Monsieur Francisque's Touring Troupe and Anglo-French Theatrical Culture 1690-1770

<b>This deeply accomplished and lively monograph charts the career of a travelling French actor-manager whose impact and significance have been overlooked.</b><br><br><br>The <i>inimitable </i>Monsieur Francisque (François Moylin c. 1690-1770) was an extraordinary actor-manager and key figure in the early eighteenth-century theatre world of both England and France. Leader of a family of gifted performers including his niece the famous dancer-choreographer Marie Sallé he took them to every corner of France and beyond playing before Louis XV as well as George I and II of England.<br><br> However despite his fame among his contemporaries Francisque's career has been largely overlooked. Robert V. Kenny resurrects Moylin from the footnotes of theatre history with this detailed case-study of an entrepreneurial actor-manager his troupe and their repertory. Following them from the Paris fairs to the courts of Europe via one of the worst riots in English theatre history the book showcases the giddying range of activities and performances undertaken by this family and their associates.<br><br> Through the careful piecing together of diverse and fragmentary historical records Kenny reveals the crucial role played by Francisque and his troupe in the conflict between Parisian fairground players and the established theatres stressing Francisque's major contribution to the development of <i>opéra-comique</i>. This book not only revives Moylin's legacy but enriches our understanding of cross-cultural theatrical exchanges in eighteenth-century Europe.