The Comédie-Française or Théâtre français is the only state theater in France. It is also one of the few to have its own troupe of actors. It is located in the Ier arrondissement of Paris. For other usages see Theatre (disambiguation) Theater (American English) or Theatre (British English and widespread usage among theatre professionals in the US) is that branch of the performing arts concerned with acting out stories in front of an audience using combinations of speech, gesture, music, dance, sound and spectacle — indeed... The 1er arrondissement is one of the 20 arrondissements of Paris, France. ... The Eiffel Tower has become the symbol of Paris throughout the world. ...

The best-known playwright associated with the Comédie-Française is Molière. He was considered the patron of French actors; however, he died seven years before the birth of La Maison de Molière, as the Comédie-Française is often styled. Molière, engraved frontispiece to his Works Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, better known as Molière ( January 15, 1622 – February 17, 1673), was a French theatre writer, director and actor, one of the masters of comic satire. ...

The Comédie-Française was founded by a decree of Louis XIV on 1680-08-24 to merge the only two Parisian acting troupes of the time, the troupe of the Hôtel Guénégaud and that of the Hôtel de Bourgogne. The repertoire at that time consisted of the collection of theatrical works by Molière and Jean Racine, along with a few works by Pierre Corneille, Paul Scarron and Jean de Rotrou. Louis XIV King of France and Navarre By Hyacinthe Rigaud (1701) Louis XIV (Louis-Dieudonné) (September 5, 1638–September 1, 1715) reigned as King of France and King of Navarre from May 14, 1643 until his death. ... Events First Portuguese governor was appointed to Macau The Swedish city Karlskrona was founded as the Royal Swedish Navy relocated there. ... August 24 is the 236th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (237th in leap years), with 129 days remaining. ... Jean Racine (December 22, 1639 - April 21, 1699) was a French dramatist, one of the big three of 17th century France (along with Molière and Corneille). ... Pierre Corneille (June 6, 1606–October 1, 1684) was one of the three great dramatists produced by France during the 17th century, along with Molière and Racine. ... Paul Scarron (c. ... Jean de Rotrou (August 19 or 20, 1609 - June, 1650) was a French poet and tragedian. ...

On 1793-09-03, during the French revolution, the Comédie-Française was closed by order of the Committee of Public Safety, and the actors were imprisoned. 1793 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... September 3 is the 246th day of the year (247th in leap years). ... The period of the French Revolution in the history of France covers the years between 1789 and 1799, in which democrats and republicans overthrew the absolute monarchy and the Roman Catholic Church was forced to undergo radical restructuring. ... The Committee of Public Safety (French: le Haut Comit de la sant publique), set up by the National Convention on April 6, 1793, formed the de facto executive government of France during the Reign of Terror (1793 - 1794) of the French Revolution. ...

On 1799-05-31, the new government made the Salle Richelieu available and allowed the actors to reconstitute the troupe. 1799 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... May 31 is the 151st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (152nd in leap years), with 214 days remaining, as the last day of May. ...

The Comédie-Française today has a repertoire of 3,000 works and three theatres in Paris (Salle Richelieu, next to the Palais Royal; Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier; Studio-Théâtre). The Eiffel Tower has become the symbol of Paris throughout the world. ... Gardens of the Palais-Royal: The illustration, from an 1863 guide to Paris, enlarges the apparent scale. ...

External link

• Comédie-Française's website (http://www.comedie-francaise.fr)