LEMAÎTRE (Louis PROSPER, known as Frédérick). - Lot 145

LEMAÎTRE (Louis PROSPER, known as Frédérick). 1800-1876. French actor. P.A.S. "Frédérick Lemaître" addressed to "Messieurs les Artistes du théâtre d'Orléans". Orléans, October 30, 1848. 1 page in-folio. BEAUTIFUL DECORATIVE PIECE. Following performances at the Théâtre d'Orléans, he expresses his thanks: ...I found in you talent, modesty, zeal and urbanity, all things that are not found every sunny day, so I felt the desire to express to you my deep satisfaction and my just gratitude. Salut et Fraternité...Victor Hugo, who saw in Lemaître an actor of genius, cast him in the roles of sensitive young leads, notably Ruy Blas and young Gennaro in Lucrèce Borgia. The actor, nicknamed "the colossus of drama", created the role of Kean in Alexandre Dumas and Hamlet in William Shakespeare. Victor Hugo tried in vain to get him admitted to the Comédie-Française, but was turned down.