Adventure in the Theatre

This study presents the story of a man and a theatre-- a theatre whose very substance aimed at being dramatic rather than literary. It is the story of Lugne-Poe and the Theatre de l'Oeuvre. The Oeuvre, founded in 1893, is so intimately linked with Lugne-Poe's personality that the account must start with his birth, in 1869. Lugne-Poe's attraction to the theatre and innate tenacity explain the birth and fighting spirit of the Theatre de l'Oeuvre; his development at a period of Naturalist and Symbolist ferment explains the theatre's Idealist character in the 1890's.