''Ruy Blas'' () is a

tragic A tragedy is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a main character or cast of characters. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy is to invoke an accompanying catharsis, or a "pain ...

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo, vicomte Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romanticism, Romantic author, poet, essayist, playwright, journalist, human rights activist and politician. His most famous works are the novels ''The Hunchbac ...

. It was the first play presented at the

Théâtre de la Renaissance The name Théâtre de la Renaissance () has been used successively for three distinct Parisian theatre companies. The first two companies, which were short-lived enterprises in the 19th century, used the Salle Ventadour, now an office building ...

and opened on November 8, 1838. Though considered by many to be Hugo’s best drama, the play was initially met with only average success.

Characters

* Ruy Blas * Don Salluste de Bazan, Marquis of Finlas * Don César de Bazan, Count Of Garofa * Don Guritan * The Count of Camporeal * The Marquis of Santa-Cruz * The Marquis of Basto * The Count of Albe * The Marquis of Priego * Don Manuel Arias * Montazgo * Don Antonio Ubilla * Covadenga * Gudiel * Doña Maria de Neubourg, Queen of Spain * The Duchess of Albuquerque * Casilda * A

lackey Lackey may refer to: __NOTOC__ Places * Lackey, Kentucky, United States, an unincorporated community * Lackey, Mississippi, United States, an unincorporated community * Lackey, Virginia, United States, an unincorporated community * Lackey Ridge, ...

, an

alcalde ''Alcalde'' (; ) is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and Administration (government), administrative functions. An ''alcalde'' was, in the absence of a corregidor (position), corregidor, the presiding officer o ...

, alguacils,

pages Page most commonly refers to: * Page (paper), one side of a leaf of paper, as in a book Page, PAGE, pages, or paging may also refer to: Roles * Page (assistance occupation), a professional occupation * Page (servant), traditionally a young mal ...

, ladies, lords, privy councillors, chaperones, guards, chamber and court bailiffs

Synopsis

The scene is

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

; the time 1699, during the reign of Charles II. Ruy Blas, an indentured commoner (and a poet), dares to love the

Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

. The play is a thinly veiled cry for political reform. The story centers around a practical joke played on the Queen, Maria de Neubourg, by Don Salluste de Bazan, in revenge for being scorned by her. Knowing that his

valet A valet or varlet is a male servant who serves as personal attendant to his employer. In the Middle Ages and Ancien Régime, ''valet de chambre'' was a role for junior courtiers and specialists such as artists in a royal court, but the term "va ...

Ruy Blas has secretly fallen in love with the Queen, and having previously failed to enlist the aid of his scapegrace but chivalrous cousin Don César in his scheme, Don Salluste disguises Blas as a nobleman and takes him to court. Intelligent and generous, Blas becomes popular, is appointed

prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

, begins useful political and fiscal reforms, and conquers the Queen's heart. A long speech, 101 lines, in which he contrasts the sordid struggle for sinecures in a decaying monarchy with the glories of Emperor

Charles V Charles V may refer to: Kings and Emperors * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise Others * Charles V, Duke ...

(King Charles I of Spain), is notable. Don Salluste returns to take his revenge. The Queen and Ruy Blas are betrayed into a compromising situation by Don Salluste, who, when Don César threatens to frustrate his revenge, ruthlessly sacrifices his cousin to his injured vanity. Don Salluste discloses the masquerade by cruelly humiliating Blas – he commands Blas to close the window and pick up his handkerchief, while trying to explain the condition of Spanish politics. Blas kills him and decides to commit suicide with poison. At his dying moment, he is forgiven by the Queen who openly declares her love for him.Franco Manzoni, "Il Teatro Romantico di Victor Hugo (Victor Hugo's Romantic Theatre)" on cesil.com in English
Retrieved 3 February 2011

Antecedents

Hugo says he began to write the play on 4 July 1838. The play has, except for the

dénouement A story structure, narrative structure, or dramatic structure (also known as a dramaturgical structure) is the structure of a dramatic work such as a book, play, or film. There are different kinds of narrative structures worldwide, which have be ...

