Préville (actor)

Préville (17^[1] or 19^[2] September 1721 – 18 December 1799) was a French comic actor.^[1][2]

Portrait of Préville from the second half of the 18th century

Biography

Born Pierre-Louis Dubus to an impoverished family in Paris, he was originally intended for the clergy.^[1] While playing with a mediocre troop of actors in provincial France, Préville's budding talents were spotted in the town of Rouen by Jean Monnet, who engaged him to perform with the Opéra-Comique in Paris in 1743.^[3] Later Préville returned to the provinces and was the manager of the Grand Théâtre in Lyon.^[2]

He joined the Comédie Francaise in Paris in 1753, where he debuted on 20 September in the role of Crispin in Jean-François Regnard's Le Légataire universel (The Sole Legatee).^[1] He took on roles previously played by François-Arnoul Poisson ^[fr] and revealed himself to be the best comedian in the company since Jean-Baptiste Raisin. ^[fr] He appeared with the actress Mlle Dangeville ^[fr] with great success in several plays by Pierre de Marivaux^[4] and created the roles of Figaro in Pierre Beaumarchais's Le Barbier de Séville in 1775 and Brid'oison in Le Mariage de Figaro in 1784.^[3] In 1777, he played the role of Saint-Germain in Jacques Marie Boutet’s play L’amant bourru. One of his most notable successes was playing 6 characters in one in Edmé Boursault's Le Mercure galant.^[4]

He retired in 1786, returning to the stage in 1791 and 1794–5,^[3] and died in Beauvais at the age of 78 years and 3 months.^[2] He was married to Mademoiselle Préville.

See also

• Troupe of the Comédie-Française in 1754
• Troupe of the Comédie-Française in 1755

References

Notes

1. Michaud 1863, pp. 325–326.
2. L'Intermédiaire des chercheurs et curieux 1897, p. 407.
3. Forman 2010, p. 204.
4. Hartnoll 1983, p. 661.

Sources

• Forman, Edward (2010). Historical Dictionary of French Theatre. Lanham, Maryland: The Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-4939-6.
• Hartnoll, Phyllis (1983). The Oxford Companion to the Theatre. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-211546-1.
• L'Intermédiaire des chercheurs et curieux, vol. 36 (1897). Paris. View at Google Books.
• Michaud, Louis Gabriel (1863). Biographie universelle ancienne et moderne, vol. 34. Paris: Desplaces. View at Google Books.