Provincial Actors, the Comedie-Francaise, and the Business of Performing in Eighteenth-Century France

This essay examines how commercialization transformed theater in eighteenth-century France. It explores the ways acting companies restructured themselves as they cultivated new provincial markets. This process of provincial innovation was mediated to some degree by Paris, as the Comédie-Française used its authority to help define the rights of actors, actresses, and directors. The success of provincial theater also influenced Parisian cultural life. Paris stars capitalized on their fame through performance tours in the provinces provoking criticism that they were neglecting the capital. This labor history of acting suggests the need to reassess the relationship between "center" and "periphery" in France.