, constant and perplexing likeness to

Edward Bulwer-Lytton Edward George Earle Lytton Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton (; 25 May 1803 – 18 January 1873) was an English writer and politician. He served as a Whig member of Parliament from 1831 to 1841 and a Conservative from 1851 to 1866. He was Secr ...

's ''

The Lady of Lyons ''The Lady of Lyons; or, Love and Pride'', commonly known as ''The Lady of Lyons'', is a five-act romantic melodrama written in 1838 by Edward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton. It was first produced in London at Covent Garden Theatre on 15 Febru ...

'', first acted on 14 February 1838. The idea of a valet set by a scorned lover to woo a fine lady had been turned to dramatic account in

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, ; ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the great writers in the French language and world liter ...

's ''

Les Précieuses ridicules ''Les Précieuses ridicules'' (, ''The Absurd Précieuses'' or ''The Affected Ladies'') is a one-act satire by Molière in prose. It takes aim at the ''précieuses'', the ultra-witty ladies who indulged in lively conversations, word games and, in ...

''. Hugo certainly used

Henri de Latouche Hyacinthe-Joseph Alexandre Thabaud de Latouche, commonly known as Henri de Latouche (2 February 1785 – 9 March 1851) was a French poet and novelist known for his publication of André Chénier and early encouragement of George Sand. (His ...

's ''La Reine d'Espagne'' (1831). In his very inaccurate autobiography, ''Victor Hugo raconté par un témoin de sa vie'', Hugo notes as sources for the play

Madame d'Aulnoy Marie-Catherine Le Jumel de Barneville, Baroness d'Aulnoy (September 1652 – 14 January 1705), also known as Countess d'Aulnoy, was a French author known for her literary fairy tales. Her 1697 collection ''Les Contes des Fées'' (Fairy Tales) ...

's ''Memoirs de la cour d'Espagne, Relation du voyage d'Espagne'' (1690), Alonso Nuñez de Castro's ''Solo Madrid es corte'' (1675) and Jean de Vayrac's ''État présent d'Espagne'' (1718).

Adaptations

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic music, Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions inc ...

wrote a song from and an overture to ''Ruy Blas'' on commission in 1839. Mendelssohn however detested the play. The overture is his opus 95, the song is ''La chanson des lavandières'' in his ''3 Lieder'' (Op. 77) in a translation by the Austrian poet Karl Ferdinand Dräxler. *

Maxime de Redon Maxime is a French given name that may refer to: People *Maxime Bernier (born 1963), former Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs *Maxime Bôcher (1867–1918), an American mathematician * Maxime Boyer (born 1984), a Canadian professional wrestler ...

created a parody, ''Ruy Brac'', first performed in 1838

Maxime de Redon des Chapelles Marquis Charles-François-Jean-Maxime de Redon des Chapelles was a theatrically-obsessed aristocrat under the French ''ancien régime'', and a former French cavalry officer, who in Napoleon's France became one of the more prolific authors for the po ...

* Irish actor and dramatist

Edmund Falconer Edmund Falconer (c.1814 – 29 September 1879), born Edmund O'Rourke, was an Irish poet, actor, theatre manager, songwriter and playwright, known for his keen wit and outstanding acting skills. Early life Edmund O'Rourke was born in Dublin aro ...

translated ''Ruy Blas'' in 1858. It was performed at the Princess Theatre, London, in late 1858. *

W. S. Gilbert Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (18 November 1836 – 29 May 1911) was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his collaboration with composer Arthur Sullivan, which produced fourteen comic operas. The most fam ...

wrote a

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

of the play, by the same name, in Warne's ''Christmas Annual'' for 1866. * An opera of the same name, by

Filippo Marchetti Filippo Marchetti (26 February 1831, Bolognola, Macerata – 18 January 1902, Rome) was an Italian opera composer. After studying in Naples, his first opera was "successfully premiered"Holden, Amanda (Ed.), pp. 528/29 in Turin in 1856. With ...

