The Early Stage History of Jules Romains’ Volpone

Abstract

No other adaptation of Volpone has ever received as enthusiastic a reception as Jules Romains’ free version did when it premièred in 1928. It held the stage for over 250 nights and continued to attract large numbers of spectators when taken on tour during the seasons following. The aim of this paper is to uncover the reasons for such overwhelming success by analysing both the theatrical merits of the script and the performing abilities of Charles Dullin’s and Chalres Baret’s ensembles. The information provided by playbills, theatre programmes and critical reviews cast light on the horizon of expectations of their audiences. They make possible an assessment of the ideological approach they favoured as well as of the staging techniques they preferred.