croisset and Robert de Flers. The film was remade in 1958, starring Fernandel.
Ernest Henri Demanne was a French comedian.
Pierre Barillet was a French playwright.
The Lord's Vineyard is a 1958 French comedy film directed by Jean Boyer and starring Fernandel, Pierre Dux and Simone Valère. The title is a traditional expression for drunkenness in French. It is based on a play by Francis de Croisset and Robert de Flers, which had previously been adapted into a 1932 film.
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