with a libretto by

Carlo d'Ormeville Carlo is a given name. It is an Italian form of Charles. It can refer to: *Carlo (name) *Monte Carlo *Carlingford, New South Wales, a suburb in north-west Sydney, New South Wales, Australia *A satirical song written by Dafydd Iwan about Prince Char ...

was produced at

La Scala La Scala (, , ; officially , ) is a historic opera house in Milan, Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as (, which previously was Santa Maria della Scala, Milan, a church). The premiere performa ...

in Milan in 1869. * A musical comedy, ''

Ruy Blas and the Blasé Roué Ruy or RUY may refer to: Arts and Entertainment *Ruy, the Little Cid, Spanish animated television series *Ruy Blas, a character in the eponymous tragic drama by Victor Hugo People *another form of Rui, a Portuguese male given name *another form o ...

,'' by

A. C. Torr Frederick George Hobson, known as Fred Leslie (1 April 1855 – 7 December 1892), was an English actor, singer, comedian and dramatist. Beginning his career in operetta, Leslie became best known for starring in, and writing (under the pseudon ...

and Herbert F. Clark with music by

Meyer Lutz Wilhelm Meyer Lutz (19 May 1829 – 31 January 1903) was a German-born British composer and conductor who is best known for light music, musical theatre and Victorian burlesque, burlesques of well-known works. Emigrating to the UK at the age o ...

, premiered in 1889. * A 1948 movie, again called ''

Ruy Blas ''Ruy Blas'' () is a tragic drama by Victor Hugo. It was the first play presented at the Théâtre de la Renaissance and opened on November 8, 1838. Though considered by many to be Hugo’s best drama, the play was initially met with only ave ...

'', was directed by Pierre Billon, adapted by

Jean Cocteau Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau ( , ; ; 5 July 1889 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, film director, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost avant-garde artists of the 20th-c ...

, and starring

Jean Marais Jean-Alfred Villain-Marais (11 December 1913 – 8 November 1998), known professionally as Jean Marais (), was a French actor, film director, theatre director, painter, sculptor, visual artist, writer and photographer. He performed in over 100 f ...

, Danielle Darrieux and Marcel Herrand. * A 1971 movie, '' La folie des grandeurs,'' directed by

Gérard Oury Gérard Oury (; born Max-Gérard Houry Tannenbaum; 29 April 1919 – 20 July 2006) was a French film director, actor and writer. Life and career Max-Gérard Houry-Tannenbaum was the only son of Serge Tannenbaum, a violinist of Russian-Jewish or ...

, adapted by Danièle Thomson, and starring

Alice Sapritch Alice Sapritch (29 July 1916 – 24 March 1990) was a French film actress. She appeared in 66 films between 1950 and 1989. Partial filmography * ''Le tampon du capiston'' (1950) – La pharmacienne * ''Le crime du Bouif'' (1952) * '' If P ...

Louis de Funès Louis Germain David de Funès de Galarza (; 31 July 1914 – 27 January 1983) was a French actor and comedian. He is France's favourite actor, according to a series of polls conducted since the late 1960s, having played over 150 roles in fi ...

and

Yves Montand Ivo Livi (; 13 October 1921 – 9 November 1991), better known as Yves Montand (), was an Italian-born French actor and singer. He is said to be one of France's greatest 20th-century artists. Early life Montand was born Ivo Livi in Stignano, a ...

, is also based on the play. * It also formed the basis for a 2002 telefilm by

Jacques Weber Jacques Weber is a French actor, director, and writer. Life and career Weber joined the Conservatoire national supérieur d'art dramatique at the age of 20, and won the Prix d'Excellence when he left. He joined Robert Hossein in Rheims, and ...

, again called ''Ruy Blas''.

Notes

References

*Holden, Amanda (Ed.), ''The New Penguin Opera Guide'', New York: Penguin Putnam, 2001.
Information about the background of the play on hugo-online
*Lancaster, H. Carrington. "The Genesis of ''Ruy Blas''" in ''Modern Philology'', Vol. 14, No. 11 (March 1917), pp. 641–46

External links

{{Authority control Plays by Victor Hugo 1838 plays Plays set in Spain Fiction set in 1699 Plays adapted into operas French plays adapted into films Plays about queens